Jake Girdwood-Reich

Jake Girdwood-Reich
Girdwood-Reich warming up vs Brisbane Roar 24 April 2023
Personal information
Full name Jake Max Girdwood-Reich[1]
Date of birth (2004-05-26) 26 May 2004 (age 20)[1]
Place of birth Clovelly, Australia[2]
Height 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[1]
Position(s) Defensive midfielder
Team information
Current team
 St. Louis City SC
Number 3
Youth career
2012–2013 Sydney Olympic
2014 St Johnstone
2016 APIA Leichhardt
2017–2020 Sydney FC
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2020–2023 Sydney FC NPL[3][4] 33 (1)
2022–2024 Sydney FC 39 (1)
2024– St. Louis City SC 1 (0)
2024– St. Louis City 2 0 (0)
International career‡
2019 Australia U16 3 (0)
2023 Australia U20 2 (0)
2024 Australia U23 3 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 4 June 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 24 March 2024

Jake Max Girdwood-Reich (born 26 May 2004) is an Australian professional soccer player who plays as a defensive midfielder for St. Louis City SC. A versatile player, Girdwood-Reich can also be deployed as a centre-back.[5]

Early life

Jake Max Girdwood-Reich was born on 26 May 2004[1] in Clovelly, New South Wales to an Australian father and a Jewish Australian mother. His middle name Max is a tribute to his maternal grandfather, a Holocaust survivor who migrated to Australia after World War II.[6] His mother briefly worked with UNICEF in Sydney, which eventually partnered with Sydney FC in 2012.[7] Girdwood-Reich grew up a Sydney FC supporter and became a member when he was six years old.[8]

He is also a supporter of Premier League club Arsenal and Scottish club Rangers through the influence of the Scottish family of his father. Girdwood-Reich attended Clovelly Public School and Endeavour Sports High School, playing for both the school football teams and state school teams.[9][10] Outside of school, he played junior football for Sydney University, Sydney Olympic and Scottish club St Johnstone.[10] Girdwood-Reich later played in the under-13s for APIA Leichhardt before signing for Sydney FC Youth at the age of 12.[10][11] He also played futsal for Mascot Vipers and the NSW representative futsal team.[10][12]

Club career

Sydney FC

Girdwood-Reich made his professional debut in an Australia Cup Round of 32 match for Sydney against Central Coast Mariners on 31 July 2022.[13] He made his A-League Men debut for the club as a substitute on 29 October 2022 against Macarthur FC.[14]

Jake won the Sydney FC Rising Star Award at the 2022 Sky Blue Awards night shortly after being promoted to the A-League from the NPL squad.[15] 2024 was selected for the PFA Players A League Team of the Season.

St. Louis City SC

After a standout 2023–24 A-League season, Girdwood-Reich was sold to Major League Soccer expansion club St. Louis City SC for an undisclosed amount,[16] believed to exceed the $1.3 million[17] record set by Adrian Mierzejewski.

International career

First representation honours for Girdwood-Reich came in the COVID affected 2019 U17 FIFA World Cup. After playing in all three games in the qualifying tournament in Hanoi, the finals tournament and the World Cup itself were both cancelled due to COVID 19.[18]

Jake's first post-COVID 19 opportunity arose in 2023, with selection for the U20 FIFA World Cup qualifying tournament in Uzbekistan at age 18,[18] where Australia were eliminated by the hosts in the quarter-finals.[19]

In 2024, at age 19, Girdwood-Reich was selected for the U23 Olyroos, to compete in the 2024 WAFF U-23 Championship.[20] He was subsequently selected again for the squad that competed in the 2024 AFC U-23 Asian Cup[21] but did not progress beyond the group stage.

Career statistics

As of 11 August 2024
Club Season League National cup[a][b] Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Sydney FC 2022–23[22] A-League Men 14 0 1 0 — 15 0
2023–24[22] A-League Men 25 1 5 0 — 30 1
Total 39 1 6 0 — 45 1
St. Louis City SC 2024 Major League Soccer 1 0 2 0 — 3 0
Total 1 0 2 0 — 3 0
Career total 40 1 8 0 0 0 48 1

Honours

Sydney FC

Individual

References

  1. ^ a b c d "J. Girdwood-Reich: Summary". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
  2. ^ "Girdwood-Reich Signs New Three Year Contract". Sydney FC. 19 July 2023. Retrieved 15 November 2023. Clovelly-born Girdwood-Reich has played...
  3. ^ "Jake Girdwood-Reich". Football NSW. 7 November 2022.
  4. ^ "Player statistics for Jake Girdwood-Reich – GameDay". My GameDay. 7 November 2022.
  5. ^ "St. Louis CITY acquire Jake Girdwood-Reich from Sydney FC". MLSsoccer staff. 3 June 2024. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
  6. ^ Benjamin, Jonathan (20 November 2022). "Girdwood-Reich nets Israeli's jersey". J-Wire. Retrieved 15 November 2023.
  7. ^ "Sydney FC's Unicef Partnership Given Thumbs Up". Sydney FC. 28 February 2012. Retrieved 15 November 2023.
  8. ^ "Sydney FC's Most Loyal Fan Turned Player?". Sydney FC. 15 July 2022. Retrieved 15 November 2023.
  9. ^ "Ambitious Youngster Girdwoood-Reich Making His Mark In The NPL". Sydney FC. 12 July 2021. Retrieved 15 November 2023.
  10. ^ a b c d Benjamin, Jonathan (12 June 2022). "Jake signs with Sydney FC". J-Wire. Retrieved 15 November 2023.
  11. ^ "Jake earns contract extension with Sky Blues". Australian Jewish News. 28 July 2023. Retrieved 15 November 2023.
  12. ^ Benjamin, Jonathan (3 November 2022). "Two mates debut the A-League". J-Wire. Retrieved 15 November 2023.
  13. ^ "Sydney FC v Central Coast Mariners – Australia Cup Match Centre". Australia Cup. 31 July 2022.
  14. ^ "Macarthur FC vs Sydney FC". KEEPUP. 29 October 2022.
  15. ^ davidw (10 June 2022). "Sky Blue Ball Awards Winners Crowned". Sydney FC. Retrieved 19 November 2022.
  16. ^ "Sydney FC Academy Graduate Sold For Record Transfer Fee". Sydney FC. 4 June 2024.
  17. ^ Monterverde, Marco (4 June 2024). "Sydney FC secures million-dollar transfer amount for young star heading to Major League Soccer". news.com.au. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
  18. ^ a b "The dreams turning into reality: Jake becomes a Young Socceroo". jwire.com.au. 10 February 2023. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  19. ^ "AFC U20 Asian Cup 2023 Fixtures & Standings". the-afc.com. 18 March 2023. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  20. ^ "Subway Olyroos to participate in WAFF U23 Championship in Saudi Arabia". socceroos.com.au. 7 March 2024.
  21. ^ "Subway Olyroos' squad for AFC U-23 Asian Cup Qatar 2024™ confirmed | Football Australia". 4 April 2024.
  22. ^ a b "J. Lolley: Summary". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
  23. ^ Clarke, George (7 October 2023). "Sydney FC beat Brisbane Roar 3–1 to win Australia Cup". The Singleton Argus. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
  24. ^ Rollo, Phillip (16 May 2024). "Wellington Phoenix dominate PFA A-League Men team of the season". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
  1. ^ Australia Cup
  2. ^ Leagues Cup