Quick Facts
Biography
Kyah Pam Simon (born 25 June 1991) is an Australian professional soccer striker who plays for Melbourne City in the W-League. In 2011, Simon became the first Indigenous Australian player to score a goal in a FIFA World Cup. She has played for Sydney FC, Central Coast Mariners, and Western Sydney Wanderers in the Australian W-League and for the Boston Breakers and the Houston Dash in the American National Women's Soccer League.
Early life
Kyah was born in Blacktown, NSW of Aboriginal-Australian descent. Growing up amongst a family of rugby players in Quakers Hill, New South Wales, near Sydney, Australia, Simon began playing football for the Quakers Hill under-8s and fell in love with the game. As a youth, she played for the Hills Brumbies before moving across to Penrith Nepean United. At age fifteen, she broke her leg just on the verge of earning a scholarship with the NSW Institute of Sport, but that did not deter her from pursuing her dream. She made her national debut for the Australia women's national soccer team the following year at age 16.
Club career
Central Coast Mariners
Kyah made her debut for the Central Coast Mariners against Melbourne Victory on Saturday, 25 October 2008. Kyah then made her scoring debut during Round 3 against Canberra United, scoring a double to assist the Mariners to a 2–1 win away from home.
Sydney FC
Simon joined Sydney FC for the 2009 W-League Season, playing in the first round against former club the Central Coast Mariners.
She was the top scorer in the 2010–11 W-League with 11 goals in 12 games. She also earned Player of the Year, Young Player of the Year and Players Player of the Year honours.
Boston Breakers
In April 2012, Simon signed with the Boston Breakers for the first and only season of the Women's Premier Soccer League Elite (WPSL Elite). She finished the season as the team's leading scorer with 12 goals and 26 points. She also ranked second in the league in the same categories. Simon logged 1,052 minutes with the Breakers and finished with two assists.
In 2013, Simon signed as a free agent with the Breakers for the inaugural season of the National Women's Soccer League.
Western Sydney Wanderers
In September 2013, Simon signed with Western Sydney Wanderers.
Return to Sydney FC
After being injured for most of the 2013–14 season and hardly playing, Simon returned to Sydney FC for the 2014 season.
Return to Boston Breakers
On 30 June 2015, after leading the Australia women's national soccer team to a quarter-final of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, the Boston Breakers announced the signing of Kyah Simon; returning her to the National Women's Soccer League.
In January 2017, citing a need to "get my mind and body back to 100 percent health and fitness, and be ready for the next season", it was announced that Simon would not return to the Boston Breakers for the 2017 season.The Breakers retain the rights to her contract for the 2017 season.
Melbourne City
On 6 October 2017, Simon returned to Australia, joining Melbourne City.
Houston Dash
After the Breakers folded ahead of the 2018 NWSL season, the NWSL held a dispersal draft to distribute Breakers players across the league. Her rights were selected 6th overall by Houston. On 28 February, the Dash announced they signed Simon to a contract. She made her debut for the Dash on 28 April against the North Carolina Courage in a 2–0 loss. Simon scored her first goal of the season in a 1–1 draw against the Portland Thorns FC on 9 May. Following the 2019 NWSL season, the Dash chose to waive Simon, placing her on the re-entry wire.
International career
Simon made her debut for the Australia women's national soccer team in August 2007, at the age of 16, in a match against Hong Kong. She scored her first goal in a win over Brazil in the 2008 Peace Cup. In 2010, she scored the winning penalty for Australia to win the 2010 Asian Cup.
Simon appeared at the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup, where she scored both of Australia's goals in a 2–1 win over Norway to ensure qualification for the quarter finals. She was the first male or female Indigenous Australian player to score a goal in a World Cup tournament.
In Canada during the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup round of 16 match against higher ranked Brazil, Simon slotted in the winning goal on a rebound after an initial attempt by Lisa De Vanna bounced off the Brazilian goalkeeper Luciana. The Matildas qualified for a historic quarter-final match after the 1–0 win against Brazil, however were knocked out by Japan in the quarterfinal. Simon played each of Australia's 5 matches and scored 3 goals, including both goals in a 2–0 win against Nigeria in group stage.
In popular culture
Television and film
In 2013, Simon was featured in an hour-long episode of ESPN's Aussies Abroad entitled, The Matildas, which profiled four Australian national team players (Simon, Lisa De Vanna, Samantha Kerr, and Caitlin Foord) and their experience playing internationally. Simon was also one of the subjects of a football documentary titled "No Apologies" by award winning filmmaker Ashley Morrison. This documentary tells the story of two Aboriginal female footballers and their journey to the World Cup. The other footballer featured in this documentary is Lydia Williams.
