Joshua James Rawlins (born 23 April 2004) is a professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a

right back In the sport of association football, a defender is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categ ...

for

Melbourne Victory Melbourne Victory Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Melbourne, Victoria. Competing in the country's premier men's competition, the A-League Men, under licence from Australian Professional Leagues (APL), Victory ...

Early life

Born in

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

, Rawlins played for Dianella Soccer Club during his childhood, before joining

Perth Glory Perth Glory Football Club is an Australian professional Association football, soccer club based in Perth, Perth, Western Australia. It competes in the country's premier men's competition, A-League Men, under Professional sports league organi ...

's development sector in 2015. He attended Our Lady's Assumption Primary School in

Dianella Dianella may refer to: * ''Dianella'' (beetle), a species and genus of beetle in the family Carabidae now known as ''Diamella'' * ''Dianella'' (gastropod), a genus of freshwater snails in the family Hydrobiidae * ''Dianella'' (plant), a genus of ...

, and then continued his study path at Chisholm Catholic College in

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population was 106,940. Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire and seat of the Borough of Bedford local government district. Bedford was founded at a ford (crossin ...

Club career

Perth Glory

After coming through the youth ranks of

and playing both in the

A-League Youth A-League Youth, formerly known as the National Youth League and Y-League is a defunct Australian national soccer youth developmental and under-21s league, founded by Football Federation Australia and later run by the Australian Professional Le ...

and the

National Premier Leagues The National Premier Leagues (NPL) is a men's national association football competition in Australia which acts as the second tier of the sport in the country below the A-League. The NPL consists of the highest level state league in each state- ...

with their youth sides, Rawlins made his professional debut on 18 November 2020, starting the match against

Shanghai Shenhua Shanghai Shenhua Football Club () is a Chinese professional football club based in Shanghai, that competes in . Shanghai Shenhua plays its home matches at the Shanghai Stadium, located within Xuhui District. The owner of Shanghai Shenhua is ...

in the

group stage A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentr ...

of the

2020 AFC Champions League The 2020 AFC Champions League was the 39th edition of Asia's premier club football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the 18th under the current AFC Champions League title. Ulsan Hyundai won their second Cham ...

, which Perth eventually lost 1-2. In the occasion, he became the youngest player to ever feature in an ACL game, at 16 years, six months and 26 days. He would go on playing three more matches in the continental tournament, two of which as a starter, as his side finished last in their group and failed to progress to the next round. On 20 January 2021, Rawlins made his debut in the

A-League A-League Men, also known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional soccer league in Australia and New Zealand and the highest level of the Australian soccer league system. Established in 2004 as the A-League by the ...

, starting the match against

Adelaide United Adelaide United Football Club is a professional men's soccer club located in Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. The club was one of the eight founding members of the A-League Men and have competed in it concurrently since its formation, u ...

as his team eventually gained a 5-3 win: at 16 years and 272 days, he became the youngest ever player to feature in the starting XI for a league match. Under the manager

Richard Garcia Richard Garcia (born 4 September 1981) is an Australian association football manager and former player. He is currently an assistant coach for Australia's U23 team, having previously managed A-League Men's side Perth Glory. As a player, Garci ...

, he went on to collect eleven more appearances during the campaign (seven of which as a starter), as Perth finished the regular season at the bottom of the league table. Finally, on 24 November 2021, the full-back debuted in the

FFA Cup The Australia Cup (currently known as the Hahn Australia Cup for sponsorship reasons) is the national soccer knockout cup competition in Australia. This annual competition is organised by Football Australia (known as Football Federation Austra ...

, coming in as a substitute for Tyler Vecchio at the 66th minute of the play-off match against

, with the visitors eventually winning the match at penalty shoot-outs. During the 2021-2022 season, Rawlins established himself more as a regular starter in the team, collecting a total amount of 23 appearances between the league and the

national cup The English National Cup is an annual basketball knock-out competition held between professional, semi-professional and amateur teams from the various divisions of the National Basketball League (England), National Basketball League. For most of th ...

, although Perth Glory finished last in the A-League and got left out of the final play-offs for the second year in a row.

