Claudia Bunge expects the Original Rivalry fixture to give Melbourne Victory an extra dynamic.
The A-League Women’s team are raring to go following last weekend’s defeat to Canberra United at the Home of the Matildas, where the hosts gave up a strong start that had them ahead after four minutes.
Now, in Round 7, Jeff Hopkins’ side hosts old foes Adelaide United on Saturday, December 13, kick-off 4:50pm, and the New Zealand international believes this is the ideal platform to deliver a response.
When the teams last met, Victory completed an emphatic 6-2 aggregate triumph to secure their place in 2025’s Grand Final.
Speaking during her pre-match press conference, Bunge, who scored twice in that semi-final’s first-leg, served up some fighting talk.
“We’ve been in finals football with them, probably ever since I’ve been at the Club. It’s always a really competitive and close match against them. We definitely don’t like each other, but I think that’s going to bring the best out of both teams, and we’re really excited.”
On the fixture taking place at AAMI Park, as part of a double header, Bunge added:
“We do love playing here at AAMI. It’s always a good atmosphere, and I think the fact that the men are playing after us, hopefully, we should have a few more fans rolling in. So very excited.”
Bunge is in the second season of her second spell at the Club, having previously worn the Navy Blue between 2020 and 2023.
But with plenty of player turnover during the off-season, the defender has explained how the squad, with many new faces, are working hard to achieve the level of consistency that was an ingredient of last term’s recipe for success.
“I think we’ve had to reshape our attacking identity a bit, and I think that’s taking a bit of time for us to kind of settle.
“We’re seeing really promising things, and people are starting to come back from injury now, so I think it’s just going to help our team and make starting positions more competitive. I think we’re starting to see improvements.”
Watch Bunge’s full press conference below.
