Eight months ago, in the Before Times, Sydney was 90 minutes away from winning back-to-back W-League championships and earning its sixth piece of silverware. Unfortunately it wasn’t to be for the Sky Blues on that cold, quiet day on Swan Street, and as the curtains closed on another rollercoaster season, many fans truly wondered whether the season ahead was to be lost to the dreaded coronavirus lockdown.
Thankfully, with the W-League back for Season 13, Sydney will once again be aiming to be among the last teams standing when the pointy end of the competition rolls around, looking to avenge last year’s defeat in the big dance.
Ins and Outs
Sydney were quick out of the blocks this season when it came to announcing its lineup for 2020-21; two weeks before the rescheduled A-League grand final – even before many fans knew that the W-League season would be going ahead – Sydney announced a list of 16 players signed for the upcoming campaign. Of that original slate of names, 10 were players re-committed to the club, including captain Teresa Polias, defender Ellie Brush, and young stars Taylor Ray and Princess Ibini. Since then, the Sky Blues have announced the capture of just two more players, finalising the squad with three weeks before the season starts.
https://twitter.com/SydneyFC/status/1293804553821999105?s=20
Ins:
Jada Whyman (Western Sydney Wanderers – goalkeeper)
Katie Offer (NW Sydney Koalas – goalkeeper)
Charlotte McLean (Sydney Olympic – defender)
Clare Wheeler (Newcastle Jets – midfielder)
Rachel Lowe (UCLA Bruins – midfielder)
Charlize Rule (Football NSW Institute – forward)
Cortnee Vine (Western Sydney Wanderers – forward)
Allira Toby (Famalicão, Portugal – forward)
Outs:
Aubrey Bledsoe (Washington Spirit)
Alanna Kennedy (Tottenham Hotspur)
Veronica Latsko (Houston Dash)
Amy Sayer (Stanford University)
Chloe Logarzo (Bristol City)
Caitlin Foord (Arsenal)
Lindsay Agnew (KIF Örebro, Sweden)
Sofia Huerta (OL Reign)
While Sydney has lost its international and Matildas contingent, many of whom returned to the NWSL after their respective loans, manager Ante Jurić has stocked up on the best young talent on offer across NSW.
Whyman and Offer were among the best goalkeepers playing in NSW NPLW this season, and the additions of Toby, Rule and Vine – the latter two managing 18 goals in the winter competition, as well as being named in the B90 NSW NPLW Team of the Year – will strengthen the already-fearsome frontline of Ibini and 2019-20 Golden Boot winner Remy Siemsen.
https://twitter.com/SydneyFC/status/1301828650225086464?s=20
Strengths
While Jurić has in a way been cursed by his success, given the loss of his international and capped players, Sydney’s recruiting this season has been among the best of any W-League team. Combine that with the club’s retention of experienced talent and it’s clear that this season should be one of success for the Sky Blues, as they look to avenge last season’s failures.
Sydney’s greatest strength comes in the form of its depth of talent: it’s not a stretch to say that any of the nine attacking players would walk into a starting spot in the majority of opponents’ teams. While the attack may be among the youngest fielded in the club’s W-League history, there’s also an average of around 45 appearances across the group.
That experience across the forward third is mirrored through the back and middle sections of the pitch; with skipper Polias having played in a more attacking role throughout the NSW NPLW season just finished, her combination with fellow midfielders Wheeler, Angelique Hristodoulou and Ray, as well as the ball-playing abilities of defenders Brush and Ally Green, should allow Sydney to play controlled, flowing football from back to front.
Challenges
To paraphrase Newton’s third law of motion, for every blessing, there is an equal and opposite curse. In the case of this Sydney team, that curse comes in the form of having to divide 18 into 11 every week – an equation that you don’t need to be Newton himself to realise doesn’t work. Thankfully for Sydney fans, keeping a hungry, talented group of players focused on a goal has been Jurić’s strength over the last several years, especially when dealing with more experienced players who believe they deserve game time over their junior colleagues.
The only other major concern for Sydney lies in its goalkeeping ranks. In Jada Whyman, the club has one of the most prodigiously talented and yet frustratingly fragile players of the last five years, simultaneously able to deliver moments of magic while also disintegrating like a victim of the Infinity Gauntlet. Whyman’s deputy Katie Offer had a great season between the sticks for her NPLW side North West Sydney Koalas, and while her side didn’t make the finals, she played every minute of the season and kept three clean sheets – including against eventual champions Manly United. With Whyman on a seemingly-Sisyphean comeback from injury and Offer yet to make her W-League debut, Sydney will be hoping for the best from its glovewomen as the season progresses.
Key players
Defender – Ally Green
Fresh from a brilliant NSW NPLW season with Manly United, Green will likely be forced into covering the slot left by departing Matildas centre-back Alanna Kennedy. Kennedy, who is now mostly playing as a midfield pivot for FA WSL side Tottenham Hotspur, had held court as Sydney’s defensive rock for five of the last ten years since making her W-League debut in 2010. In Green, Sydney have a calm and adaptable defensive leader, who – especially paired with the experienced Brush – is capable of providing both stability and tempo at the back, as comfortable in one-on-one duels as she is controlling the pace and build-up of the game.
Midfielder – Rachel Lowe
Since bursting onto the scene as part of Western Sydney’s class of 2016 – a team that also featured new teammates Whyman and Hristodoulou – Rachel Lowe has shown herself to be one of the most promising young creative players in Australia. Comfortable playing either on the wing or as a #10, Lowe’s passing range and attacking drive will be key for a Sydney team stacked with front-line talent and in search of a conduit in transition.
Attacker – Cortnee Vine
The form forward of this season’s NSW NPLW, Vine made the switch from the desolate, windswept plains of Sydney’s west to the more comfortable climes of Macquarie Park. Strengthening the Sky Blues’ striking stocks, Vine’s pace and finishing ability will be key in a team that has lost both its second-highest scorer (Huerta, three goals) and leading assist provider (Foord, four assists). Having made almost 50 W-League appearances across three teams, Vine will be looking to kick on with Sydney and cement her place as one of the best young strikers in Australia.
One to watch
Fresh from her horror trip to Portugal, former Brisbane striker Allira Toby will be looking to hit the ground running on her return to W-League competition. With 14 goals to her name in just over 50 appearances, the pacey 26-year-old clearly knows where the net is, and will be looking to link up quickly with her attacking colleagues in Lowe, Ibini, Siemsen and Vine. Whether she’s played on the flank or through the middle, Toby will have to work hard to keep her spot this season, but with quality players around her and accurate service from midfield, there’s little reason why she can’t be one of this season’s stars.
Prediction
Around this time last year, this writer predicted that Sydney would be crowned Champions at season’s end. While the team didn’t manage that feat, with a well-balanced and talented team, a kind draw, and an experienced coach who has tasted success, Sydney has all the ingredients to finish the job in 2020-21. However, while the club has featured in three of the last five W-League grand finals, consistency has always been the Sky Blues’ achilles heel, not having won the Premiership since 2010-11.
With traditional rivals Melbourne Victory, and the revitalised Canberra United and Brisbane both having recruited well, Sydney will no doubt have its work cut out to claim that famous plate back from Melbourne City. That said, as one of the strongest sides in the league, qualifying for finals should be considered the minimum requirement for Sydney, as the side has done every W-League season so far.
If Whyman can stay fit, Jurić can settle on a preferred XI early in the season and the attack can click, Sydney should easily reach that mark. From there though, it’s anyone’s guess.
