After elimination, wounded United eye future. "What's delayed right now won't be denied in seasons to come"

Outmanned and outgunned by Newcastle in their elimination final, Western United's ALW season is now over and their eyes cast to the future, to a story they won't allow to be denied an ending.

In the end, Western United’s women just couldn’t find anything else in their bag of tricks. Devastated by injuries and run ragged across 120 minutes of football, Kat Smith’s side fell to a 4-2, extra-time defeat at the hands of the Newcastle Jets on Saturday evening in Tarneit, their sophomore season ended in heartbreaking fashion in an elimination final. 

On the surface level, it was an upset, the sixth-placed finishers whose place in the playoffs was only booked in the final round of the regular season travelling to face third. But this was one of those games wherein the tale of the tape belied the circumstances facing down either side. 

The Jets are one of those teams that started the season as underdogs but have done their utmost to shed that label as the season’s gone on. On their day, they can probably score against anyone; Sarina Bolden, who scored a brace, is possibly the most lethal attacker in the league and Melina Ayres, who scored the dagger-like third goal, represents almost a cheat code off the bench. They had tuned up for finals by putting eight past a hapless Adelaide United. 

Meanwhile, United had stumbled across the finish line during the regular season after being beset by injury – going without a win across their last four weeks. Adriana Taranto, Hannah Keane, and Chloe Logarzo all went down with injuries during this stretch, removing not only the spine of the United starting eleven but also its three highest goalscorers – 24 of the 37 they’d netted all season wiped away by their absences. 

In their absence, Catherine Zimmerman gamely did her bit to fill the void against the Jets. And it does bears acknowledging that she had enough half-chances that, on another day, she may have grabbed more than her 68th-minute penalty and spurred a completely different outcome. Tash Prior was immense in defence for the Jets but that was because she needed to be.

And Zimmerman thought she had put her side up 2-1 in the opening stanza, only for it to be called back by referee Georgia Ghirardello. Eventually called back. Only after Western had celebrated and the ball returned to the halfway line, leaving those in green and black perplexed as to just how the official had arrived at that decision, and who or what had been consulted, to reach that point.

But while the American attacker was doing her best to fill the goalscoring void, the blows to the depth soon began to tell. It’s not just three starters you needed to replace with Taranto, Keane, and Logarzo go down, but one also needs to find new players to take the position on the bench of those elevated to the XI. It all adds up, especially when the latter invariably have precious few match minutes and formed under their belt. Thus, while Western reacted best to a 20-minute delay in the game when the lights went out in the second half, the Jets were able to finish the game the stronger – bringing on the likes of Ayres off the bench to supplement one of the competition’s fittest sides. 

“How about the drama?” Western boss Kat Smith said post-game. “I wasn't expecting lights out.  I’ve maybe used that as a metaphor [in the past]. But it actually happened!

“Given all of those different circumstances that happened within the game, the lights going out, a goal disallowed after we'd celebrated and then returned for kickoff. A few of those things could really throw a team but the girls remain focused. When you know they came up to those hurdles, they overcame them. 

“Credit to the Jets, they've had a great season and they did enough to win the game. I certainly thought that we had enough chances to win the game. There were a couple of pivotal moments there that could have turned the game and been enough for us to continue on this final journey. 

“But it's not to be. I spoke to the girls and the staff and everyone that's involved; what's delayed right now won't be denied in seasons to come. That's for sure.”

Already seeking out the next opportunity to improve, Smith will be off to the Gold Coast this week to attend a coaching conference but a long offseason will now await – her future was secured last week with the announcement that she had signed a one-year contract extension with the club.  

And while looking forward has become something of a mantra for her across a topsy-turvy 2023-24, and magnanimity is inevitably her preferred tone, there’s one moment that she would be forgiven for looking back on Zimmerman’s disallowed goal. 

“In hindsight, it'd be nice to know... what capacity and what method or processes were actually provided to the referee to make that decision,” she said. “[That] is what I'd like to understand for future reference. Because if it's a matter of looking at replays on a screen, then we don't have them available in the [A-League Women]. 

“There's no VAR. So the fact that there was such a delay, I could only speculate [there] were decisions coming from other officials around the pitch. It's unfortunate. There's probably been 1000 decisions that have gone our way along the course of this season. And I'll get the rub of green next time. That's just how it works.”

For the players, a long, near five-month offseason now awaits. For some, it will be a time for relaxation before beginning to prepare for another long season. For others, mostly those who were used sparingly this season, a move down to the NPLW, either with Western’s partner club Calder United in the Victorian league or elsewhere, will be on the agenda; getting the vital match minutes they require to improve and, for those without contracts for next season, putting their best foot forward in auditioning for a job in 2024-25. 

With Keane’s injury all but certain to rule her out for all of that campaign, the American recently underwent surgery and began her rehab in Tarneit, finding another striker will inevitably be on the agenda for the club. So will be locking up Logarzo for another season, with the Matildas’ midfielder now a free agent. 

“We've been very busy over the last two months, very clear on what we need to continue to be successful,” said Smith “There's a great core group here that we want to retain. That's been our focus. 

“Then we spoke about the challenges we have with depth across the league because of the lack of competition minutes for players that don't play, week in and week out. So we've got to look at strategies on how we can improve that for those players that inevitably find themselves in positions where they're starting in finals matches or that they're in a position to come on and make a difference and an impact so yeah. 

“The direction of the club is very strong. Very clear on what they want. got the opportunity to build on what we have so far.

“When I came in, we met with every player. We discussed what their qualities are, what their limiting factors are, and how we can help them as individuals -- as athletes, players and people. A holistic approach. 

“So they have a plan in place for the three and a half months that they have off. There'll be a significant focus on what they can do to improve across those three areas.”