SYDNEY, Sept. 17 (Xinhua) -- Football Australia (FA) on Tuesday reinstated Tom Sermanni, a former head coach of the national women's team to the role on an interim basis.

FA announced that Sermanni has taken over as head coach of the Matildas for a third time as the search for the next permanent coach continues.

Sermanni, 70, is the longest-serving Matildas coach in history, having previously coached the national team in 1994-1997 and 2005-2012.

An inductee in the Football Australia Hall of Fame, Sermanni led the Matildas to the 2010 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup title - their only major trophy - and the quarterfinals of the FIFA World Cup in 2007 and 2011.

"We are delighted to welcome Tom back to the Matildas program," FA chief executive James Johnson said in a statement.

"With over three decades of football experience in Australia and internationally, his extensive knowledge of the global women's football landscape, the local Australian game and his previous success with the team make him the ideal candidate to guide the Matildas through this transitional period," he said.

The Scotland-born coach will take charge of the Matildas for two October friendlies while FA searches for a full-time replacement for Tony Gustavsson who left the job at the end of his four-year contract in August.

Sermanni, who has taken a temporary leave of absence from his role as head of women's football at the A-League's Western Sydney Warriors, said it was an honor to return to the Matildas.

He served as the head coach of the U.S. Women's National Team in 2013-2014, as an assistant for Canada in 2015 and as head coach of the New Zealand women's team from 2018 until after the Tokyo Olympics. Enditem

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