Impetus had Genevieve Henry and Ryan Miller-Woods in three clubs’ press conferences ahead of Round 16 (9/2/24).
Canberra United
By Ryan Miller-Woods
The media heard from Canberra United’s Cannon Clough and Head Coach Njegosh Popovich ahead of Saturday’s match against Perth Glory.
Canberra achieved arguably their most crucial result of the season with a 3-1 win against the league leaders Melbourne City in what was one of United’s best performances of this campaign. Hopefully, that result can bring them some important momentum for a serious charge towards the finals for the rest of the season.
When asked how the team has pulled from the match itself, Clough said, “I think everyone pulled up obviously really happy (after the win). It’s been a long time coming, so no one was super shocked or super surprised, but really excited and definitely (have) momentum going into the next one.”
In what was massively exciting news on Wednesday, is the return of Canberra’s captain Michelle Heyman to the Matildas for the first time since 2018 ahead of Australia’s Olympic Qualifiers against Uzbekistan later this month where the winner will go to the Paris Olympics in July.
When Clough was asked how the team responded to Heyman’s call-up, she said, “I think everyone was just as excited for her. Another thing that I feel like has kind of been a long time coming, she’s kept her head down. So well deserved and we can’t wait to get around her through all of it.”
The next few matches for Canberra will be very important as they will be facing the aforementioned Perth, Sydney FC and Western United who are fifth, third and second respectively.
When asked how the team has reacted to that prospect and the approach itself, Clough said, “head on! We’re excited. Melbourne City was a top side, so might as well try and keep that going. I personally think that we play better against really good sides, which I’d say all the teams in the competition are. One game at a time but face them all the same, just going for three points.”
The win against City last round was a brilliant performance all round for Canberra and thoroughly deserved the three points. United time and time again this season have shown the quality that exists within their ranks, especially from an attacking perspective, it’s more that certain results haven’t fully reflected where Canberra probably should be on the ladder.
When asked about his thoughts on the win itself, Popovich said, “how can you not be happy about a win against the top side, the benchmark of the competition? We’ve always said it, Melbourne City are a competitor that everybody wants to win against, so for us to be able to do that on the weekend with such a dominant performance was great.”
If Canberra can win against Perth this round, it could see United go to within five points of the top six (with a game in hand).
When asked what the win against Melbourne City does for the team’s momentum going into the Perth match, Popovich said, “it makes them believe, gives them the confidence. We believe in our players but the reality is they’ve got to believe in each other and themselves.”
Heyman’s call-up to the Australian squad doesn’t come as a surprise whatsoever with 10 goals and five assists in 14 games this season whilst playing some of her best football, the decision really was a no-brainer for Australia’s Head Coach Tony Gustavsson.
When asked about his reaction to Heyman’s call-up for Australia, Popovich said, “Michelle, through her own opinion decided to retire at a certain time and then got the bug back and has had the hunger in the last couple of years to do what she’s done and what an incredible effort to do it on a world stage, hopefully be part of the Olympics.”
Central Coast Mariners
By Ryan Miller-Woods
The media heard from Central Coast Mariners Head Coach Emily Husband and Kyah Simon ahead of their upcoming match against Melbourne Victory on Saturday.
Central Coast were unlucky to have not got a result last round against the in-form Western United. A win could have further solidified the Mariners’ position within the top six, but there were some positives that came out of the match. A win against Victory could see them go as high as fourth on the A-League Women’s ladder come the end of the round.
When asked about how the team went against Western United, Husband said, “(we’re) obviously not happy with the start we had to be honest. It’s a consistent theme for us this season conceding in those early minutes of the game, so it’s an area where we’ve really got to improve. But, proud of the response we had in the second half, we were a little braver on the ball and took the game by the hand a little better, so that was a positive moment for us. We’ve got to now build on that second-half performance coming into this weekend.”
The match-up against Victory is set to be a very interesting affair where the Mariners will be wanting to get their revenge over Melbourne after their previous encounter in Round Five which saw Central Coast lose 2-1 from a goal by McKenzie Weinert in the 91st minute. What makes this match even more intriguing is that only a point separates the sides, with Victory in fourth with 22 points and the Mariners in sixth with 21 points. A win could be quite crucial for either side come the end of the regular season.
When asked what she’s expecting from Victory this round, Husband said, “conceding in that final 90 minutes of the game against them away from home, if we had been a little bit more smarter I think probably could have sat back a little more, but we want to go and try and win every single game and unfortunately, the backside of that is when you push numbers forward to try and win a game, you’re more vulnerable on the counter and more vulnerable to concede. We’ll go and attack like we’ve done every game this season so far, we want to play attacking and exciting football.”
The return of Kyah Simon from her ACL injury against Newcastle Jets in Round 14, was one not only long-awaited and eagerly anticipated. So far from her two appearances, hasn’t seemed to miss a beat despite before the match against the Jets, not having played a competitive match in 480 days.
As well as her return from injury, is being back at the Mariners where it all began for Simon in the A-League Women back in Round One of the 2008/09 season on the 25th of November 2008 coincidentally also against this weekend’s opponents for the club.
When asked about her return to the Mariners and what it meant for her personally to be back on the pitch playing for the club, Simon said, “it’s crazy to think there’s 16 years between the last time I wore a Mariners jersey. It’s a really nice moment for me to know that’s where I started my professional career here in Australia, on the Coast, for the Mariners. A real full-circle moment for me. A humbling experience knowing this is where it all began and I’m back here now doing the same thing.”
Western United
By Genevieve Henry
The high-flying Western United, currently second on the A-League Women’s ladder, will face tenth-placed Brisbane Roar on Sunday, but this will be by no means an easy encounter. Western United head coach Kat Smith talked the press through her thoughts on both the upcoming and previous games, as well as their overall position in the league.
The news that Western co-captain and star Chloe Logarzo has been called back into the Matildas squad is exciting news for the whole club. Smith praised her staff, players, and fans for propelling her to this level, saying “(they have) the ability to stretch players beyond what they thought they were capable of and to get players back into that type of form to step back into the national team.” The motivation for Logarzo to continue to make national team squads and even push for a spot on the limited Olympic roster will likely push her to continuously improve and put all of her effort in for Western United, the call-up not only benefitting her, but the club as well. “Chloe is certainly the type of person that she’ll set a goal, she’ll achieve it, and she’ll set a new benchmark.”
Reflecting on last round’s match against Central Coast Mariners, Smith shared that “we certainly needed to dip into some of our core values.” Although it was technically a home match, the teams travelled to Tasmania where fans of Western United showed up to support the team vocally. “It’s really pleasing to see the girls evolve through different types of challenges,” Smith said, emphasising how pleased they were with the result.
Western seem to be on a roll with three wins in a row, Smith’s fresh outlook and tactics being just the thing they needed. “We’re not letting off in terms of what we’re demanding from this group and the expectations we have for their performances going forward will keep levelling up.” Smith shared that the club had a discussion about what was and wasn’t working for them, and highlighted the fact that what got them to this point will not necessarily continue to drive them forward. Smith and Western are all about evolution.
Sustaining their current form may be a difficult challenge in the league’s most competitive season yet, but a home crowd for their next three games will certainly give them an edge. Smith praised fans for ”the impact that the home crowd has on the girls” and “the spirit we have in the community.” Capitalising on these favourable factors could see Western retain their current position, or even step on to the top of the ladder.
Smith and Western are always focusing on their own performance and effort rather than their opponents. This is no different for their match-up with Brisbane, and although the gap in points tells one story, Smith is sure to not let her team drift into complacency. “We never stray from that,” she shared of their structure and willingness to maintain their identity.
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