Canberra United will throw a travel-weary Norwegian international straight into W-League battle after Elise Thorsnes timed her arrival perfectly for a round-three boost.
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Thorsnes surprised coach Heather Garriock when she turned up to training just hours after walking off a long-haul flight to Canberra.
Garriock is expected to waste no time with her marquee recruit, revealing her intention to have her on the field for the clash against the Newcastle Jets on Saturday.
Thorsnes has played 121 games for Norway and scored 10 goals in 21 games for LSK Kvinner in the Norwegian season, including a goal in the Cup final last weekend.
Her goal-scoring prowess and international experience is exactly what Garriock is looking for after a gritty 2-1 loss against Melbourne City.
Canberra had just one shot on target against Melbourne, prompting Garriock to give her strikers a licence to attack and adding Thorsnes as an extra weapon.
"The most important thing is, she's been a part of Canberra United and I've coached her before. I know what she's capable of," Garriock said.
"She's coming off the back of winning the Cup final and scoring a goal. She's got a lot of confidence, and her confidence will build more confidence in our Canberra United squad.
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"She's a professional and I'd expect she'd be up for the game on the weekend. A couple of days training in your legs and I'm sure she'll be fine."
Thorsnes will likely slot into an attacking role, adding more firepower to Canberra's dangerous imports.
Simone Charley has been outstanding in the opening two weeks, while Katie Stengel has provided a target up front and Brazilian midfielder Camila Pereira could be the most influential recruit of all.
The trio combined last week to score Canberra's only goal against Melbourne and Garriock wants the floodgates to open in Newcastle.
"I think Newcastle are going to try to frustrate us ... we've got speed all around the park," Garriock said.
"It's important we finish off our chances. We need to dominate in terms of possession and in terms of shots on target."
Canberra co-captain Karly Roestbakken broke cartilage in her nose in round one, but recovered to play against Melbourne and will be free to take on Newcastle.
The Matildas rookie is confident Canberra can use the lessons learned from the loss against Melbourne to topple a win-less Newcastle.
"We're ready for the fight. We really need to get the win this weekend," Roestbakken said.
"I think we'll go out extra hard and fight for each other and fight for the team.
"The loss last weekend got to us a little bit, but Melbourne City is a good team. We were a bit rocky in the start, but it does give us confidence because we were able to match them."
Newcastle drew 1-1 with Melbourne in round one, and then lost to Western Sydney last week.
The clash against Canberra will be crucial for both sides as they aim to avoid falling behind on the ladder early in the season.
W-LEAGUE ROUND THREE
Saturday: Newcastle Jets v Canberra United at Newcastle, 4.30pm.