AFC Toronto's Kaylee Hunter earns her 1st Canada call-up

Kaylee Hunter's outstanding form for AFC Toronto during the inaugural Northern Super League season hasn't gone unnoticed by Canadian women's team coach Casey Stoney. 

Stoney on Monday released her 24-player roster for October's international window that will see Canada play a pair of high-profile European friendlies, and included in her roster is Hunter, a 17-year-old forward who has taken the NSL by storm. 

Ranked No. 9 in the world by FIFA, Canada will face No. 24 Switzerland on Oct. 25 in Lucerne, before facing the Netherlands (ranked 11th) four days later in Nijmegen. 

Hunter, a native of Calgary, is second in NSL scoring this season with a team-high 14 goals, behind only Delaney Pridham (18 goals) of Ottawa Rapid FC. Hunter also has three assists in 22 appearances (1,775 minutes) for Toronto and is second in the league in total shots (56) and shots on target (36).  

The youngster has played a big role in helping Toronto win the Supporters' Shield as the regular season champions while also boasting the best attack in the NSL with 40 goals. 

Under normal circumstances, Hunter would play for Canada at this month's FIFA U-17 World Cup in Morocco. But FIFA doesn't mandate that youth players have to be released for national team duty.

"It would have been preferable that she was involved in the under 17 World Cup. But basing this conversation on facts, Toronto were not going to release her for the under-17 World Cup, so that then made her available for selection for the seniors, and I felt it was the right time," Stoney said during a Monday conference call.

"We're a little bit positionally short in a kind of No. 10 role, so it was a great opportunity to bring her in and give her experience for for the senior team. Until FIFA changes their rulings and make it mandatory for clubs to release for major tournaments like World Cups at U17s, we are dealing with the conditions that we've got."

The young AFC Toronto star previously represented Canada at both the under-17 and under-20 levels, making her international debut in 2023 at age 15 and scored four goals in her first match.  

Hunter officially joined AFC Toronto in January just seven days after her 17th birthday to become one of the youngest players to sign a pro contract ahead of the NSL's debut season. She previously played for Whitecaps FC Girls Elite in League1 British Columbia, winning a pair of league titles and being named the MVP at the 2024 Women's Inter-Provincial Championship. She also helped the team qualify for the 2024 Concacaf Women’s Champions Cup.

AFC Toronto’s Olivia Chisholm named to Canada’s U-17 World Cup squad

Chisholm is one of six Northern Super League players who will play for Canada at the upcoming World Cup in Morocco.

TFC REPUBLICJohn Molinaro

Pridham didn't receive a call up even though she leads the NSL scoring race with 18 goals, four more than Hunter. Stoney said while Pridham has performed "very well in the NSL," she explained there are Canadians strikers playing in more established leagues.

"I still think the NSL is a growing league. It's not a top league, it's not a top-five league. I would want the forwards doing that in the top-five leagues in the world and I've got forwards in this squad that are doing that. It doesn't mean she's not in contention. it doesn't mean she's not being tracked. She absolutely is," Stoney said.

She added: "Kaylee Hunter is different because she's coming in in a [No.] 10 role, not in a forward position for us."

Hunter is one of three players on Stoney's latest roster to earn their first Canadian call-ups. The others are goalkeeper Emily Burns (FC Nantes), and midfielder Florianne Jourde (Paris Saint-Germain). 

There's also a recall for defender Sydney Collins (Bay FC) who returns to the squad after being sidelined by an injury for more than a year. The last of her six caps for Canada came in a 1-0 win over Australia in Vancouver on Dec. 5, 2023. 

"It's incredible to be able to call her back in ... I'm really pleased that she's at Bay [FC], that she's consistently playing, that she's playing and affecting games; playing consistent minutes as well, which is really important for her and her return. The flexibility, the fact that she can play fullback, centre back, wing back, gives us real strength in depth in that back line," Stoney said.

The most recognizable names on Canada’s latest roster are captain Jessie Fleming and fellow midfielder Julia Grosso, goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan, defenders Ashley Lawrence and Shelina Zadorsky, and forwards Janine Sonis and Adriana Leon. 

Unavailable for Canada for this international window due to injury are midfielder Simi Awujo (Manchester United), defenders Kadeisha Buchanan (Chelsea) and Vanessa Gilles (Bayern Munich), and goalkeeper Lysianne Proulx (Juventus). Forward Annabelle Chukwu of (University of Notre Dame) and midfielder Kayla Briggs (Michigan State University) were unavailable for selection by mutual agreement with their schools. 

Buchanan is one of Canada's most experienced players with 156 caps to her credit. She's been sidelined since last November when she suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) knee injury in a club match for Chelsea. Stoney offered a grim update when asked when the centre back might come back for club and country.

"Not anytime soon, unfortunately. Se's had a setback," Stoney revealed.

Other notable absences are Vancouver Rise midfielder Quinn and Utah Royals forward Cloé Lacasse. It's the second camp in a row in which Quinn, who has 106 caps for Canada hasn’t been selected. Quinn was recently named NSL player of the month for September.

"I visited Vancouver and I met with Quinn. We had a very open, honest conversation. .... Within the last month, we've spoken about consistency of form and continuing that over several months and we will be continuing with that conversation moving forward. And the door is never closed for anybody," Stoney said.

Canada sports a 4-1-0 all-time record against Switzerland dating back to their first meeting in 2010, including a 1-0 victory in their previous meeting in the round-of-16 at the 2015 World Cup in Vancouver.   

The Canadians and the Dutch have met 14 times since 1988. Canada has nine wins, four draws, and a loss against the Netherlands with their most recent encounter coming at the Tournoi de France in 2020, which resulted in a 0-0 stalemate.  

Canada has been idle since the previous FIFA international window in late June/early July when it earned a 4-1 win over No. 43 Costa Rica in Toronto before being blanked 3-0 by the No. 1 U.S. in Washington, D.C.  

CANADA'S SQUAD  

Goalkeepers: Sabrina D’Angelo (Aston Villa), Kailen Sheridan (San Diego Wave), Emily Burns (FC Nantes).  

Defenders: Ashley Lawrence (Olympique Lyonnais), Shelina Zadorsky (West Ham United), Jade Rose (Manchester City), Sydney Collins (Bay FC), Gabrielle Carle (Washington Spirit), Jayde Riviere (Manchester United), Zara Chavoshi (Orlando Pride), Marie Levasseur (Montpellier HSC).  

Midfielders: Jessie Fleming (Portland Thorns), Marie-Yasmine Alidou (Portland Thorns), Julia Grosso (Chicago Red Stars), Emma Regan (AFC Toronto), Florianne Jourde (Paris Saint-Germain). 

Forwards: Kaylee Hunter (AFC Toronto), Jordyn Huitema (Seattle Reign FC), Adriana Leon (San Diego Wave), Nichelle Prince (Kansas City Current), Olivia Smith (Arsenal), Janine Sonis (Racing Louisville), Evelyne Viens (AS Roma), Holly Ward (Vancouver Rise). 

(Top courtesy of AFC Toronto)

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