Melbourne Victory showcased its strong culture and squad depth on its way to the Westfield W-League championship.
Victory claimed the title for a second time and first since 2013/14 with a thrilling 1-0 extra-time win over Sydney FC at Jubilee Stadium on Sunday.
It capped a successful season during which it finished third on the table before going on to lift the trophy.
After the Grand Final success and ahead of the W-League Victory Medal on Wednesday, we take a look at the performances of the squad this season.
Goalkeeper Gaby Garton kept eight clean sheets in an impressive first Westfield W-League campaign.
She was well supported by a consistent and strong back four, including Polly Doran, Kayla Morrison, Claudia Bunge and captain Angela Beard.
❌ Clean sheet number 8️⃣ ❌ #MVFC #Since05 pic.twitter.com/zIqhmdNt0j
— Victory W-League (@victorywleague) April 11, 2021
Amy Jackson, who won the Victory Medal in 2014, played a key role in midfield, allowing those ahead of her to shine.
No player created more chances in the league than Kyra Cooney-Cross, who finished the season with six goals and four assists, including the winner directly from a corner in the Grand Final.
After an injury early in the season, Annalie Longo impressed on her return, while the front three of Lisa De Vanna, Melina Ayres and Catherine Zimmerman also starred.
While Ayres scored eight goals and provided five assists, De Vanna and Zimmerman also had strong campaigns after dealing with injuries.
Zimmerman netted six times in 12 games in her first Westfield W-League season, while De Vanna finished the campaign with three goals.
It has nonetheless been a whole-squad approach that helped Victory to a successful season.
MelindaJ Barbieri was important throughout, while Lia Privitelli, Tiffany Eliadis and Natalie Martineau contributed regularly from the bench
Back-up goalkeeper Melissa Maizels was part of every matchday squad, while youngsters Maja Markovski (five appearances) and Paige Zois (one) both played this season.
Natalie Tathem‘s campaign was cruelly ended by a knee injury in Round 1, with Gabe Marzano added as an injury replacement player late in the campaign.
W-League Victory Medal winners
2008/09: Brittany Timko
2009: Julianne Sitch
2010/11: Kendall Fletcher
2011/12: Kendall Fletcher
2012/13: Petra Larsson
2013/14: Jess Fishlock
2014: Amy Jackson
2015/16: Annabel Martin
2016/17: Natasha Dowie
2017/18: Christina Gibbons
2018/19: Christine Nairn
2019/20: Haley Hanson