Utrecht

On 4 May 2022, it was officially announced that Rawlins would join

Utrecht Utrecht ( ; ; ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city of the Netherlands, as well as the capital and the most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Utrecht (province), Utrecht. The ...

on 1 July for an undisclosed fee, signing a four-year contract with the Dutch club and becoming their fifth ever Australian player in the process, after

Tommy Oar Thomas Michael Oar (born 10 December 1991) is a retired Australian professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Born on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Oar played youth football for Burleigh Heads, Palm Beach and at the Queensland Academy ...

Adam Sarota Adam Tomek Sarota (born 28 December 1988) is an Australian footballer who plays as a central midfielder. Career Club Brisbane Roar Sarota was named National Youth League Player of the Year for 2008–2009. As a result of his solid performance ...

Michael Zullo Michael Zullo (born 11 September 1988) is an Australian professional footballer who last played as a left-back for Sydney FC of the A-League. Club career After being signed by the former Brisbane Roar coach Frank Farina on a two-year contract, ...

and

Daniel Arzani Daniel Arzani (; born 4 January 1999) is a professional association football, soccer player who plays as a Winger (association football), winger or attacking midfielder for Nemzeti Bajnokság I club Ferencvárosi TC, Ferencváros. Born in Iran, ...

. On 11 June 2024, Utrecht announced that Rawlins had terminated his contract with the club by mutual consent.

Loan to Perth Glory

On 29 January 2024, Perth announced the re-signing of Rawlins on loan. In May 2024, the club confirmed that Rawlins had returned to his parent club.

Melbourne Victory

On 28 June 2024, it was officially announced that Rawlins had signed for

International career

Rawlins was born in Australia. He has represented Australia at several youth international levels. He was the

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

of the national selection at the

2019 AFF U-15 Championship The 2019 AFF U-15 Championship was the fourteenth edition of the AFF U-16 Championship (second edition of the under-15 era), the annual international youth association football championship organised by the ASEAN Football Federation for men's un ...

, where his side failed to progress to the knock-out stage. In the same year, he was also included in the

squad In military terminology, a squad is among the smallest of Military organization, military organizations and is led by a non-commissioned officer. NATO and United States, U.S. doctrine define a squad as an organization "larger than a fireteam, ...

that took part in the FIFA Under-17 World Cup in

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

: being the youngest player of the bunch, Rawlins played all of the three matches in the group stage of the competition, as the ''Joeys'' managed to progress to the knock-out phase as one of the best third-placed teams, before eventually getting eliminated by

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

in the round of 16. In May 2022, Rawlins was called-up to the under-23 national team to take part in the

AFC U-23 Asian Cup The AFC U-23 Asian Cup, previously the AFC U-22 Championship (in 2013) and AFC U-23 Championship (between 2016 and 2020), is a biennial international football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the men's under-23 n ...

Uzbekistan , image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg , image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg , symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem , national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...

, once again being the youngest member in the squad. He subsequently made his debut for the ''Olyroos'' on June 4, starting their second group stage fixture against

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

: in the occasion, he assisted

Alou Kuol Alou Mawien Kuol (born 5 July 2001) is a professional soccer player who plays as a striker. Kuol is currently a free agent, having most recently played for Central Coast Mariners. Born in Sudan, he represented Australia at youth level. Early ...

's opening goal, as the match eventually ended in a 1-1 draw. After losing to eventual champions

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

in the semi-finals, Australia also lost the third place match against

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

and finished fourth overall in the continental tournament.

Style of play

Whilst being mainly a

, Rawlins can play in any position across the backline, as well as a

defensive mid In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

fielder. He's been described as an athletic, quick and intelligent footballer, who has his biggest strengths in his passing and dribbling skills, while also doing good in the defensive phase of his game. In 2021, the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

newspaper ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' included him in their annual list of the most promising talents in world football, alongside his fellow countryman Mohamed Toure.

Career statistics

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rawlins, Joshua 2004 births Living people Soccer players from Perth, Western Australia Australian men's soccer players Australia men's youth international soccer players Australia men's under-23 international soccer players Australian people of Malaysian descent Men's association football defenders Perth Glory FC players Jong FC Utrecht players Melbourne Victory FC players National Premier Leagues players A-League Men players Eerste Divisie players Australian expatriate men's soccer players Expatriate men's footballers in the Netherlands Australian expatriate sportspeople in the Netherlands 21st-century Australian sportsmen