Mary Fowler’s impact on the Women’s World Cup was watched with some surprise by Manchester City fans 10,000 miles away in England.
The 20-year-old Matilda had shown little of that quality in a very modest debut season in the Women’s Super League.
City came fourth, their worst finish since the club’s first campaign in the elite in 2014, and Fowler failed to make a single start, scoring one goal in her 11 substitute appearances.
Signed with some fanfare on a four-year deal from Montpellier for an estimated €190,000 ($A313,000) she was hugely overshadowed by 20-goal Jamaican recruit Khadija Shaw.
But Fowler is unconcerned by her slow start, and City manager Gareth Taylor is equally relaxed. Both feel that, having settled in to the increasingly competitive league, she will show her Matildas form in a City shirt.
“I see the big picture in these things,” Fowler told AAP.
“I am a young player. I have so much to learn and improve on, just being at training there is a lot for me to take from it.
"I want to work my way into getting more game time and contribute more for the team, but things will happen when they are supposed to. You just focus on what you can do as a player and control what you can control.”
“Mary has so much under her belt for such a young player,” said Taylor.
“I had really good conservations with her last season. She is a player who will always take a little bit of time to settle in and get used to new teammates, new coach, new league, new environment. But there is no doubting her talent.
“She is a top player who brings a lot to the team. She is also an incredible person to work with. She is so humble. And she has come back looking sharp. She had a really good experience at the World Cup. We’re excited about what her season brings.
"But I’ve always said with Mary, we’ve secured her for the long-term, and eventually we’re going to see a top, top player.”
Though Hayley Raso has left for Real Madrid, Fowler still has a Tillies teammate at City in Alanna Kennedy. The pair are among 13 Australians in the WSL, which starts on Sunday, with eight of the 12 clubs fielding at least one.
As ever, the star is Sam Kerr who will be going for a fifth successive league title with Chelsea, but she has plenty of friendly rivalry.
That is especially so at Arsenal, who paid Swedish club Hammarby a reported €300,000 ($A495,000) to enable Kyra Cooney-Cross to join up with Steph Catley and Caitlin Foord.
The Gunners, who came third last year, have also recruited England centre-forward Alessia Russo from last season’s runners-up Manchester United and Spanish World Cup winner Laia Codina.
Other World Cup stars recruited to the league include Japan’s Golden Boot winner Hinata Miyasawa (Manchester United) and Dutch pair Jill Roord (Man City) and Daphne van Domselaar (Aston Villa), while Victoria's Teagan Micah has signed for Liverpool.
AUSTRALIANS IN 2023-24 WSL
ARSENAL: Steph Catley, Caitlin Foord, Kyra Cooney-Cross
BRIGHTON: Mackenzie Hawkesby, Charlize Rule
CHELSEA: Sam Kerr
EVERTON: Clare Wheeler
LEICESTER CITY: Courtney Nevin, Remy Siemsen
LIVERPOOL: Teagan Micah
MANCHESTER CITY: Mary Fowler, Alanna Kennedy
WEST HAM: Mackenzie Arnold
