W-League Melbourne Victory squad announced...a new keeper and lots of local talent

Coach of the Melbourne Victory W-League squad has been announced by coach Vicki Linton, pictured right.

We already know Matilda captain and number one goal keeper Melissa Barbieri was controversially dropped from the squad by Linton a few weeks ago to make way for 16-year-old Brianna Davey.

It's a big call to axe the national team's captain and probably the most well known female player in Australia for a year 11 school student, but the writing was on the wall last year when Linton 'rested' Barbieri to give Davey a chance in round seven against Perth.

Linton in her second year at the helm after replacing Matt Shepard is obviously going down the development path in naming Davey.

She also selected youngsters Georgie Koutrouvelis and Jackie Vogt from Victoria's talent development program the national training centre, which she also heads.

Eight new players join the core squad, quite a shake up for the team which made the finals series for the first time last year.

This includes three outstanding players from the local Women's Premier League including South Melbourne's Laura Spiranovic (yes she is Socceroo centre-back Matthew Spiranovic's sister) who won the competitions top player and golden boot award last season.

Stephanie Tanti from Sandringham SC and Box Hill United's Cassandra Dimovski also made the squad in a tentative endorsement of the local league, which in the past had some issues with the W-League who refused to let local players participate in the WPL.

The new signings will join other local players such as Louisa Bisby of Box Hill and Amy Jackson of Altona City.

I think its about time coaches look to the local league for players, as the A-League has proved its essential training ground for players who might later play for Australia or be recruited to an overseas club.

Its also a reward to the WPL clubs ans coaches to have players who can reach the high standard of the W-League competition.

International talent is also in the mix defender Danielle Johnson who is the headline recruit from from Sky Blue FC in the USA, Kendall Fletcher and Jodie Taylor also return for 2011.

English Taylor was a bit of a disappointment up front last year, but Linton has retained the faith in her.

One more disappointing thing about the Melbourne Victory womens team this year is thier new ground at the Veneto Club in Bulleen plus they will play no curtain raisers to the mens A-League games this season.

In a conversation with ABC sports commentator Steve Robilliard after the inaugural season of the W-league he said playing on quality grounds was essential for raising the level of the competition.

I confess I have not seen the quality of the Veneto ground, but its a long way from Edihad or AMMI stadium and frankly these are the grounds the women should be playing on.

Vic WPL Round One Verdict

It was a great weekend to watch football and the Victorian Womens Premier League's first round gala certainly drew a crowd.

Of course not as big as the crowd watching South Melbourne and the Melbourne Knights at John Cain stadium right next to the DISC pitches...but hey.

Never the less if you want to read all about the round visit the FFV website and read my match report. And the ladder and results are here.

Five matches were played, but I was only able to watch one full game - the grand final rematch between reigning champs Box Hill and Heidelberg.

It was a salivating prospect as these two have met in the final for the past five years with Box Hill taking the spoils four times.

But it was Heidelberg's day yesterday and their star striker Melanie Camilleri had a cracker opening game.

Camilleri fired a hat trick for Heidelberg United’s to defeat of reigning champions Box Hill Inter 3-1.

The Bergers emphatic victory over Box Hill was their best ever result over the eight-time champions and see them top the table at the end of the first round.

Camilleri’s quick and aggressive style suited astroturf surface at Darebin and Heidelberg’s coach John Liopas believes the striker is in her best form since she joined the club in 2007.

That’s quite a rap given Camilleri has topped the WPL goal scoring for the past two years and took out the top player award in 2009.

“You never know what you will get with Box Hill so to come away with three goals is a bonus,” Camilleri said after the match.

“This is the perfect way to see how where we are as a group, and it can only get better.”

“I always aim to capitalise on the opportunities I get and this year (the goal is) to get the girls to a grand final and lift the trophy,” she said of her ambitions this season.

Box Hill looked sluggish yesterday, but probably against any other team they may have had a win.

Their usual performers in Louisa Bisby and Lousia Farrugia were solid, but the Bergers looked more hungary for the ball and they had some young blood with enthusiasm to burn.

I suspect Box Hill may have had a poor pre-season and probably some injuries, but will they be able to maintain their impressive reputation as the league's long-time champion this year?

It will be fascinating to watch it all unravel in 2011.

