Melbourne Victory Women visit Canberra United in an Elimination Final of the Ninja A-League Finals Series on Saturday, April 25, kick-off 2pm AEST.
The Girls in Blue have had three weeks to prepare for their trip to ACT, for what will be the ALW team’s eighth consecutive Finals appearance. This run includes Championships in 2021 and 2022.
Jeff Hopkins’ team locked in a top-six finish in the final round of the regular season, winning by a single goal away to Perth Glory as sides around them on the ladder failed to take maximum points.
Canberra finished third on the ladder, earning the hosting rights for this weekend’s showdown, but ended the campaign on a losing note at home to Brisbane Roar.
The Girls in Blue
The 2025 Grand Finalists have no shortage of motivation for their trip to the Australian Capital, having been a penalty shootout away from getting their hands on a fourth ALW Championship last May.
Melbourne Victory, no strangers to Finals, will have to come from deep if they are to claim the silverware next month. Although this is just what a Jeff Hopkins-led team achieved in 2022, winning three straight away matches on route to glory.
Five wins from their first eight outings had the Girls in Blue setting the early pace in the Ninja Women’s A-League, but a stumbling mid-season, going winless from Christmas until early February, stalled their assumption.
This period did, however, include the astonishing 3-3 draw at Central Coast Mariners, when the visitors netted a trio of efforts in injury time to claim a point. And whilst every club can scribble a list of ifs, buts and maybes when consulting the ladder, it is hard to see beyond that result as anything but being pivotal.
Points tallies were drawn level on the last day, after Victory’s win in Western Australia could not be matched by Central Coast, who drew with Sydney FC. Mariners would finish seventh, behind Victory on goal difference.
The recent success over Perth Glory delivered a seventh clean sheet of the campaign, giving the team a better defensive record than Brisbane Roar and Adelaide United, who finished fourth and fifth, respectively.
The break between matches has allowed Sienna Saveska to return to the squad after a spell on Victory’s injury list.
Elimination Final Squad: 1. Courtney NEWBON, 3. Claudia BUNGE, 4. Chelsea BLISSETT, 5. Sofia SAKALIS, 6. Taylor RAY, 7. Ella O’GRADY, 8. Sienna SAVESKA, 9. Holly FURPHY, 10. Rhianna POLLICINA, 11. Nicki FLANNERY, 16. Kennedy WHITE, 18. Kayla MORRISON, 23. Rachel LOWE, 24. Laura PICKETT, 27. Rosie CURTIS, 28. Sienna TECHERA, 30. Payton WOODWARD, 66. Alana JANCEVSKI, 81. Grace MAHER.
Ins: 8. Sienna SAVESKA (returns from injury)
Outs:Â 14. Fiorina IARIA, 17. Poppy O’KEEFFE, 20. Leyla HUSSIEN (National team selection), 41. Jessica YOUNG.
Unavailable:Â 19. Zoe MCMEEKEN (injured)
A United Canberra
Having finished third on the ladder and completed a league double over Melbourne Victory, many will have Canberra United down as favourites for the Elimination Final.
It was, though, at this stage last year that the team from Australia’s capital slipped up, surrendering a half-time lead to Central Coast Mariners to bow out at the hands of the eventual Champions.
United also enter this Finals series having stumbled over the finish line, winless in their last two, as Wellington Phoenix were allowed to hold onto second spot and an express pass into the Semi-Finals.
That being said, Canberra were the team that snapped Melbourne City’s 30-game unbeaten stretch in December, with top scorer and ALW all-time appearance maker Michelle Heyman scoring the decider.
This sealed one of four wins that month, amidst a seven-match unbeaten stretch, which cemented Antoni Jagarinec’s side in the top-six race going into the season’s second half.
Run it back
Melbourne Victory were hamstrung by a controversial decision as they went down away to Canberra United in February’s Round 15 fixture.
Defender Claudia Bunge was shown a straight red card, which was later overturned, after colliding with opposition striker Michelle Heyman in the 32nd minute at McKellar Park.
Despite being a player light, Victory led through a Kennedy White special during the second half, only for Canberra to make their advantage count through goals from Sasha Grove, Mary Stanić-Floody and Tegan Bertolissio.
Last time out
Melbourne Victory put in a laser-focused display at Perth Glory to finish sixth in the Ninja A-League, and set up the Elimination Final with Canberra United.
A 0-1 win was claimed thanks to Claudia Bunge’s far-post header in the 22nd minute, with the New Zealand international fighting her way to thunder home Rhianna Pollicina’s corner.
Perth, requiring a monumental goal-difference swing to make Finals themselves, set about trying to spoil the party, but it was Victory substitute Sofia Sakalis who came closest to adding to the scoresheet.
Canberra United finished third on the ladder as they were edged by Brisbane Roar in early April.
Aimee Medwin had the visitors leading at half-time in ACT, finishing off Kijah Stephenson’s searching forward ball midway through the first 45.
Michelle Heyman’s looping header levelled matters around the hour mark, only for the Roar, through Alicia Woods’ olimpico, to promptly retake the lead and claim the points.