Magazines
In June 2011, Simon was on the cover of the Australian FourFourTwo Magazine along with fellow Matilda's Melissa Barbieri, Sam Kerr, Thea Slatyer and Sarah Walsh.
Career statistics
International appearances
- As of 10 April 2018
| Australia national team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2007 | 1 | 0 |
| 2008 | 11 | 1 |
| 2009 | 0 | 0 |
| 2010 | 10 | 1 |
| 2011 | 11 | 5 |
| 2012 | 7 | 4 |
| 2013 | 2 | 0 |
| 2014 | 0 | 0 |
| 2015 | 16 | 5 |
| 2016 | 12 | 5 |
| 2017 | 6 | 2 |
| 2018 | 2 | 1 |
| Total | 78 | 24 |
International goals
Scores and results list Australia's goal tally first.
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19 June 2008 | Suwon Sports Complex, Suwon, South Korea |  Brazil | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2008 Peace Queen Cup |
| 2 | 6 March 2010 | Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane, Australia |  North Korea | 3–2 | 3–2 | Friendly |
| 3 | 12 May 2011 | Bluetongue Stadium, Gosford, Australia |  New Zealand | 2–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 4 | 20 June 2011 | Jahnstadion, Göttingen, Germany |  Mexico | 3–2 | 3–2 | Friendly |
| 5 | 6 July 2011 | BayArena, Leverkusen, Germany |  Norway | 1–1 | 2–1 | 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup |
| 6 | 2–1 | |||||
| 7 | 3 September 2011 | Jinan Olympic Sports Center Stadium, Jinan, China |  Thailand | 1–0 | 5–1 | 2012 Olympics qualifying |
| 8 | 13 September 2012 | Carroll Stadium, Indianapolis, United States |  Haiti | 3–0 | 4–0 | Friendly |
| 9 | 20 November 2012 | Bao'an Stadium, Shenzhen, China |  Chinese Taipei | 3–0 | 7–0 | 2013 EAFF Women's East Asian Cup preliminary round 2 |
| 10 | 6–0 | |||||
| 11 | 22 November 2011 | Bao'an Stadium, Shenzhen, China |  Hong Kong | 2–0 | 4–0 | 2013 EAFF Women's East Asian Cup preliminary round 2 |
| 12 | 19 May 2015 | Valentine Sports Park, Sydney, Australia |  Vietnam | 3–0 | 4–0 | Friendly |
| 13 | 12 June 2015 | Winnipeg Stadium, Winnipeg, Canada |  Nigeria | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup |
| 14 | 2–0 | |||||
| 15 | 21 June 2015 | Moncton Stadium, Moncton, Canada | Brazil | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup |
| 16 | 29 November 2015 | Incheon Sungui Stadium, Incheon, South Korea |  South Korea | 1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
| 17 | 2 March 2016 | Nagai Stadium, Osaka, Japan | Vietnam | 2–0 | 9–0 | 2016 Olympics qualifying |
| 18 | 4–0 | |||||
| 19 | 5–0 | |||||
| 20 | 4 March 2016 | Nagai Stadium, Osaka, Japan | South Korea | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2016 Olympics qualifying |
| 21 | 9 August 2016 | Itaipava Arena Fonte Nova, Salvador, Brazil |  Zimbabwe | 4–0 | 6–1 | 2016 Summer Olympics |
| 22 | 8 March 2017 | Albufeira Municipal Stadium, Albufeira, Portugal |  Denmark | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2017 Algarve Cup |
| 23 | 26 November 2017 | GMHBA Stadium, Geelong, Australia |  China PR | 1–1 | 5–1 | Friendly |
| 24 | 10 April 2018 | Amman International Stadium, Amman, Jordan | Vietnam | 1–0 | 8–0 | 2018 AFC Women's Asian Cup |
| 25 | 10 February 2020 | Campbelltown Stadium, Campbelltown, Sydney, Australia | Thailand | 3-0 | 6-0 | 2020 AFC Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament |
| 26 | 6-0 |
Honours
Club
- Sydney FC
- W-League Championship: 2009, 2012–13
- W-League Premiership: 2009, 2010–11
- Melbourne City
- W-League Championship: 2017–2018
Country
- Australia
- AFC Women's Asian Cup: 2010
- AFC Olympic Qualifying Tournament: 2016
Individual
- Julie Dolan Medal: 2010–11
- W-League Golden Boot: 2010–11
- W-League Young Player of the Year: 2010–11