Victorian women soccer starts

Some big rivalry's will be renewed this weekend...no not in the AFL but in the Victorian Womens Premier league, which starts on Sunday.

I am excited about 2011 - its a world cup year and the WPL competition has taken a youth leap this year with two talent development and a number of other teams opting for renewal.

The grand final rematch between Box Hill and Heidelberg is the block buster of the round and will be a good test to see which team fared better in the off season.

Box Hill is stacked with talent including a number of W-League players, but Heidelberg, the perrenial bridemaid should be hungary for success.

Everytime Heidelberg have beaten or drawn with Inter they have played agressively from the whistle and their forward have taken every chance to nail home goals.

The other two rivals which are new to the premier league is Doncaster Rovers and Bundoora United. The have moved up in the same leagues together and battled for top position in Division One of the womens competition last year.

It wouldn't be an exageration to call this a grudge match as both teams are going to need all the points they can get and keen to start thier inaugral season in the top league with a win.

The Ashburton and VCL Country will test both teams.

Ashburton by their own admission have undergone a renewal process and will feature a lot of young players while the country team will be playing only thier second match together are probably still trying to gel as a team.

Casey Comets is another team which has been re-vamped over the summer with a new coach and personnel and South Melbourne under the guise of former socceroo Alan Davidson improved as the season went on last year.

Sandringham could be the sleeping giant this year as they have a massive junior program and an experienced coach in Shaune Parton.

They have also recruited former WPL coach of the year, Deb Nichols, who parted ways with Casey Comets and led Casey to finals, Not only that she was known to play in goals for the club they were short on keepers.

Altona on the otherhand struggled last year and would have been relegated but for Bendigo withdrawing.

Can Box Hill and Heidelberg maintain thier dominance in a competition with a sawg of young and hungary girls?

Lets find out - you can find the fixture here

Victorian Womens Premier League Expands in 2011

Wow the Victorian Womens Premier League has really snuck up on me! It starts TODAY with a rescheduled match between the new teams VCL Country and the Emerging Athletes team.

Have a comment about this years WPL or the womens game - then tweet me @sangriablues

The league has undergone a major expansion this year, which includes two talent development teams.

The league has increased to 11 teams with two new teams Bundoora United and Doncaster Rovers joining the WPL after Prestons Lions’ relegation and Bendigo Vipers withdrawal.

The league kicked off this week with one game played on Sunday and the remaining games being played next weekend.

VCL Country and Emerging Athlete Program (EAP) started their season today and are playing both making their WPL debut as the FFV tried to ramp up its talent development pathway.

Both teams will play as a senior team only, will be exempt from relegation and they will play for points but not be able to play finals football.

They will have young and upcoming players as will Bundoora and Doncaster which will play their first year at the top level.

The lean towards to younger players is also being reflected in a number of established teams including Ashburton and Casey Comets.

Casey have a new coach after the club parted ways with Deb Nichols, leaving the WPL with no female coach in the top league.

Ian Williamson, who has coached in the FFV’s Champions League for a number of seasons, has taken over at the Comets and said he has been given direction from the club to rebuild the squad.

“We have a young and enthusiastic team with a lot of speed and commitment,” Williamson said adding that only five regular players from last year remain in the team.

Chris Michail has been reappointed at Ashburton and will be relying on many of his reserve players to step up to the next level.

Ashburton’s reserves team have topped the league in five out of the past six years.

“We have a completely different team this years, the average age has dropped dramatically as we enter a rebuilding phase,” Michail said.

The two powerhouse teams Box Hill and Heidelberg will have the same look and feel and will form the benchmark of the competition.

Box Hill are not without their own talent program with five club members being selected in the Victorian under-17 state teams last year.

They also have a string of Melbourne Victory players including Matildas captain Melissa Barbieri, New Zealand international Marlies Oostdam and Louisa Bisby.

Sandringham will look to build on their third place finish in 2010, which was their best to date, and South Melbourne’s Alan Davidson will be looking to consolidate after reversing the club’s decline last year.

Altona City will return to the WPL for their second year, despite finishing second last in their maiden season in 2010, escaping relegation when the Vipers withdrew.

The new talent program teams will add an element of the unknown to the WPL as will the rebuilding going on in a number of the established teams.

