In the five seasons that Perth Glory have been coached by Bobby Despotovski, the club has followed a regular pattern of finishing outside the top 4 in one season and then making the grand final in the following one.
A possible reason for this lack of consistency is the regular turnover of players from one season to the next, with overseas and interstate players being replaced on an almost yearly basis.
It is perhaps a recognition of this lack of consistency that the club has stated their grand vision for the next five seasons is to have a squad dominated by West Australians. This season there have been signs that local players are being given more opportunities than previously.
One such local is 23-year-old Caitlin Doeglas, who has been at the club since Despotovski took over the reins. She holds the record for the fastest goal scored in the W-League after hitting the net against Western Sydney Wanderers in the opening game of the 2016/17 season in just 17 seconds.
Doeglas has had to endure long periods of time in her five seasons with the club either on the bench or in the stands, and during this season she found herself on the bench even though the team was finding goals hard to come by. It’s only been in the last three games that she has seemed to cement a spot in the starting eleven, and whilst it may be a coincidence, this period has also seen the goals flow more freely for Glory.
This lack of game time can be very frustrating for players and for some, this is something they aren’t prepared to put up with, but Doeglas just continued to work hard, tried to make the most of her game time and is now reaping the rewards.
“Having my family and friends helped me through those times. You’re thinking you’re not good enough to be there and you’re not even getting on the bench. It can be quite disheartening, but they only had encouragement for me and to keep going as they know it’s my dream. Even though I might be thinking it’s not what it’s supposed to be they always pushed me to keep going.”
Glory’s recent run of good results is not a surprise to Doeglas, who felt that even when the results weren’t going their way, the team had a very positive feel about it.
“There is a positive vibe in the squad because we’re playing great football. The football leading up to the shot or the cross is really, really good, and I think it’s some of the best football we’ve played and that is what is keeping the spirits high. We’ve also got a good group of girls and everyone is quite close.”
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Doeglas is now in her fifth season with Glory and is somewhat embarrassed by being described as a veteran, even laughing at being described as one. Her experience is proving invaluable though, especially for the newcomers to the squad, many of whom have come in via the NTC program. She spoke about the step up from WA Women’s Premier League and NTC into the W-League.
“It’s a huge step. I don’t think you can prepare yourself for how intense W-League is. Playing for national (youth) teams, I feel the pressure is similar, but this is different. You’re playing in front of all your friends and family, and you’re playing against some of the girls you looked up to in the Matildas and that’s really intense and that’s what I found, especially when I first started playing.”
Her modesty about her own abilities and accomplishments is very evident, and whilst she felt that she was slightly in awe of playing against the likes of Lisa De Vanna for the first time, she didn’t think the same was true for young players she encounters when playing for Balcatta in the WA Women’s Premier League.
The road travelled by any W-League player is a unique one, but for all the players it’s one that requires sacrifice, and Doeglas is no exception. After spending all her playing career in Perth, she decided that she needed to toughen up mentally, choosing to move to Victoria and playing a season in the Victorian Women’s NPL with Alamein.
“It was one of the best experiences I’ve had. Moving over there to play was really incredible. The league is a lot stronger than the Perth league which I really felt prepared me a little bit more, matured me more for the W-League. I felt that I grew a lot as a person over there.”
The difference in standard between the Victorian and Perth leagues is one reason why Football West has moved to introduce an NPL into Western Australia, and Doeglas recognised this as she felt that the Perth league was a lot more relaxed than its Victorian counterpart. However, she wasn’t entirely sure that an improvement would come immediately.
“I’m not really sure at this point, as it’s not as though the league is attracting players from other places, whereas Sydney and Melbourne, they attract players to come over.”
With just one game to go in the season for Glory, Doeglas will be hoping to continue her recent run of starts and will be itching to finish the season on a high, before taking a well-earned break and embarking on another season with Balcatta in the inaugural Western Australian Women’s NPL.
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