Joel Blanchfield-Keane, a talented goalkeeper born and raised on the Central Coast, has been selected to represent the U23s Australian Deaf Football Team.
Joel, 15, who has previously played for East Gosford FC and JR ZL Central Coast Mariners, is set to attend a training camp at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) in Canberra later this month, ahead of his participation in the 2026 Deaf Football World Cup in Thailand.
“Football is life,” he said.
“It is everything to me.”
The Kincumber High School student has auditory neuropathy and wears bilateral hearing aids with moderate loss in his left ear and moderate/severe loss in his right.
“I don’t think his hearing loss has held him back,” his mum Jodi Blanchfield said.
“He has to concentrate more to understand what’s being said, especially in noisy situations.
“This is why he probably loves being a goalkeeper – not as much noise as on the field and he can watch the game and concentrate on what he needs to do.”
Playing in the World Cup is a significant achievement for Joel, not only as an athlete with a disability but as a local from the Central Coast making his mark on the international stage.
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