Injuries and squad depth will probably play a big role in making the top four but its probably a given that Box Hill and Heidelberg will battle it out at the top.

Expect some upsets and expect to see some young talent start to make an impact – in a world cup year for the womens game that’s about as good as it can get.

Roar deserves W-League title

I know its been nearly a week since the Brisbane Roar womens team took out the W-League but I thought I'd offer my (late-ish) views.

The match was high quality and the best team on the day took home the title.

Brisbane got off to a flying start with Tameka Butt's goal after some tidy work y Lana Harch who was having a blinder until she went off with an awful ankle injury just before half time.

Sydney leveled before half time with almost the strike of the season from Sydney's Kylie Ledbrook.

I haven't been too impressed with Peter Wilkin's commentary of the W-League on ABC1 (and I am not the only one!) but his comment that 'you will never see a better strike than that in the W-League' was spot on.

While we are on the topic of the ABC - a big thumbs down (or 'dislike' for the facebookers) for the national broadcaster not putting the game on live in Queensland. Seriously bad move Aunty! The local fans in Qld were pretty jacked off

Brisbane brought on Lisa DeVanna when Harch was stretchered off and in the 65th minute the West Australian slotted home the winner. Then she got herself a yellow card for doing a Pat Cash (wow they had some bad outfits in 1987...sorry got distracted) - going up into the grand stand to celebrate.

I simply love watching DeVanna in action - as a defender I think she would be your biggest nightmare. Quick, technically brilliant and unpredictable.

I can't wait to see what she does in the FIFA Womens World Cup later this year.

If you missed the action you can watch the whole thing on ABC's Iview or just the highlights here

If you want the low down on the match, with commentary on the season from someone who knows female football I high recommend Fiona Crawford's blog on the 442 website (or the match report on 442 which is here).

For a sanitised version of the match try the official Roar's W-League website and have to give a shout out to the guys from the Football Sack who also covered the league.

The Football Sack also picked a W-League team of the year. Hmm interesting - very Sydney/Brisbane top heavy AND they excluded the Matildas captain Melissa Barbieri.

The Womens Game also covered the match and have been providing excellent info about the W-League and everything else to do with female football. Teo Pellizzeri and his crew were awesome giving us live coverage of lots of the matches.

And how exciting was it during the final to see so many people twittering about it - if you haven't already check out #wleague.

I have been watching the W-League from the start and its not a cliche to say its been better every year its simply the truth. The more these women play, the better the coaching the facilities the better they are. Bring on the World Cup.

Did I mention that I tipped Brisbane before the match. No? Its true

Adelaide United dump women's team

The future of Adelaide United women’s team is in doubt with the clubs new owners set to dump the W-League team.

The Lady Red’s had a horror season failing to win a match, scoring only four goals and conceding 36.

Their last win was November 2008 and since the inception of the W-league three years ago they have only managed two wins.

Reds chairman Greg Griffin revealed in December last year the Lady Reds cost $100,000 to run in the 2010 season and they were losing patience with the team.

I'd personally like to see the maths on this calculation because none of the women playing are paid much more than their costs and its an exceptionally short season.

Adelaide’s W-League coach Mike Barnett blames the terrible results on the hit-and-miss women’s program in South Australia.

Most other W-League teams have strong links to their state talent or sport institute program, allowing them to train together all year.

Some W-League teams are managed by the club but others by their state federation.

For example Melbourne Victory carries the clubs name but is managed by the Victorian Football Federation, but Adelaide has had little interaction with the state body which generally runs the talent programs.

The Adelaide team came from the local league, trained for only two weeks in the pre-season and were expected to compete with the likes of Brisbane and Sydney which are littered with Matildas and bolstered by quality coaches and facilities.

"Until we're on an even playing field with what the other states are doing, we'll be playing for the next 100 years and not win a game," Barnett told ninemsn.com.

While Adelaide have yet to make a formal announcement those involved have said that it’s a foregone conclusion.

"There are some discussions going on at the moment whether the FFSA may take this program on," Barnett said.

"It is going to be the only solution that will change the face of how the women's game is going.

"If it doesn't happen…we won't produce any good young talented girls and nothing will change.

He indicated the Football Federation of South Australia should take over the management of the team.

