Ava Collins

Last updated

Ava Collins
Personal information
Full name Ava Teresa Collins [1]
Date of birth (2002-04-18) 18 April 2002 (age 23) [2]
Height 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position Midfielder
Team information
Current team
Western Sydney Wanderers
Number 30
Youth career
2015–2019 St Cuthbert's College
College career
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2020–2023 St. John's Red Storm 61 (12)
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2019–2020 Eastern Suburbs
2024–2025 Kolding IF
2025 Auckland United
2026 UNSW FC
2026– Western Sydney Wanderers 1 (0)
International career
2019–2022 New Zealand U20 8 (6)
2021– New Zealand 14 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 26 February 2026
‡ National team caps and goals as of 13 February 2024

Ava Teresa Collins (born 18 April 2002) is a New Zealand footballer who plays as a midfielder for Western Sydney Wanderers in the A-League Women and for the New Zealand national team.

Contents

College career

Collins played in college for St. John's Red Storm from 2020 until 2023. She made an immediate impact in her first season and was named to the All-BIG EAST Freshman Team and the United Soccer Coaches All-East Region Second Team. On debut she scored a goal and two assists against Albany Great Danes. In her second season, she appeared in 20 matches and scored four goals, including game-winners against DePaul Blue Demons and Brown Bears. [3]

In 2022, Collins started 15 of 17 matches and finished the season with three goals. Her performances earned her a spot on the TopDrawerSoccer National Team of the Week in November. Despite missing seven games due to injury in 2023, Collins ranked third in the BIG EAST for goals per game in conference play (0.43). She scored three goals, including the game-winning goal of a 3–1 victory over Butler Bulldogs. [3]

Club career

In August 2024, Collins signed her first professional contract, joining top Danish club Kolding IF in the Elitedivisionen. [4]

In January 2026, Collins joined UNSW FC for the 2026 National Premier Leagues NSW Women's season. [5]

In February 2026, Collins was signed by A-League Women club Western Sydney Wanderers as an injury replacement until the end of the 2025–26 A-League Women season, [6] following Kim So-eun's foot injury. [7]

International career

Collins played for the New Zealand U-20 team, winning the 2019 OFC U-19 Women's Championship in the Cook Islands which qualified them for the 2021 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup before it was cancelled. [8] [9] She scored six goals across the four games she played in, five coming in one game against American Samoa. [10]

She made her international debut for New Zealand in their 1–5 loss to Canada in October 2021. [11] [12]

References

  1. "Squad List, FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup Costa Rica 2022: New Zealand (NZL)" (PDF). FIFA . 3 August 2022. p. 13. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  2. "OFC U-19 Women's Championship 2019. Official Team List" (PDF). OFC. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  3. 1 2 "Ava Collins". St. John's Red Storm . Retrieved 26 February 2026.
  4. "Ferns forward Ava Collins signs for Danish first division club Kolding IF". Friends of Football. 11 August 2024.
  5. "Eyes on Silverware: UNSW FC Load Up for Ambitious 2026 NPL Women's NSW Campaign". NPL NSW. 16 January 2026.
  6. Csaszar, Jessica (21 February 2026). "Wanderers sign New Zealand International Ava Collins as Ninja A-League Injury Replacement". Western Sydney Wanderers .
  7. Csaszar, Jessica (24 January 2026). "Sony sidelined by injury". Western Sydney Wanderers .
  8. "New Zealand first to book ticket to France". FIFA.com. 21 July 2017. Archived from the original on 22 August 2017.
  9. "Update on FIFA Club World Cup 2020 and women's youth tournaments". fifa.com. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  10. "American Samoa v New Zealand U20". Oceania Football Confederation. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  11. "Football Ferns fall to Canada: "From these games, we can learn the most."". New Zealand Football . Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  12. Voerman, Andrew (23 October 2021). "Defensive fixes needed as Football Ferns lose to Canada in Jitka Klimková's first match". Stuff . Retrieved 25 October 2021.