DANIEL Campbell from Coffs Harbour has been selected for the Pararoos against the United States on Saturday 4 February in Sydney.

Campbell burst onto the scene five years ago as a fifteen-year-old, making his debut against the United States with a cameo appearance as a substitute.

The 20-year-old Coffs Coast Tigers defender has since established himself as a key player, scoring important goals in big tournaments and will pocket his nineteenth cap on Saturday night in Manly.

Daniel won ‘Young Player of the Year’ in 2018 and scooped the big prize last year, winning Pararoo ‘Player of the Year’ for 2022 after scoring a hat-trick at the IFCPF World Cup in Barcelona.

Overcoming hurdles has been a key feature to Campbell’s success, who was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy at the age of four.

He couldn’t run without falling over, so he looked down at his feet and discovered magic in his toes.

“Growing up I fell over a lot, I was always tripping on things.

“I had spasms in my legs, so I walked on my toes,” he said.

“I discovered early on that If I ran I could be on my toes and I wouldn’t fall over.

“There were certain things I couldn’t do – but I learnt to adjust and adapt.”

Born in Addis Ababa in Ethiopia, Campbell travelled to Australia with his adoptive family when he was six-months-old and has been kicking a football since the day he could walk.

The love of football and wearing the green gold has been his inspiration.

“It’s always an honour to represent your country, especially playing the game I love.

“The USA is a very strong team with a good coaching staff around them.

“They finished fourth at the recent World Cup in Barcelona 2022.

“It will be a very hard game for us, so we need to be switched on if we want to get a good result.”

Daniel won’t be resting on his laurels and has fresh goals to kick in 2023.

“I have some goals on and off the field this year and I’m determined to accomplish them so 2023 can be as good a year as 2022.

“My hope is that one day the Pararoos will be recognised in the same way as the Socceroos and the Matildas are, that we will inspire younger generations of football players that anything is possible,” said Daniel.

Match tickets for the Pararoos versus USA are available through Ticketek, with the match kicking off on Saturday 4 February at 3pm at Cromer Park, Manly.

100 percent of ticket sales are invested back into the Pararoos.

By David WIGLEY