Jethro Yumange

Jethro Yumange
Personal information
Date of birth (2002-10-03) 3 October 2002
Place of birth Wewak, Papua New Guinea
Height 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Position Forward
Team information
Current team
Diverse City
Youth career
2015–2017 Rockingham City
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2021–2022 Chicago State Cougars 28 (2)
2023–2024 Carthage Firebirds 23 (5)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2017–2021 Rockingham City
2019–2020Cockburn City (loan)
2022–2023 Chicago City
2024–2025 River Light 2 (0)
2025 RKC Third Coast 5 (0)
2025–2026 Black Cat
2026– Diverse City
International career
2024– Papua New Guinea 3 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 18:16, 10 February 2026 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 18:50, 10 February 2026 (UTC)

Jethro Yumange (born 10 March 2002) is a Papua New Guinean footballer who currently plays for Diverse City FC and the Papua New Guinea national team.

Club career

Born in Papua New Guinea, Yumange moved to Perth, Australia at age ten. He began playing football there with his school team. In 2015, he joined Rockingham City and played for the under-15 side. During his first season, the club went undefeated with Yumange as its top scorer. Two weeks before his sixteenth birthday, he was promoted to the senior side in the NPL Western Australia.[1] In 2019 he moved to Cockburn City of the same league.[2] That year, the team finished second in the state under-20 cup, falling to the academy of Perth Glory in the final with Yumange starting the match.[3] Yumange departed the club following the season,[4] and returned to Rockingham City in 2020. He remained with the club through the 2021 season.[5]

In 2021, Yumange committed to play NCAA Division I college soccer in the United States with the Chicago State Cougars.[1] Over his two seasons with the club, he made twenty-eight appearances, scoring two goals.[6] Following the 2022 season, he transferred to Carthage College to play for the Firebirds in the NCAA Division III.[7] During breaks in the college season, Yumange played semi-professional football in the USL League Two and Midwest Premier League to remain fit. He featured for Chicago City SC in the MPL in 2022.[8] In 2024, he played for River Light FC of the USL League Two, but was limited to just two league appearances because of international duty.[9][10]

Yumange moved to fellow-USL League Two side RKC Third Coast for the 2025 season.[11] He made five appearances for the club throughout the season.[12] By September of that year, he joined Black Cat FC of the United Premier Soccer League. He participated in the club in 2026 U.S. Open Cup qualification with the club. In the First Qualifying Round, he scored against Edgewater Castle FC of the Midwest Premier League. Black Cat FC went on to lose the match 1–2, ending its qualifying campaign.[13] In December 2025, it was announced that Yumange had joined Diverse City FC, also of the UPSL Premier Division, for the 2026 season.[14]

International career

Yumange received his first call-up to the Papua New Guinea national team for the 2024 OFC Men's Nations Cup.[15][16] He made his debut in Papua New Guinea's opening match against Fiji on 16 June 2024 and went on to appear in all three of his country's matches in the competition.[17]

Career statistics

International

As of match played 22 June 2024[17]
Papua New Guinea
Year Apps Goals
2024 3 0
Total 3 0

References

  1. ^ a b "Jethro Yumange Signs with Chicago State Men's Soccer". Chicago State University Athletics. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  2. ^ "Bayswater Blows Top Four Finish". Baywater City Soccer Club. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  3. ^ Simcox, Peter. "Murray Hat-Trick Steers Academy Under 20s to Cup Glory". Perth Glory. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  4. ^ "2020 Season Preview". Football Western Australia. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  5. ^ Morgan, Gareth. "Academy First Team Battle Back to Down Rockingham". Perth Glory. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  6. ^ "CSU Cougars profile". Chicago State University Athletics. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  7. ^ "Carthage Firebirds profile". Carthage College Athletics. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  8. ^ "Summer Adult Recap". Chicago City Soccer Club. p. 15. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
  9. ^ Saltori, Rafael. "Jethro Yumange: Papua New Guinea's rising star ready to shine at the OFC Nations Cup". Oceania Football Center. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  10. ^ "2024 League Two Regular Seasons Stats". USL League Two. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  11. ^ "Welcome Yumange!". RKC Third Coast. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
  12. ^ "2025 USL League Two Statistics". USL League Two. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
  13. ^ "2026 US Open Cup Qualifying Round 1 Review: 22 amateur teams take first step". thecup.us. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
  14. ^ "Diverse City FC Announcement". Diverse City FC. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
  15. ^ "PNGFA announces 23-man squad for OFC Nations Cup". NBC Papua New Guinea. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  16. ^ Keamo, Patricia. "Kapuls Name 23 for OFC Cup". The National. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  17. ^ a b "NFT profile". National Football Teams. Retrieved 10 September 2024.