By Marcus Uhe
Dandenong Thunder pulled off a massive signing coup on the eve of the National Premier League (NPL) beginning last week with the acquisition of former A-League journeyman goalkeeper Jamie Young.
The 39-year-old retired immediately from professional football on Thursday 6 February with Thunder announcing its major signing later that afternoon.
Young finished his A-League career at Melbourne City after a storied career beginning in the United Kingdom and finishing with stints at multiple A-League clubs, including Western United and Brisbane Roar totalling 228 appearances.
In the 2021/22 season he won a championship with United, keeping a clean sheet in the club’s first-ever grand final win, having spent the previous seven campaigns at Brisbane Roar, where he was twice named between the sticks in the Professional Footballers Australia (PFA) Team of the Year and won Goalkeeper of the Year honours in 2017-18.
Young’s addition to the squad will help to cover the vacancy left by Pierce Clark’s departure.
Clark, a goalkeeper with A-League experience himself, spent one season with Thunder in 2024 before moving to Dandenong City.
Thunder signed a trio of goalkeepers over the offseason in Andrew Withers, Ben McCauley and Joaquin Fernandez, but the threesome will likely be required to bide their time before receiving an opportunity to play in Thunder’s first choice line up.
Young made a winning start to life in Thunder goals, with a handful of important saves in Thunder’s win against Green Gully on Saturday night.
