Impetus’ Ava-Marianne Elliot, Ben Gilby, Genevieve Henry, and Ryan Miller-Woods report on six different clubs’ pressers ahead of round 21 in the A-League Women (22/3/24).
Canberra United
By Ryan Miller-Woods
The media heard from Canberra United Head Coach Njegosh Popovich and Tegan Bertolissio ahead of the team’s upcoming match against Wellington Phoenix on Sunday.
Canberra head into this weekend’s match knowing that they’ve got nothing to lose. However, they’ll want to see out their last three matches of the season in the best way possible. A good result on Sunday will be massively beneficial for United for many reasons.
When asked whether the team has bounced back into training knowing the number of games left in the season, Popovich said, “we definitely have a little bit of fatigue in the legs, particularly the girls that have travelled and come back from overseas from the Young Matildas (Tegan Bertolissio, Sasha Grove, and Chloe Lincoln). A great result for them, qualifying for a World Cup and then they’ve lifted the energy in terms of the mental spirit for the players which is fantastic to see. For us, there’s three games on the table, that’s nine points. We need to push hard to finish the season as strongly as we can.”
Something else that has been very prominent over the past few weeks has been the future of the club and most importantly what’s next for Canberra United beyond this season. When asked how he has approached this period with the team itself, Popovich said, “it’s always a difficult situation in those sorts of terms. There’s no doubt that everybody wants a resolution as soon as possible. It does probably play on their mind a little bit, but that’s what professional football’s about, you’ve got to leave those sorts of things off the field, that we can’t control. We’ve got to concentrate on the field on what we can do.”
Canberra will want to get one over Wellington this round after the last the two sides faced each other in round fourteen, which saw the Phoenix win 2-0 thanks to goals from Wellington’s Mariana Speckmaier. Wellington will be determined to win to make finals.
When asked what he is expecting from Wellington this round, Popovich said, “they’re a team that’s actually in the hunt for the top six, so they’re going to come out spirited. They had a mid-week game against Adelaide (United). I think we’re more concentrating only on ourselves rather than them. It’s about us staying focused and trying to be the best we can.”
One of the players that is a welcome return to the Canberra United squad from international duty with the Young Matildas is defender Tegan Bertolissio, who featured in two of Australia’s five matches at the AFC U-20 Women’s Asian Cup in Uzbekistan. The 3rd placed finish that the Young Matildas achieved at the tournament could potentially see Bertolissio at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup later this year in Colombia.
When asked about how much testing herself against some of the best young players at the AFC U-20 Women’s Asian Cup would help when coming back to the environment of Canberra United, Bertolissio said, “it’s definitely a very high level of players internationally, so coming back, it’s another level of experience, experiencing different types of football.”
When asked what she hopes to get out these last few games of the season, Bertolissio said, “honestly, just hopefully get a few wins under our belt, get some confidence going into the next season.”
When asked what she’s expecting from Wellington this weekend, Bertolissio said, “they’re definitely a very good team. They’re in contention for finals, so they’ll be coming out wanting to win the game and so will we. So, it’ll be a good game.”
Central Coast Mariners
By Ryan Miller-Woods
The media heard from Central Coast Mariners’ Rola Badawiya and head coach Emily Husband ahead of their upcoming match against Melbourne City on Saturday.
With their 4-1 win against Canberra United last round, the Mariners secured themselves finals football in their first season back in the league and will be looking to continue from where they left off against Canberra in this weekend’s match against City.
A player who was instrumental in that win was Rola Badawiya who scored a brace that brought her total number of goals for the season to seven. When asked about how the team is feeling after the win against Canberra, Badawiya said, “we’re buzzing honestly. I think we’re on a four-match winning streak which is our best in the competition so far. We’re loving it and getting that stride in right before finals.”
This was followed up by being asked about keeping that momentum against Melbourne City this weekend, Badawiya said, “yeah, definitely! We’re not stopping for no one, especially Melbourne (City). Last time we played them, I feel like we deserved to win. So this time we’re not taking no for an answer.”
As for the last time the sides faced each other in round eight, the match ended in a 1-1 draw that saw Central Coast take the lead thanks to Badawiya in the 53rd minute before City equalised with their captain and New Zealand international Rebekah Stott 25 minutes later.
When asked about how tough she expects the match to be against City, Badawiya said, “it’s definitely going to be tough. Melbourne’s a really good team. They loved to possess the ball; they have really good players but I think we can exploit them in a lot of areas. So we’re definitely doing that.”
Someone who would have been very pleased with the attacking prowess shown against Canberra United was head coach Emily Husband, who has implemented a brand of football that not only has the club currently fourth on the ladder and into the finals with two rounds left in the regular season, but most importantly has brought out the best from the players in the squad.
