| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (2005-04-07)7 April 2005 (age 20) | ||
| Place of birth | Manchester,England | ||
| Position(s) | defender,Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Perth Glory | ||
| Number | 5 | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2021–2023 | FW NTC | ||
| 2023– | Perth Glory | 36 | (0) |
| 2025 | Preston Lions | 10 | (2) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2023 | Australia U20 | 2 | (0) |
| 2025– | Australia U23 | 4 | (1) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 18 April 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 19 August 2025 | |||
Grace Johnston (born 7 April 2005) is an Australian professional soccer player who plays as amidfielder anddefender forPerth Glory in theA-League Women. Internationally, she played forAustralia U-23, which won the2025 ASEAN Women's Championship.
Johnston was born in 2005 in Manchester, England.[1][2] She attendedWembley Primary School and, in May 2016, was chosen for her state's Under-12s Girls Football team, which competed for national titles.[3] Also in that team was Georgia Cassidy, who became her long-term teammate.[3][4] As a junior Johnston played forSubiaco AFC for two seasons.[2][5]
From 2021 to 2023 Johnston played as a midfielder for theFootball West National Training Centre (FW NTC),[2][6] alongside Cassidy.[4][5] They competed in theNational Premier Leagues WA Women (NPL WA). In 2023, Johnston was part of the FW NTC leadership group, when the team won the State Cup and finished in the top 4 of the NPL WA.[7]
In June 2023, Johnston signed withPerth Glory’s A-League Women’s squad, initially for one season.[7][8] She debuted on 14 October and made 14 appearances in the2023–24 season.[2][5] However, her performances were cut short by asyndesmosis injury in round 17.[5] She was re-signed to the team and made 22 further appearances, mostly as a defender, in2024–25,[9] providing one assist.[10] Her performances earned her a “wildcard” nomination (most votes accumulated throughout the whole season) for theA-League Women's Young Footballer of the Year award for the 2024–25 season.[11] In June 2025 Johnston transferred toPreston Lions FC (women) to compete in theNational Premier Leagues Victoria Women (NPLV Women) during the A-League Women's off-season (from June to August).[12][clarification needed] By August she had made 10 appearances, scoring twice.[13]
As a midfielder, Johnston was added to theAustralia women's national under-20 soccer team (Young Matildas) training camp in Sydney in August 2023.[14][15] She was called-up for twofriendly games againstChina by coachLeah Blayney on 3 and 6 December 2023 inXiamen, China.[16][17]
Johnston was named in theAustralia U-23 squad as a defender. She competed for the2025 ASEAN Women's Championship held inVietnam in August.[18] Her team played against senior national women's squads from theASEAN Football Federation (AFF). Johnston scored her team's fourth goal in the 9–0 group-stage win overTimor-Leste.[19][20] According to Kieran Yap fromImpetus Football, "Johnston scored the most spectacular goal of the match in the shadows of half time. The Perth Glory defender cut inside from the left and unleashed a rocket from 25 yards".[20] Australia went on to win the tournament, defeatingMyanmar 1–0 in thefinal.[21][22]
Johnston is regarded as a versatile player, capable of operating both in central midfield and as a full-back defender, combining defensive strength with composure on the ball.[1]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Perth Glory | 2023–24 | A-League | 14 | 0 | — | — | — | 14 | 0 | |||
| 2024–25 | A-League | 22 | 0 | — | — | — | 22 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 36 | 0 | — | — | — | 36 | 0 | |||||
| Career total | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 0 | ||
International
Individual
Georgia Cassidy, Nth Woodvale PS; Grace Johnston, Wembly PS
