City, Victory eye season-defining Dub clash
Melbourne City and Melbourne Victory's clash on Sunday shapes as a potentially season-defining Melbourne Derby. Defining not only for the two competitors, but the broader A-League Women.
Three games remain on Melbourne City and Melbourne Victory’s regular seasons in the A-League Women. After a crucial win over Newcastle snapped a five-game winless run, the former finds themselves a point back of table-topping Western United. Unbeaten in their last eight, meanwhile, the latter have stormed to within three points of United and two points back of their local rivals. It’s tense. And on Sunday afternoon, it’s going to get even more fraught when the two meet in a potentially season-defining Melbourne Derby at the Home of the Matildas.
At risk of sliding as far back as fifth had they fallen to defeat in the fixture, Dario Vidošić’s City overcame the heat and the ongoing absence of a bevy of players through injury and international duty to down the Jets at Casey Fields last week; two goals from Hannah Wilkinson, both set up by Bryleeh Henry, steering them to a 2-0 win.
After absorbing an early spell of Jet pressure, City eased themselves into that fixture and were comfortably in command for most of the contest, unlucky to have another goal ruled out for offside and denied a late penalty that would have put a bow on things. Their coach would remark on Friday that this was something of the tale of their season and he’s not wrong; City leads the league in expected goals (xG) with 41.1 but their actual total is underperforming that mark by six, while their 28 goals conceded is actually three worse than their expected tally.
Naomi Chinnama, Tijan Mckenna, Daniela Galic, and Holly Mcnamara will all remain unavailable for Sunday – the latter three, all away with the Young Matildas, are expected back on Monday – but the City boss has received a boost to his preparations in the form of wingback Julia Grosso, who will be returning to the side after a nearly two-month absence with a calf complaint.
“Jules will be back, it’s a big plus for us,” said the coach. “She’s been training really well and [looking]like herself again, and we’re excited to have her back.”
Certainly, Vidošić will take all the defensive reinforcement he can get for this weekend, given that Victory, as it currently stands, looks to be fielding the most in-form attack in the competition. Jeff Hopkins’ side has scored 13 goals across their past three games, with Paris Olympics hopeful Emily Gielnik netting a dominating hattrick in their 4-1 win over Adelaide United last week.
The attacker, who has looked imperious since her return from injury, has scored six goals and grabbed a further two assists in her last four fixtures and it is likely no coincidence that her run of scintillating form has correlated to her side-beginning to resemble something akin to the sum of their devastating parts — their 38 goals scored three more than any other side in the competition and nearly seven more than their xG.
City possesses arguably the best centreback in the competition in Rebekah Stott and has reinforced with Brazilian star goalkeeper Barbara in recent weeks but Gielnik nonetheless represents a stern test, to say nothing of the likes of Rachel Lowe, Alex Chidiac, and Beattie Goad.
Vidošić was coy when asked how he would seek to contain Victory’s in-form focal point but did emphasise that he wouldn’t allow a focus on containment to compromise what his side wanted to do.
“They've got fantastic players, dangerous ones in all areas,” he said. “We know what we have to be aware of and we also know where we can hurt him. So we'll still play our style.
“Looking at the last few games, I think they're sort of a little bit more allowing teams to have the ball and then looking to play maybe a little bit more on that transition and use the weapons that they have up front. We're prepared, we're ready. We play [against] similar every single week; we face all 11 players just outside their 18-yard box a lot of the time.”
Hopkins has named an unchanged squad from the one that put the Reds to the sword last week, with Lydia Williams still rehabilitating her ankle following surgery last month. Her return date remains uncertain, albeit Victory should welcome back two Young Matildas of their own Alana Murphy and Jess Nash following the end of the U20 Women’s Asian Cup this weekend.
Sunday will also mark the final regular season game in the professional career of Emma Checker, who announced her retirement from the A-League Women earlier this week.
Not unfairly labelled an A-League Women great by Victory in its announcement, the defender won titles with both they and City during her career — a part of the latter’s invincible season in 2019-20 — and represented the Matildas eight times across a career that began as a 15-year-old with her hometown Adelaide United. She will tick over 150 league appearances before it comes time to hang up the boots at the end of the campaign.
“It felt like it was the right time for me to step away from the game and begin a new journey,” Checker said.
“I probably feel fitter than I have in a long time, physically, mentally and emotionally in every way and there’s always that doubt that comes but deep down, it’s the right decision for me and my family.
“I’ve had an incredible opportunity come up for me in my life that would mean I couldn’t give my all to football and I’ve had to make this decision. I feel like I owe it to those in my life to change my priorities.”