When asked how impressed she was of the performance from the team against Canberra United, Husband said, “I think the first-half performance was really good, we were clinical which makes a real big difference to us. There’s been games where we’ve created 20 chances and only put away two. That was completely different on the weekend. I don’t think we quite matched up in that second half. Obviously, Canberra came out and put a little bit more pressure on us and we’ve talked through that a lot this week and where we want to problem-solve that, but to come away 4-nil up at half-time was fantastic.”
When asked how to keep the momentum going for the Mariners heading into the Finals, Husband said, “we’re in a fantastic place at the moment. We’ve got nothing to lose from this point forward. We’ve sort of come in and, from a lot of people’s perspectives, overachieved. So now, we want to keep on putting pressure on the teams above us. The only way we can do that is by continuing to turn up, be fearless and wanting to win every game. We’ve got no reason to be scared of anybody and we just look forward to the rest of the season and what it’s got to bring.”
When asked what she’s expecting from Melbourne City, Husband said, “everybody knows that Melbourne (City) play the best football in the league, undoubtedly. The way that they keep possession and the movement off the ball is fantastic and it’s a credit to them. Obviously, we’re defensively always quite structured, so I think it’ll be a nice matchup. As with every game in this league, it’s always going to be a tough game but I’m looking forward to the challenge of it.”
Perth Glory
By Ben Gilby
Perth Glory head coach Alex Epakis emphasised his determination that the Western Australian side end their poor run of results and finish the campaign away from the bottom four as they prepare for a trip to Brisbane Roar.
After a superb start to the campaign, Glory are yet to win a game in 2024, and as a result have dropped from the top two down to the lower reaches of the standings. Last weekend, Perth went down to a 1-0 loss at Western Sydney Wanderers – a game that Epakis believes was one of fine margins which allowed him to highlight positive steps forward from what had come before.
“I think there was certainly a level of disappointment around the result, but there was also a level of optimism around the performance,” he said.
“It was a lot more competitive, it was a lot more structured, it was a lot more of us across that performance, but unfortunately we had nothing to show for it, so we were sitting a little bit empty in the change rooms post-match, but we’re taking satisfaction knowing that we’re able to perform at a higher level for a longer period of time, and we can use that as a motivator this week.”
The run of 10 games without a win has seen the club move from what looked to be a nailed on place in the finals to being in a position that could see them finish third from bottom if they suffer defeat in Queensland on Sunday.
“We’re definitely fixated on finishing as strong as we can. We’re don’t want to sugar coat it, we’re disappointed that we’re not playing towards a play-off finish. That really hurts. We need to make sure we’re putting out performances that allow us to finish the season as strong as we can and give us the best chance of winning both remaining games…these games are certainly not dead rubbers by any stretch of the imagination.”
Whilst the Roar are also out of the Finals race, a recent 2-0 win over Melbourne City emphasises just how good they can be, and with Alex Smith’s side immediately below Perth on the ladder, Glory boss Epakis knows that Sunday’s showdown is a major opportunity to push away from the lower reaches of the ladder.
“Brisbane are a well-rounded team. There’s a lot of experience, there’s Matildas in that team, and there’s some players there that are in good form at the moment…we’re very close in the table in terms of the standings, and we need to make sure we put out a performance that allows us to ensures we stay above them post that game,” he emphasised.
“Tactically, they are pretty sound, they play in a shape that can cause problems for teams. We’ll be aware of that, but we want to make sure we build on the things we did well in our last performance against Western Sydney.”
Glory’s squad selections have remained pretty stable throughout the season. Asked whether or not the final two matches of the campaign give the opportunity for the likes of Tanika Lala who enjoyed a highly promising cameo on debut last weekend, or Tia Stonehill more minutes, Epakis played a straight bat.
“I’ll select the team and the squad that I believe gives us the best chance of winning, and players that are the most motivated and ready to put their best foot forward, whether that’s a player who hasn’t had an opportunity yet, or whether it’s a player who has played every game, ultimately that will be determined during training.”
Sydney FC
By Genevieve Henry
Ahead of Sydney’s vital match against Adelaide United on Sunday, the media heard from Cortnee Vine, fresh off of Matildas selection, and injured captain Nat Tobin, who just signed a new contract with the Sky Blues.
If Sydney can manage to get two wins from their last three games, they will secure a record fourth consecutive premiership. Tobin, the most decorated player in Sydney’s history with three Championships and three Premierships, will unfortunately miss out on finals due to the ACL injury that has kept her on the sideline all season. While her leadership and talent will be missed in these final few games, Tobin should be set to go at the beginning of next season.
