Collette Gardiner (née McCallum)

Widely considered one of Australia's greatest female footballers, Collette Gardiner (née McCallum) played for almost a decade with the Matildas.

As a youth player, her experience was prolific before moving to the senior team where she was the key piece in the Matildas midfield for many years, including the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup™ and in Australia's victorious 2010 AFC Women’s Asian Cup™ campaign.

Born in Scotland and raised in Perth, Gardiner recovered from two ACL injuries as a teenager to become a regular senior Matildas’ player by age 20. She was also one of the first Australian women to win club titles overseas.

Fatmire Bajramaj (L) of Germany and of Collette McCallum (R) of Australia battle for the ball during the women's international friendly match between Germnay and Australia at Volkswagen Arena on October 28, 2010 in Wolfsburg, Germnay. (Photo by Martin Rose/Bongarts/Getty Images)

Gardiner made 81 appearances for Australia at the senior level, scoring 11 goals in a decade. The midfielder scored during Australia's 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup™ historic campaign, scoring the equaliser against Canada to help Australia book their spot in the knockout stage for the first-ever time.