| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 7 April 2005 | ||
| Place of birth | Perth, Western Australia, Australia | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder, defender | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Perth Glory | ||
| Number | 5 | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2021–2023 | FW NTC | ||
| 2023– | Perth Glory | 36 | (0) |
| 2025 | Preston Lions | 10 | (2) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2023 | Australia U20 | 2 | (0) |
| 2025– | Australia U23 | 4 | (1) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 18 April 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 19 August 2025 | |||
Grace Johnston (born 7 April 2005) is an Australian professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder and defender for Perth Glory in the A-League Women. Internationally, she played for Australia U-23, which won the 2025 ASEAN Women's Championship.
Johnston was born in 2005 in Perth, Western Australia. [1] [2] She attended Wembley Primary School and, in May 2016, was chosen for her state's Under-12s Girls Football team, which competed for national titles. [3] Also in that team was Georgia Cassidy, who became her long-term teammate. [3] [4] As a junior Johnston played for Subiaco AFC for two seasons. [2] [5]
From 2021 to 2023 Johnston played as a midfielder for the Football West National Training Centre (FW NTC), [2] [6] alongside Cassidy. [4] [5] They competed in the National Premier Leagues WA Women (NPL WA). In 2023, Johnston was part of the FW NTC leadership group, when the team won the State Cup and finished in the top 4 of the NPL WA. [7]
In June 2023, Johnston (and Cassidy) signed with Perth Glory’s A-League Women’s squad, initially for one season. [7] [8] She debuted on 14 October and made 14 appearances in the 2023–24 season. [2] [5] However, her performances were cut short by a syndesmosis injury in round 17. [5] She was re-signed to the team and made 22 further appearances, mostly as a defender, in 2024–25, [9] providing one assist. [10] Her performances earned her a “wildcard” nomination for the A-League Women's Young Footballer of the Year award for the 2024–25 season. [11] In June 2025 Johnston transferred to Preston Lions FC (women) to compete in the National Premier Leagues Victoria Women (NPLV Women) during the A-League Women's off-season. [12] [ clarification needed ] By August she had made 10 appearances, scoring twice. [13]
As a midfielder, Johnston was added to the Australia women's national under-20 soccer team (Young Matildas) training camp in Sydney in August 2023. [14] [15] She was called-up, with Cassidy, for two friendly games against China by coach Leah Blayney on 3 and 6 December 2023 in Xiamen, China. [16] [17]
Johnston was named in the Australia U-23 squad as a defender alongside Cassidy as a midfielder. They competed for the 2025 ASEAN Women's Championship held in Vietnam in August. [18] Their team played against senior national women's squads from the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF). Johnston scored her team's fourth goal in the 9–0 group-stage win over Timor-Leste. [19] [20] According to Kieran Yap from Impetus Football, "Johnston scored the most spectacular goal of the match in the shadows of half time. The Perth Glory defender cut inside from the left and unleashed a rocket from 25 yards". [20] Australia went on to win the tournament, defeating Myanmar 1–0 in the final. [21] [22]
Johnston is regarded as a versatile player, capable of operating both in central midfield and as a full-back defender, combining defensive strength with composure on the ball. [1]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Perth Glory | 2023–24 | A-League | 14 | 0 | — | — | — | 14 | 0 | |||
| 2024–25 | A-League | 22 | 0 | — | — | — | 22 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 36 | 0 | — | — | — | 36 | 0 | |||||
| Career total | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 0 | ||
International
Individual
Georgia Cassidy, Nth Woodvale PS; Grace Johnston, Wembly PS