Fans are furious at the decision and have been venting their anger on online forums.

They are particularly riled the way in which the new owners have treated the players who have so far found out everything via the media.

The team has been neglected by its club and left to fend for themselves in a competition where the standard has lifted and simply left them behind.

Week after week the W-League standard has been impressive and with that the players confidence and skills have improved.

In a world cup year it sets the Matildas up for a great shot at getting past the round of 16 for the first time ever.

We can only hope the SA Football Federation has the resources to assist the Lady Reds and that the fans keep the faith.

Otherwise there will be a lot of young girls in South Australia who's dreams of playing at the top level will be that much harder.

Other articles
Lady Reds among sport's biggest losers - Ninemsn.com, 2 Feb 2011
Saving the lady reds - Fiona Crawford, www.auFourfourtwo.com, 19 December 2010

Women to shine as W-League kicks off

Below is my assessment of the 2010-11 W-League Season but if you want more update to date info go to www.w-league.com.au for all details about the competition.

Download the official guide to the 2010-11 season courtesy of The Womens Game (awesome website on womens soccer)

Wed 3 November 2010: Season Three of the Westfield W-League kicks off this weekend and with 2011 FIFA Womens World Cup less than eight months away, the competition will be the battleground for a coveted Matildas jersey.

While the local players will be playing for a spot in Tom Sermani’s World Cup squad the competition is gaining an international reputation attracting a number of players from Europe and the Womens Professional Soccer (WPS) league in the United States to strengthen the competition.

Despite the total number of teams being reduced to seven with the demise of Central Coast Mariners, the 2010-11 season will feature 35 matches over the 12 week season from the November 6 kick-off and culminating with the Grand Final on February 12.

The opening clash will see reigning champions Sydney FC will take on Brisbane Roar in a grand final rematch on Saturday 6 November at Ballymore Stadium.

While most squads are finalised ahead of this weekends kick-off a player still looking for a home is Matilda goal sneak Lisa De Vanna, who is in the States playing for her WPS team and was not re-signed by Perth Glory.

De Vanna was suspended for two W-League matches in 2009 for an abusive rant at her own club officials and also suffered a broken leg in this years Asian Cup. There are rumours she may be heading to Melbourne Victory, but to date nothing has been confirmed.

Sydney FC
The Sky Blues will start their defence of their premiership with a strong line up spear headed by their captain, Matilda Heather Garriock, and fellow national team mates Kyah Simon, Servet Uzunlar and Leena Khamis.

Matilda striker Sarah Walsh is likely to miss the entire season due to a knee injury from the Asian Cup back in May.

It was during this tournament that Australia qualified for the 2011 World Cup by reaching the final of the tournament, but the team lost both Walsh and other key striker De Vanna before the final.

The Matildas went on to defeat China to win the title and Sydney’s 18-year-old Kyah Simon held her nerve to kick the winning penalty.

“Being the title holders there will be a lot of pressure on us to keep it," Simon said speaking before Sydney’s first game against Brisbane.

"I am sure every other team is going to be out to beat us but we are ready to take it on and really show them that we deserve to hold the title.”

Sydney FC coach Alen Stajcic has brought in two new keepers Dimi Polos and Erin Herd plus picked up Central Coast Mariners players Young Matilda Teresa Polias, Renee Rollason and Lydia Vandenbergh. Reliable defender Danielle Brogan returns for season three with the Sky Blues along with former Matilda Kylie Ledbrook.

Brisbane Roar
Despite all the recruiting by other W-league teams Roar’s line up stills looks the most impressive and will be lead by FFA’s 2010 female player of the year, Claire Polkinghorn.

After finishing losing a thrilling grand final to Sydney last year Roar coach Jeff Hopkins has boosted his squad following the departure of defensive powerhouse Kate McShea and striker Courtney Beutel.

Back for the Roar in season three is W-leagues 2009 Young Player of the Year, Elise Kellond-Knight and Young Matilda, Casey Dumont will be between the uprights. At 18 years old it’s hard to believe Dumont is already a veteran of two W-League seasons.

Hopkins has also included foundation players Brooke Spence and Kim Carroll returning from long-term injuries to boost Brisbane’s defensive stocks, alongside Westfield Matilda Karla Reuter and Laura Alleway from Melbourne Victory.