“I didn’t have plans to go anywhere else. I love this club and I’m very happy to be here for the next two years.” Tobin commented that this was not at all unexpected, having been with the club for 12 years already. Reflecting, she said, “it’s a bit scary. That’s, what, almost half of my life that I’ve been here? I’m very proud to have been here for that long, and I like to think that I’m a very loyal person. I don’t really chop and change much in my life and that’s definitely been shown through my football as well.”
“I wouldn’t be playing at this level and committing this much time to (football) if I didn’t love it. I think women’s football has built a following because people can see we do it for the love of it. We don’t get paid a lot. It is difficult juggling full time work and football, but I really enjoy football and I’m not willing to give that up just yet.” Tobin, just engaged, said she’ll have to review the stage her life is at come the end of this new contract. “Other things happen in life, but these next two years, my sole focus is getting another two good years at Sydney.”
“Obviously, I haven’t had the best luck this year, being out for the whole season with my ACL,” Tobin said when asked about the possibility of overtaking Teresa Polias’ appearances record. She mentioned her run of illnesses that kept her out for periods as well. “The intention is there to continue racking up performances and also racking up silverware, of course.”
“It’s a pretty high standard set by Teresa, but I would just hope to have a similar legacy to what (she) has.”
If Sydney can achieve silverware this season, although she has been unable to contribute on the field, Tobin would go down as the winning captain. “Who would have thought at the start of the season that we would have the opportunity to take out the premiers plate? We went on a stint of draws, but the girls have so much resilience. We’ve had so much thrown at us this season. The team just keeps riding the waves. I would love to see that fourth premiership in a row come home to Sydney. From the outset of this season we wanted to do the double-Double, and we are on the brink of doing it.”
Tobin spoke of her recovery process, saying, “I feel great to be honest, it’s all on track. I’ve been running, I’ve started with change of direction, it’s actually started feeling really good now. I’m feeling so positive about it.”
One of Sydney’s key defensive players, the young and promising Kirsty Fenton, went down in the match against Wellington Phoenix last round in devastating fashion. It has been confirmed that she too has torn her ACL. Tobin said, “it’s been really heartbreaking, but I’m hoping I can provide her with that support. It’s pretty fresh in my mind, so I can hopefully support her through it.” She opened up on the advice she sent Fenton, saying “you’re at rock-bottom now, and the only way is up.” Tobin commented on the state Fenton is in, saying she’s handling it well, but is taking the time she needs to process it. “She’s a very resilient girl. She had a knee injury at the start of the season and came back incredibly well, and I think she’ll do the same thing this time around.”
Matildas superstar Cortnee Vine got off to a rough start in the season, being sidelined by injury for many rounds pretty early on, but the speedster has once again found her feet and is arguably the best player right now in the A-League Women. Her excellent form, 9 goals, 5 assists, and a whopping 38 chances created, has earned her a spot back in the national team. “Super excited to be part of the Matildas squad for this upcoming camp, it’s in America, so that will be really cool. I’ve never been.”
While making the Olympics squad of just 18 players is a tough goal to achieve, Vine shared her determination, saying “I’m just still hoping to be a part of that Olympics squad. I’m very grateful that Tony has called me back in for this one, and the Olympics has been a goal of mine since I was probably nine. So, doing it in a sport that I love, with a team that I love, is a dream. I can do as much as I can in club land and the upcoming games to try and prove myself, but I’m just focusing on the A-League finals series and hopefully creating history.”
Just recently announced was the A-League Women All-Stars game that will see the best players in Australia face Arsenal. “Those games don’t come around very often, and I think it’d be an amazing opportunity for not just myself, but for the girls in the league to come up against the girls that play for Arsenal. They represent their countries, it’s basically like a national team game, so it’ll be a good experience for any A-League player that gets selected in it.”
On her Matildas teammates Vine is set to face in the All-Stars match, she said, “I haven’t really faced them, obviously Kyra (Cooney-Cross) used to play for Victory, so we’ve versed her a few times, but having Steph Catley mark me on the right wing could be really fun, or it could be really bad for me,” she said with a laugh, “it’s always fun versing friends”
Wellington Phoenix
By Ryan Miller-Woods
The media heard from Wellington Phoenix’s Emma Main and Head Coach Paul Temple ahead of the team’s upcoming match against Canberra United on Sunday.
Wellington goes into this weekend’s match off the back of a 4-0 win against Adelaide United at home on Wednesday, a result that has kept their finals hopes alive. Wellington need to win against Canberra to head into the last round of the season with a shot at finals.
Someone who’ll most likely be called upon on Sunday is Emma Main who will be hoping to make an impact in the match, towards Wellington’s charge to make the top six come the end of the Regular Season.
