Paul Okon has included Reading midfielder Ryan Edwards in his 20-man Australia under-20s squad set to take part in the AFF U19 tournament.
Australia will travel to Ho Chi Minh City to face host nation Vietnam, Iran and Uzbekistan in the annual competition, which is scheduled to start on September 2 and conclude on the 8th.
And Edwards, who joined the newly promoted English Premier League outfit last year, is the only overseas-based player selected.
The majority of the squad is made up of A-League and National Youth League players.
Promising teenager Terry Antonis is a notable inclusion, with Newcastle Jets defender Connor Chapman and new Western Sydney Wanderers signing Reece Caira also selected.
The Young Socceroos’ trip to Vietnam will be used as preparation for November’s AFC U19 Championship in the United Arab Emirates.
“This will be a very good tournament for us to get a good indication of where we are at in our preparation against opposition that has also qualified for the AFC U-19 Championship,” coach Okon said.
“The players will also be a lot fitter than at the recent AFC U-22 Championship qualifiers in Indonesia and will be closer to the other team in terms of conditioning.
“This will also be the last occasion that we will be without our overseas-based players so it is also an opportunities for the Australia-based players to stake a claim for final selection.”
The Young Socceroos will face a Hong Kong team combined of both U19 and U21 players in a friendly match on August 29 before kicking off the AFF Tournament four days later.
Australia under-20s: Terry Antonis (Sydney FC), Jake Barker-Daish (Adelaide United), Josh Brillante (Newcastle Jets), Corey Brown (Brisbane Roar), Reece Caira (Western Sydney Wanderers), Connor Chapman ( Newcastle Jets), Mitch Cooper (Newcastle Jets), Ryan Edwards (Reading), Ben Garuccio (AIS), Jason Geria (Brisbane Roar, Hagi Gligor (Sydney FC), Paul Izzo (Adelaide United), Jesse Makarounas (Perth Glory), Nick Munro (Croydon Kings), Luke O’Dea (Bentleigh Greens), Brandon O’Neill (Perth Glory, Daniel Petkovski (Sydney FC), Adam Taggart (Newcastle Jets), Riley Woodcock (Perth Glory), David Vrankovic (Melbourne Heart)