Another recruit, Aivi Luik, who has spent years playing in the US and Europe will join the Roar’s impressive midfield of Polkinghorne, Tameka Butt, Lauren Colthorpe and Joanne Burgess.

19-year-old Butt, despite nursing a troublesome hamstring for the majority of last season, finished Brisbane Roar Women’s top scorer with five goals.

“I think we are a more balanced team than we ever have been, so it’s an exciting time for Brisbane Roar,” Polkinghorn said.

“Tameka Butt and Elise Kellond-Knight, they’ve got some skill and got some pace so they’re exciting players to watch.

“We’ve also got a young striker called Emily Gielnik who will hopefully play an important role for us.”

Brisbane will again be the team to beat in 2010-11 with the new additions boosting an already strong squad.

Newcastle Jets
The Jets took the wooden spoon last season following an exodus of experienced players in 2009 like former Matildas captain Cheryl Salisbury, but for season three coach Wayne O’Sullivan has recruited strongly.

Matilda defender and vice-captain Thea Slatyer joins the Jets from Canberra United along with goalkeeper Allison Lipsher from the Boston Breakers in the US which will put pressure on Alison Logue to retain her place as the number one keeper.

Other additions to the squad include utility player Niki Cross from the WPS in the States, plus Brisbane Roar's Sasha McDonnell and striker Kara Mowbray from Melbourne Victory.

"There is a healthy amount of interest in the W-League from America," O'Sullivan said.

"We looked around and researched a number of girls in the WPS and its supporting league.

"Niki Cross can play anywhere through the middle and she's moved around a lot because of that, starting at St Louis Athletica and then the Boston Breakers. She's very valuable."

If O’Sullivan can get all the players to gel on the pitch the Jets may well be back in business but much will depend on his young players stepping up and being competitive against their more experienced opposition.

Melbourne Victory
Following two years finishing just out of the top four Melbourne Victory has a new coach, Vicki Linton and a new look squad after significant departures from the club.

Victory’s backbone will be made up of Westfield Matildas captain Melissa Barbieri, and experienced campaigners Louisa Bisby, New Zealand international Marlies Oostdam and Maika Ruyter-Hooley.

New recruits include American Sky Blue midfielder Kendall Fletcher, English import Jodie Taylor, Snez Valjanovska from Canberra United and former Young Matilda Amy Jackson.

Young local talent also feature in Victory’s squad including Under 17 Young Matildas’ Stephanie Catley, Caitlin Friend, Ashley Brown and Brianna Davey. Fifteen-year-old Davey replaces Nicole Paul as second goal keeper and is the youngest player in the squad.

Victory’s captain from the first two season midfielder, Tal Karp, is not returning in 2010 and Victorian Womens Premier League players Jess Humble and Sarah Groenwald have also been left off the list.

“We identified a number of areas where we were lacking in the squad from last season, and I’m pleased that we have been able to bring together a squad that we believe has a strong chance of making the finals this season,” Linton said.

“Victoria has some very talented female footballers coming through the talented player pathway.

I’m looking forward to watching them develop as the season goes on, and I am confident they will be able to step up to the challenge of competing in national league football.”


Victory has come agonisingly close to the finals in the first two season and would be disappointed if it can’t make the top four this year. It remain to be seen if Linton can bring together the young and experienced player into a team which can threaten the likes of the Roar and Sydney.

Perth Glory
The Glory have signed two new international players to add to their impressive line up of Matilda regulars Sam Kerr, Collette McCallum and Katie Gill, but it remains to be seen if the exclusion of De Vanna will have a big impact on the clubs results.

Kate Gill’s LdB Malmo teammate Tine Cederkvist Viskær has been recruited as the club’s number one goalkeeper.

Cederkvist is a Danish international with 47 caps for her country.

Another international joining the Glory will be Sweden’s Alexandra Nilsson, who captains her Swedish team Sunnana SK and is a much needed addition to Perth’s defence.

Gill says the acquisition of the international players will boost the side and she is hoping for a finals appearance in 2011.

“We’ve got quite a good squad and then obviously the West Australian girls that play in the league are more than capable,” she said.

“I’m definitely thinking top four and then we’ll see what happens.