When asked how much confidence Wednesday’s result ahead of another must-win match for Wellington against Canberra, Main said, “I think it gives the team a lot of confidence. It’s great to get four goals and we knew that with the crowd behind us (on Wednesday) we could really pull out a result. Going into this weekend, we’re really confident that we can get a result away. It’s (a) must-win but our team tends to do quite well when those are the circumstances. We’ve been training well, we know what we’re going to do. (I’m) really excited and I think it’ll be a good challenge.”
In regards to the match on Wednesday, Main was asked whether the team approached the match any differently whilst their season was effectively on the line, to which she said, “we actually said since the Perth game (in Round 19) that we were in knockout football from then. Temps (Paul Temple) sat us down before the game and he said ‘You know this is our knockouts, we start now’. So, ever since Perth, that’s been in the back of our mind. I think going into this game it won’t be any different. We’ve got the same mindset and if we just carry on with how we did against Adelaide we shouldn’t have a problem.”
The result against Adelaide would have been very pleasing for head coach Paul Temple knowing their chances at finals are still alive. When asked how much confidence the win against Adelaide United has given the team ahead of Sunday’s match, Temple said, “it was great to get four goals, (a) clean sheet, and to play well with control and dominance in a lot of parts of the game was really good, and that stuff does breed confidence. Any team that you play against in this league is tough competition and I thought Adelaide still did some really good things in the game. What was good from our perspective is that we were pretty clinical with those chances, so I think that’s a good step forward for us as a team. That gives confidence going into Sunday.”
From the last time that Wellington and Canberra faced each other in Round 14, Wellington emerged victorious 2-0 in what was at the time a very crucial result for the Phoenix that broke a four-match losing streak of which overall they had a very good performance against Canberra. So with that result, the Phoenix would feel some form of confidence that they can do the same this weekend.
When asked how he expects Canberra to play on Sunday against his side, Temple said, “I think very similar to Adelaide. They (Canberra United) kind of have this nothing-to-lose mentality, but we know because we played them not too long ago, they’re dangerous. They’ve got (Nicki) Flannery, (Michelle) Heyman, and (Vesna) Milivojevic who have been consistently good in terms of assists and goals this season, so it shows what a threat they’re going to be. When that kind of attacking threat is let loose and essentially you can just go out and play, there’s a danger to that that you have to be very aware of.”
Western Sydney Wanderers
By Ava-Marianne Elliot
The media heard from Western Sydney Wanderers’ Head Coach Robbie Hooker and defender Vicky Bruce ahead of their upcoming match against Western United.
Wanderers head into the fixture off the back of a win against Perth Glory with their eyes on reaching finals. Currently, they sit in sixth place in the table and three points clear of Newcastle Jets, meaning they’re in a place where a win at home this weekend would likely see them achieve qualification for just the second time in the club’s history. Still, with two fixtures remaining, there is work to be done in the build up to the close of the regular season.
When asked how the team are feeling this week in the build up to facing second-place Western United, Hooker stated, “yeah, pretty good. We’ve come off a good week where we’ve picked up a couple of wins and a draw, so we’ve put ourselves in a really good position where we can secure a finals place with a win.”
The following topic of discourse was the 1-0 victory against Glory last weekend. “It was a gritty win, I thought we dominated most of the game, particularly with chances created.” Sophie Harding’s impressive strike from distance was the only goal of the 90, successfully securing both a win for Wanderers and her tenth goal of the season. Although the win was arguably narrow, there were a number of positives to reflect on moving forwards. “Sophie came to the rescue with a great goal, and we defended really well, kept a clean sheet for the first time in a while.”
When asked what the solution is to secure a win against Western United, Hooker said, “I think the key’s just more about us, and it’s been like that for probably the whole season. We just need to play and have the right mental approach with our own team. There’s not a team this season that I don’t think we haven’t been able to beat, Sydney’s probably the only team.”
Above: Vicky Bruce addresses the media ahead of the clash. Photo: Western Sydney Wanderers.
Bruce also addressed the media, opening with the fact that the squad “took this week to really make sure we’re ready to go and recovered” aiming to uphold mentality to secure a win in a top-six battle following what was a hectic week, playing a fatiguing string of three fixtures across seven days.
Towards the start of the season, Wanderers achieved a late 2-0 win away from home against Western United, and this weekend, they aim to replicate the result on home soil in order to walk away with three-points. “We know they’re a very strong team, they’re obviously one of the top of the table (teams) and we have played them before, and we were lucky enough to come out with a win there.”
Heading into the fixture, Western United approach the weekend following two consecutive losses and Bruce expressed outwardly the important role of the fans support this weekend to crack the side again, “I think this is a huge game, because if we win then we’re pretty much guaranteed to go top six, so if we can get all the fans out, the more we can get, the better support we have, the more chance we have at winning and solidifying our chances in the finals.”
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