Jariyah Shah, Charlie Wilson-Papps and Max Lyall-Rajendra bring Premier League academy experience to Australia’s first Under-17 World Cup campaign since 2019.
Australia’s Under-17 World Cup squad includes three teenagers developing in Premier League academies, giving the Joeys a notable overseas contingent as they return to the tournament for the first time since 2019. Manchester United’s Jariyah Shah, Brighton & Hove Albion goalkeeper Charlie Wilson-Papps and Bournemouth defender Max Lyall-Rajendra are among the 21 players selected by coach Carl Veart.
The squad is built largely around the A-League Men pathway: 17 players are based in Australia, while four play overseas. Red Bull Salzburg defender Harrison Bond is the other overseas-based selection. Australia will open Group C against Argentina before meeting Denmark and Mozambique in Qatar.
The three Premier League academy players share another distinction: each has eligibility ties beyond Australia. Shah and Wilson-Papps have represented England at Under-15 level, while Lyall-Rajendra can also represent England, Italy or Scotland. Their selections add depth to the Joeys’ options and underline how closely national youth teams track players developing abroad.
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Shah’s route from Doncaster to Manchester United
Jariyah Shah, 17, was born in Canberra on May 25, 2009. His father is Pakistani and his mother Vietnamese; after the family moved to England, Shah also obtained British citizenship. Alongside Australia and England, he is eligible to represent Pakistan and Vietnam.
His path to United’s academy included setbacks. Shah was released by Sheffield United and Sheffield Wednesday before Doncaster Rovers took him on at the age of nine. His father, Tak Shah, recalled in 2023 that the club was initially reluctant to keep him, but one coach argued for giving the youngster more time.
“Doncaster didn’t really fancy him at first but there was one coach who said ‘let’s just keep him’,” Tak told the Doncaster Free Press.
In April 2022, Shah and Doncaster teammate Neithan Barbosa moved to Manchester United. Zac Watson joined them later that year, with United reportedly paying six-figure compensation for the three players. For Shah and his family, the move meant adapting to the demands of an elite academy and a new life around Manchester.
Tak described the standard as relentless, saying the players faced top opposition every week. He also said United accommodated the family’s Muslim faith, including time off when Shah needed it for fasting or Ramadan. The move, he stressed, demanded far more than ability: “It’s not down to talent, it’s down to hard work.”
Shah made his United Under-18s debut at 15, starting in midfield in a 2-1 home win over Wolves in February 2025. He signed scholarship terms on July 1 that year and scored his first Under-18s goal against Everton in December. His club role has since shifted: although described as a defender on United’s website, he started at right-back in a 6-0 win over Wolves last month, moving inside to score with a left-footed shot shortly before half-time.
He has also reached the Under-21s, starting a 1-1 draw with Birmingham City in March before coming off in the 75th minute. Australia has used him in midfield and defence too. After an England Under-15 training camp in December 2023, he was named as a defender for his first Joeys squad, for the Asian Cup qualifiers in Jordan in November 2025. He scored in stoppage time against the Philippines. Club commitments ruled him out of the finals in May, but he returned for a September camp in Spain. Australia lists him as a midfielder for the World Cup.
Wilson-Papps brings international tournament experience
Charlie Wilson-Papps turned 17 on September 13. Born in England, he qualifies for Australia through his heritage and stands 6ft 2in. He began at Sheen Lions before joining AFC Wimbledon’s academy in early 2023. Within a year, he had earned an England Under-15 call-up. Wimbledon confirmed his move to Brighton in December 2024, describing the fee as “a substantial six-figure fee”.
Michael Hamilton, Wimbledon’s academy manager at the time, credited Wilson-Papps and the club’s staff for turning his potential into strong performances. Hamilton said those displays brought a deserved England call-up and attracted attention from clubs across the country, adding that the transfer reflected the academy’s record of developing players recruited higher up the pyramid.
Wilson-Papps switched to Australia for the 2026 Under-17 Asian Cup. He won the starting goalkeeper role ahead of Western Sydney Wanderers’ Lachlan Allen as the Joeys reached the semi-finals and qualified for the World Cup. That competitive appearance provisionally ties him to Australia; a one-time switch would be needed if he later chose to represent England.
Football360’s assessment of Australia’s Asian Cup campaign rated him among the tournament’s leading performers. The report highlighted his important saves, particularly against Vietnam, and his size and ability to beat Allen to the starting spot. Wilson-Papps kept Australia in the semi-final against China until a late spell confirmed a 2-0 defeat.
His club career is also advancing. In July, he signed what AussieScout described on X as “a scholarship and pre-pro deal” with Brighton. This month, the Guardian included him in its Next Generation list of the Premier League’s best first-year scholars.
Lyall-Rajendra earns a rapid rise into the squad
At 16, Max Lyall-Rajendra is the youngest of the three and will remain 16 throughout Australia’s group matches. Born on December 26, 2009, he is a right-footed defender whose main position is right-back, though he can also play in central defence.
Lyall-Rajendra began at London Colney Colts and spent a decade in Watford’s system, making his FA Youth Cup debut at 15. Bournemouth recruited him in July as one of five external players in a 14-player first-year scholarship intake. He joined the Under-18s under lead coach James Lowy after a season in which he often played up an age group at Watford.
His first Australia call-up came in September, for the Copa España camp in Salou, where the side faced Panama and Morocco. That was the final camp before World Cup selection. Six weeks later, Lyall-Rajendra made the tournament squad, a significant choice for Australia given his eligibility for England, Italy and Scotland as well as the Socceroos.
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Group C gives the Joeys an immediate test
Veart expects the tournament to be the biggest stage many of his players have faced. He said the group contains strong opponents, but that Australia wants to meet the challenge with positive football and advance as far as possible. The three Premier League academy players arrive with different profiles: Shah offers positional flexibility, Wilson-Papps brings recent starting experience at a continental tournament, and Lyall-Rajendra has made a quick jump from his first national call-up to the World Cup squad.
Argentina v Australia
Date: Friday, November 20 (AEDT)
Time: 3am AEDT / 7pm local (Thursday, November 19)
Venue: Aspire Zone, Pitch 8, Al Rayyan
Denmark v Australia
Date: Sunday, November 22
Time: 11.30pm AEDT / 3.30pm local
Venue: Aspire Zone, Pitch 4, Al Rayyan
Australia v Mozambique
Date: Thursday, November 26 (AEDT)
Time: 2.30am AEDT / 6.30pm local (Wednesday, November 25)
Venue: Aspire Zone, Pitch 8, Al Rayyan
For Australia, the immediate measure will be how quickly this young group handles three distinct opponents in the group stage. The overseas trio’s academy experience adds useful context, but their first World Cup will also test how well they translate that development into performances for the Joeys.
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