With the Asian Cup now in full swing, this is a good point for us to assess how the A-League Women teams have gone so far. Here is our review of the teams currently occupying the finals places – can they stay there?
1st: Sydney FC
(by Dale Roots)
Most people would agree that bullying is bad; it excludes and traumatises its victims and leaves its perpetrators with an inflated, but ultimately hollow, sense of worth.
Unfortunately for opposing players in this season’s A-League Women, Sydney FC do not care for this conclusion, and have proceeded to beat up on teams from across the league to their hearts’ content.
Having conceded just a single goal in its first eight matches, Ante Jurić’s team is currently on the equal-longest run of clean sheets in league history, while scoring on average over three goals a game.
That attacking proficiency has not gone unnoticed by Matildas staff, and while Asian Cup call-ups for Remy Siemsen and Cortnee Vine are of course great news for both those players and the club as a whole, it’s the incredible ease with which depth signings Cote Rojas and Paige Satchell slotted into the starting line-up that will give defenders nightmares as the domestic competition continues.
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In midfield, the fears of fans and pundits alike have been allayed by Sarah Hunter and Taylor Ray, who have seamlessly filled the gap left by jet-setting Clare Wheeler and new mum Teresa Polias respectively. Hunter’s passing game has been a feature of the first half of the season, while Ray’s combative nature and ability to control the tempo and direction of games makes her a perfect deputy while Polias steps away from football. The brightest star in the middle third though is arguably Mackenzie Hawkesby, whose five goals and six assists already stand as her best haul in a season since breaking through into the national league three years ago.
Most impressive of all though has been Sydney’s defence this season; with Lauren Allan still the only opposition player to have troubled the scorers at a Sky Blues match this season, one can only be amazed by the proficiency with which Whyman & Co. protect their goal. Central pairing Charlotte Mclean and skipper Nat Tobin work well as a stay-and-go combination in the centre of defence, while Jessika Nash and Ally Green have made the wing-back positions their own this season, haring up and down the flanks like avoidant infantry.
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Put simply, Sydney are an incredibly difficult team to break down and an even harder team to defend. Strong and united from back to front, the Sky Blues have shown themselves to be the form team in the competition, and heavy favourites to win the Double for the first time in 13 years. With six matches remaining in the season and a gap of seven points to second-placed Melbourne City, don’t be surprised if captain Tobin is lifting the Premiers’ Plate with games to spare.
2nd: Melbourne City
(By Eric Subijano)
After a difficult 2020/21 campaign, the current version of Melbourne City is more in keeping with the successful City sides of years gone by that opposition fans loved to hate.
Memories of last season’s struggles in front of goal have been erased by The Hannah and Holly Show. Hannah Wilkinson is exceeding even the wildest pre-season expectations with eight goals in seven games, three more than her nearest challenger for the Golden Boot (Mackenzie Hawkesby). The Football Ferns star has been brilliantly supported by Holly McNamara, whose dribbling skills and athleticism have taken her all the way to her first Matildas cap.
At the other end of the field, the City backline has been miserly in most of their games. Emma Checker is living up to the responsibilities of the captain’s armband and is the only City player to feature in every minute of their campaign so far. Checker is flanked by a pair of young and technically proficient centre backs who usually win their one on one battles: Brisbane Roar’s loss is City’s gain as Winonah Heatley continues to impress on the national stage (and the Queenslander was unlucky not to go to the Asian Cup), while Tori Tumeth leads the team in interceptions and has been her usual uncompromising self in defence.
In midfield, Rhianna Pollicina has weaved her magic, carrying on from last season’s excellent performances at Newcastle. Pollicina has been ably supported by the industrious Leah Davidson, who seemingly covers every blade of grass during games and provides plenty of cover for City’s defenders.
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There’s also been a couple of heartwarming comeback stories. Rebekah Stott has been incredibly influential, operating in a more advanced role then we are used to seeing and prompting City attacks. It’s also been great to see Chelsea Blissett gradually work her way back into the lineup after an ACL injury caused her to miss the 2020/21 campaign.
