By Tara Murray
Western United’s Adriana Taranto thought a message that would lead to one of the biggest phone calls of her life was spam.
The message was anything but as she soon found out and the phone call would take her a step to achieving a dream.
Taranto was left shocked by the news she was selected for her first Matildas squad. On Saturday, she made her Matildas debut as she come off the bench.
“It was pretty crazy,” she said before the weekend. “I had finished doing a gym session and was going home in the car, got a little Whatsapp message from the team manager, asking for a call.
“I thought, is this a scam? What is this? I said sure and got the call and they said on behalf of Joe [Montemurro] we would like you to come into camp.
“I was a bit like, why? Are you sure? I was absolutely stoked.”
Taranto said she didn’t even realise on the radar of the new Matildas coach.
She only returned from an ACL injury in January.
“I think this year for me I was really focused on my rehab,” she said. “Just getting myself back to playing and the way I was pre-injury.
“Try and get my confidence back. I did get quite a few games in with Western which I was really happy about.
“In the end, I did feel a lot more confident in playing in my body, but I didn’t really think Joe was maybe taking note.
“I just think for me, in my head I was building back up season and see what happens.
“It was a very, very nice surprise.”
Taranto, who is now in camp with the Matildas, said it was slowly settling in that she is part of the environment.
She is part of the squad that will play two games against Panama which started on Saturday.
“Sometimes I walk out to training and I look around and think what am I doing here?“ she said.
“Once we got that first session out of the way, I settled in a bit more.
“You do all the introductions and once that is all out of the way, it has been pretty smooth, I would say that it is getting there [in believing it].”
Taranto becomes the first player from the Calder United pathway through to Western United to be selected in a Matildas squad.
She said that was a pretty special moment with both clubs having a big impact on her life.
“Those two clubs, Calder and Western, have been a big part of my career and who I am as player. Everyone there Mark [Toscano], Amanda [Stella] and the coaches have been there have really helped me get to this point.
“The success we’ve had at Calder and even at Western, as team, has allowed me to build my game and learn, definitely helped me get to this point.
“Very proud to have played at both of them.“
Taranto said she has come into the camp trying to soak in as much as she can from the coaches and the staff.
She said she was loving the camp so far and being in the that professional environment.
“I want to show off a little bit of what I have got, and why I was bought in,” she said. “Just enjoying the camp and if I get to get on the pitch, it will be the cherry on the top.“
Taranto is one of two Western United players in the squad with Chloe Berryhill getting recalled.
She has taken Taranto under her wing and that they are so proud of each other to be in the spot they are.
The pair shared a special moment on Saturday when Taranto replaced Berryhill on the pitch to make her debut.
