Melbourne Victory FC (W-League)

Melbourne Victory FC is an Australian women's soccer team affiliated with Melbourne Victory FC and Football Federation Victoria. Founded in 2008, the team is one of the representatives of Melbourne in Australia's top-tier domestic competition – the Westfield W-League.

Melbourne Victory Women
Full nameMelbourne Victory Football Club
Founded2008 (2008)
GroundEpping Stadium
Lakeside Stadium
AAMI Park.
ChairmanAnthony Di Pietro
ManagerJeff Hopkins
LeagueW-League
2019–20W-League, 2nd of 9
Active teams of Melbourne Victory
A-League
(Men's)		 NPL & NYL
(Men's)		 W-League
(Women's)

History

Establishment
See also: W-League: Establishment

Following on from the previous top-division Women's National Soccer League, Melbourne Victory Women linked with the Hyundai A-League men's club but run by Football Federation Victoria (FFV), was a foundation club of the Westfield W-League.[1] With a strong roster boasting Australia's number one goalkeeper Melissa Barbieri and former Matildas star Tal Karp as captain, expectations were high.

Inaugural season
See also: 2008–09 Melbourne Victory W-League season and W-League 2008–09

Early signs were positive in the first season with New Zealand international Marlies Oostdam scoring the club's first goal as Victory won their first competitive fixture, defeating Central Coast Mariners 2–0.[2] Despite being on top of the table at the conclusion of Round 3, the next few rounds were lean for Melbourne, and it found itself in the position of needing a win in the final round to make the finals series. With the final round match in the balance, Central Coast Mariners came back to haunt Victory with goals in the 89th and 90th minutes to deny the Victory a play-off spot in the inaugural year.[3] Melissa Barbieri was awarded Goalkeeper of the Year by the league.[4]

2009
See also: 2009 W-League (Australia)

The second season proved even more painful as once again Melbourne's finals prospects came down to a last-round showdown, this time against Perth Glory. Needing only a draw to claim fourth spot, late goals again cost Victory as Perth scored in the 81st and 87th meaning the Victorians missed out on finals to Canberra via goal difference.

2010–11
See also: 2010–11 W-League

Season 2010/11 saw a change of personnel for Melbourne Victory with new coach Vicki Linton taking charge of a re-shuffled squad. Adjusting to a new system and new teammates, it was a slow start with the team having to wait until Round 4 to claim its first win of the season before finishing the regular season off with a five-match undefeated run.

Finishing in fourth spot, Victory made the finals but succumbed to a strong Sydney FC team 5–1. The team was not quite ready for a title challenge but a maiden finals campaign was an important step forward. 2010/11 also saw the club win its first silverware with a win over Canberra United, seeing it awarded the OCRF Trophy while also taking out the W-League Fair Play Award.

2011–12
See also: 2011–12 W-League

If 2010/11 was an important step forward, 2011/12 was a giant leap for Melbourne Victory as it consolidated its place as one of the top teams in Australia. Its most consistent season so far saw it never out of finals contention. Going the entire season undefeated at home – including going within minutes of beating the undefeated Canberra United – Victory finished fourth in the tightest season of the Westfield W-League in history.

Despite a tight 1–0 loss to Canberra in the semi-final it was a successful season with Steph Catley, Ashley Brown, Brianna Davey and Katrina Gorry all making their Matildas debuts while Catley and Brown won Footballer of the Year (Australian Football Fan Awards) and W-League Young Player of the Season respectively. Melbourne Victory also won its second successive W-League Fair Play Award, sharing with Canberra, and retained the OCRF Trophy.

2012–13
See also: 2012–13 W-League

Hoping to build on their strong 2011/12 season, the Victory got off to a shaky start in 2012/13 with head coach Vicki Linton resigning only weeks before the season was to kick-off. With her departure Darren Tan was appointed as interim coach until former Gold Coast United coach Mike Mulvey was given the job just days before the opening round.

Having only a squad of 12 players registered going into the match, Melbourne Victory was forced to sign three more players due to FFA regulations before going on to lose 2–0 to Perth. Despite another loss in Round 2 leaving the team on the bottom of the ladder, a combination of international signings – including stars Petra Larsson and Jessica Fishlock – and players beginning to understand Mulvey's playing system led to a turnaround in form.