The recent 3-0 loss to Sydney FC shows that there are still areas for improvement, however City fans have every reason to be positive. With six of their remaining seven games against teams currently outside the top four, expect to see the light blue side of Melbourne return to the finals.
3rd: Adelaide United
(by Eric Subijano)
Adelaide might have found themselves in the top two by this stage of the campaign, but those pesky Melbourne teams keep getting in the way – the Reds have lost all three of their games against Melbourne-based opposition while winning all of their other fixtures.
There is plenty for the United faithful to smile about as their team seeks a maiden finals appearance. Matilda McNamara continues to grow with every game and the 23 year old central defender is part of a reliable core that have played every minute of the season to date. The others in that category have been strong contributors in different ways: Fiona Worts is always a goal threat and also knows how to create for others, fullback Emily Hodgson is the kind of unsung hero every team needs, while Annalee Grove has shown why she is selected ahead of hlghly-rated Miranda Templeman in goals.
Up front, Chelsie Dawber is proving that last season’s goalscoring form was no fluke, and her success is twinned by the form of the technically gifted Emily Condon, who Adelaide can always rely on to pull the strings from midfield. Meanwhile, Paige Hayward has been a revelation: equally capable of playing as a forward or as a fullback and justifying Adrian Stenta’s decision to sign her after a recent stint in the Austrian Frauenliga.
Reinforcements have helped Adelaide steady the ship after a shaky start which saw the Reds lose two of their first three fixtures. American Kayla Sharples has strengthened the backline since joining the team, taking some of the defensive burden off the local players. Fan favourite Dylan Holmes is having a similar effect in midfield, with her energetic style allowing Condon to focus on the creative side of things.
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The Reds would want to be close to sealing a finals place before their last three games, which all present stern challenges (Victory at home, Perth away, Sydney FC at home). On the plus side, United’s next three fixtures are definitely winnable (Newcastle at home, Brisbane away, Wellington away), so they are in a great position to create club history.
4th: Melbourne Victory
(by Angela Christian-Wilkes)
One clean sheet, two red cards, two losses, and four wins: not terrible, but certainly not the dominance neutrals and fans alike may have expected from reigning champions Melbourne Victory.
As is the case with all teams, Victory have had to navigate issues outside of their control. Some issues could be planned for, such as rusted-on midfielder Kyra Cooney-Cross and defender Courtney Nevin leaving for the Asian Cup, and guest signing Lynn Williams heading home. Some were less predictable – border issues preventing a newly signed Alex Chidiac travelling to Brisbane away, for example. Some are just regular programming – looking at you, Ms Omicron.
Victory’s greatest blow came in Round 1 when captain and centre back Kayla Morrison ruptured her ACL, sending the squad’s lack of defensive depth from potentially problematic to an actual crisis. In playing proactive, attacking-minded football, it always appeared that Victory would leave themselves exposed defensively. They would just need to balance this fragility with lots of goals at the other end.
However, compared to previous seasons, strong defensive records seem to be increasingly influential on league standings. After six games last season, Sydney had conceded one goal, with then-second Canberra conceding 10. Compare that to this season, with Sydney still only conceding one, but second-placed Melbourne City conceding four. Providing the defensive form to contend in this context has been difficult, especially with the loss of Morrison as a team leader and as their strongest sweeping defender.
In finding a way to plug the gap, coach Jeff Hopkins has had to experiment – with some varied results. While Morrison’s injury and its timing was heartbreaking, it does mean Victory can potentially build back into form after a period of adjustment, rather than have the carpet pulled out from under them during a potential finals run. These are by no means the darkest days Hopkins will have faced during his tenure and Victory have shown resilience – both in the long-term with their historic return as a strong team, but also more recently with their 1-0 win over Western Sydney.
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