“This year is probably going to be its most competitive year which I think is a great thing, obviously for the general public watching it and for the game itself within Australia.”

Other new faces are locals Lara Filocamo, Jaymee Gibbons and Emily Dunn, while Bunbury’s Kathleen Waycott will be the Perth Glory Women reserve goalkeeper.

US import Alex Singer will be back for her second year at the club.

Glory W-League coach John Gibson is also aiming for a top four finish but was cagey about his decision to drop De Vanna.

"Unfortunately we've had to make some hard decisions on the squad for upcoming season and Lisa didn't fit into the plans of the future direction of the team over the next few years,” he said.

"We've have seen some good improvements with the group in the last 12 months and Season three will be very intense and standard of the competition will be very high.

“Our goal will be to improve on last year and push for finals.”

The Glory will miss Lisa Devanna’s pace and experience but with youngster Sam Kerr, fresh from great Peace Queen Cup campaign and a goal in the Germany friendly, gaining in confidence along side the talent of Gill and McCallum the Glory still have a pretty formidable line up.

The question will still be in defence but with two experienced international players at the back the Glory may be in the hunt for their first finals appearance.

Canberra United
The loss of Thea Slatyer is a blow to Canberra but the squad still boasts a string of experienced players along with youngsters willing to prove themselves.

Goalkeeper Lydia Williams has been named co captain of Canberra United along with defender Ellie Brush.

Williams has just returned from a successful overseas tour with the Westfield Matildas. Having been selected for the squad that travelled to South Korea for the Peace Queen Cup and the subsequent European friendly with Germany.

Other Matilda players in the squad include Sally Shipard and Caitlin Munoz in addition to the Sykes twins, Ashleigh and Nicole plus Chinese Taipei player Tseng Shu-O.

Canberra also picked up 2009 Golden Boot and Most Valuable Player, Michelle Heyman, offering her a life line when Central Coast collapsed.

Local Woden Valley youngsters Grace Field and Sally Rojahn have also joined the squad.

Canberra is the dark horse of the competition, which was acknowledged by players from all clubs attending the Westfield W-League season three launch last Monday.

Canberra's Sally Shipard welcomed the increased expectation on her squad.

"We are looking quite strong," she said.

"We want to equal – if not better – our performances of the last two seasons so breaking through to the semi-finals (is the goal)."

Adelaide United
The Lady Reds 2010/11 squad has quite a different look from last year featuring eight new names, while ten players have been dropped from the list.

Their most significant signing is American striker Ashleigh Gunning who plays for the Charlotte Eagles in the USL W-League.

“We’ve seen video footage of her in action and are very much looking forward to her having an impact not only for our team but doing well in the W-League this season,” Adelaide coach Mike Barnett said of his new recruit.

“I think having her here will definitely highlight the standard of overseas players, and if she makes an impact it might help us to attract more players from overseas to further lift the profile of the game.”

After undergoing a knee reconstruction that kept her out of last season, Victoria Balomenos returns to the squad in 2010 as will Matilda Christina Papageorgiou. Other new signings include Katrina Gorry, Vedrana Popovic and Selin Kuralay all from Melbourne Victory.

Katherine Ebbs and Georgia Macri frin the South Australian Sports Institute (SASI) also made the list along with former Newcastle Jets duo Stacey Day and Loren Mahoney..

Racheal Quigley, who led United’s scoring and was named the club’s Most Valuable Player last season will return for the Reds. As will defender Ruth Blackburn after a broken foot finished her 2009 season before it began.

“There has been quite a large turnover of players this year. Injuries, work commitments and a number of other reasons have seen some girls unable to play this season, but that has given some opportunities to some new young local players,” Barnett said.

“We’ve also got some good interstate players with W-League experience that have joined us and will hopefully improve the squad.”

The first W-League match between Sydney FC and Brisbane Roar on Saturday 6 November and will be shown live on ABC1 at 3pm EST. ABC TV will again cover the ‘match of the week’ live and exclusive on ABC1 and ABCHD throughout the 12 week competition and the Westfield W-League 2011 Finals Series.

Check www.w-league.com.au for all details about the competition.

Download the official guide to the 2010-11 season courtesy of The Womens Game (awesome website on womens soccer)