Even though Perth Glory have only played two games in the W-League, it is already clear that they have one of the best shot-stoppers in the league. NZ international Lily Alfeld has pulled off a string of vital saves and earnt the league’s Save of the Round award in both of her games.
The New Zealand stopper has quickly settled into her new environment. Her experience playing at youth level for her home country, plus college football in the USA, convinced Glory coach Alex Epakis that she would be an ideal replacement for Eliza Campbell.
Lily Alfeld wins #SOTW off the back of a glorious Westfield #WLeague debut!! 👏#OneGlory pic.twitter.com/AqHE1nxVYb
— Westfield W-League (@WLeague) January 11, 2021
Her extensive globe-trotting travels with the New Zealand youth teams have included youth World Cups in Trinidad and Tobago, Azerbaijan and Canada and tours to the USA, Argentina, Switzerland and Brazil. She was also a part of the Ferns’ senior squad that participated in a tournament in Cyprus in 2014.
She also had 4 years playing college football with Louisana State University in the SE conference from 2014 to 2018, so moving to a new country has not been an unusual experience for her.
Alfeld starting playing football at a young age and recalls picking up a ball for the first time at the age of four.
“Dad had a friend who was a coach and got me in that way, and even at that young age that was the sport I got into and loved,” she said.
“I was about the age of 11 or 12 when I started taking [football] more seriously. And we had the U17 Women’s World Cup that came to New Zealand in 2008 and I watched some training sessions there and a couple of the games, and that was my big ah-ha moment, and I thought ‘that’s what I want to do.’
“We went and watched the German team train and I had never seen a goalkeeping session quite like that. And that was the moment when I thought ‘this is what I want to do. I want to play for my country.'”
She singled out the 2012 U17’s Women’s World Cup as her standout tour, as this represented the first time she wore the Silver Fern.
“It was my first World Cup where I got to play. I had been away to Trinidad and Tobago [in 2010] but that was more of a learning curve, but [Azerbaijan] was pretty memorable, getting to play against another country and listening to the anthem and it gets me a bit teary [looking back].”
The move to college football followed her international experiences, but it was something she had always had in the back of her mind. She had been exposed to older goalkeepers who had gone through college football themselves and she knew it was something that was an option. By playing in a World Cup she had put herself in the shop window, so to speak, and she received a few offers form college before opting for Louisiana State University (LSU).
“I actually had a teammate who had committed to LSU the year prior, and she was the one that got me in contact with the coach.”
With LSU being in the South East Conference, the calibre of teams was high. Alfeld found herself playing with and against players who had played at youth level for the USA and would go on to play in the National Women’s Soccer League, so every game was hard.
She returned to New Zealand in 2018 and went back to playing in the National League. There she found herself on the fringes of the national team but she realised that she needed to step up a level if she were to force her way back. It is this desire to get back into playing at the international level that has driven her to play for Perth Glory in this season’s W-League.
Perth weren’t on her radar as the team to play for though, as there was a lot of hope and expectation within the ranks of the New Zealand players that a Wellington Phoenix side would be accepted into the W-League. When that didn’t eventuate there was a great deal of disappointment. However, COVID presented a big opportunity, with New Zealand players basically COVID free. W-League squads have subsequently seen an increase in their numbers, including three New Zealanders in Perth’s squad.
“Tom Sermanni and Alex [Epakis] are good friends, and he was the one who suggested that there were a couple of Kiwis back home who would love to play. I got a phone call from Alex on a Sunday asking if I would like to play and by Wednesday we were here!”
“Alex was in quarantine himself [when he called] and we then had to go into 14-day isolation ourselves, only coming out on Christmas Eve.”
This additional difficulty to the pre-season has made life very hard for the new players, but Alfeld is comfortable in her new surroundings and is confident that her team will soon be producing results on the field. Her individual performances have been pleasing for her, but she is modest about earning the Save of the Week award in her two games.
For the second week running Lily Alfeld has taken out #SOTW 👏#WLeague #OneGlory pic.twitter.com/myRxYZJgAx
— Westfield W-League (@WLeague) January 18, 2021
“It was nice to get that recognition, but it’s my job. I’m there to save those goals, and I’m happy that I’ve been able to have a positive start, but it’s more about the performance of the team as a whole.
“We didn’t start as well as we would have liked to in the first game against Adelaide, so we went away and identified some areas we needed to work on and we had an improved performance in the second game. Going forward we’re pretty confident we’ll get a couple of results and be able to prove to people that we can do it.
“Alex has put together a team that is willing to roll its sleeves up and get through the hard times. We’re all up for the challenge, and even with the changes in the league schedules the adaptability of the girls has been fantastic, and I’ve been so impressed with the way everyone has taken it in their stride.”
Looking further ahead and Alfeld has no doubt what her plans are.
“2023, that’s my goal, although with the Olympics coming up that’s the first thing I’m shooting for, but to play a World Cup at home would be just…you couldn’t dream of it. Even when I was a kid and we had the U17’s World Cup in New Zealand and just to see the growth of women’s football following that, it was huge to see it and then to have the actual Women’s World Cup is just so exciting and to be a part of that would be amazing.”