With the league's best defence, Melbourne finished the regular season in third place losing only a single match after Round 2. Even so, the team had to contend with more issues as Mulvey left following Round 9 to take up an A-League contract with Brisbane Roar, while Fishlock's guest contract ended after Round 10. A dramatic semi-final win over Perth Glory extended the side's historic undefeated streak to seven and allowed it to host the 2012/13 Westfield W-League Grand Final at AAMI Park, although it fell to Sydney FC 3–1. Despite this, Steph Catley was awarded W-League Young Player of the Year and Mike Mulvey W-League Coach of the Year.

Players

Current squad
As of 3 July 2020.

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  AUS Casey Dumont
2 FW  AUS Rosie Sutton
3 DF  AUS Teigen Allen
7 MF  AUS Emma Robers
10 MF  AUS Jenna McCormick
No. Pos. Nation Player
13 MF  AUS Polly Doran
14 FW  AUS Melina Ayres
15 MF  AUS Amy Jackson
16 MF  NZL Annalie Longo
18 MF  AUS Grace Maher
19 FW  AUS Lia Privitelli
20 GK  AUS Melissa Maizels
— GK  AUS Shamiran Khamis

Notable former players
See also: List of Melbourne Victory Women players

Below is a list of notable footballers who have previously played for Melbourne Victory Women. Generally, this means players that have played 50 or more first-class matches for the club. However, some players who have played fewer matches are also included, are the club's integral founding members, were integral members of a championship winning team, have at least one senior international cap or made significant contributions to the club's history.

Australia

Canada

England

  

New Zealand

Sweden

Turkey

United States

Wales

  • Jessica Fishlock (2012)
  

Managers
Dates Name Notes Honours
26 October 2008 – 5 December 2009 Matt Sheppard Inaugural manager
13 November 2010 – 21 January 2012 Vicki Linton First manager to take the club to W-League finals W-League Fair-Play Award (x2): 2010–11 & 2011–12
12 November 2011 – 13 November 2011 Michael Edwards Step-in Manager for one match
21 October 2012 – 18 December 2012 Mike Mulvey Departed in Round Ten to join Brisbane Roar in the A-League. W-League Coach of the Year 2012–13
18 December 2012 – 27 January 2013 Fabrizio Soncin Promoted from Assistant Coach to complete season 2012–13 W-League Premiership Runners-Up 2012–13
5 February 2013 – 23 February 2014 Dave Edmondson Departed following Grand Final to join Bristol Academy W.F.C. W-League Champions 2013–14
16 May 2014 – March 2015 Joe Montemurro Departed after season to join Melbourne City
October 2015 – 2016 Dave Edmondson
17 June 2016 – Jeff Hopkins[5]

Honours
Club
Individual

List of Individual award winners who won awards while playing for Melbourne Victory FC.

  • W-League Coach of the Year
- 2012/13: Mike Mulvey
  • U20 Female Footballer of the Year – Australian Football Awards
- 2012: Stephanie Catley
  • W-League Young Player of the Year
- 2012/13: Stephanie Catley
- 2011/12: Ashley Brown
  • W-League Goalkeeper of the Year
- 2008/09: Melissa Barbieri
  • Female Footballer of the Year – Australian Football Fan Awards
- 2011/12: Stephanie Catley

Year-by-year history
Melbourne W-League history
SeasonTeamsLeague PositionFinals Position
2008–0985th–
200985th–
2010–1174thSemi-Finals
2011–1274thSemi-Finals
2012–1383rdFinalist
2013–1483rdChampions
201482ndFinalist
2015–1699th–
2016–1799th–
2017–1897th–
2018–1991stSemi-Finals

Records and statistics

Records
  • Record Win: 5–0 vs Perth Glory, Week Eight (Season 2011/12), 10 December 2011 & 5–0 vs Adelaide United, Round Seven (Season 2012/13), 1 December 2012
  • Record Defeat: 5–1 vs Sydney FC, 6 February 2011, Semi Final (Season 2010/11)
  • Record High Attendance: 4181 vs Sydney FC, AAMI Park, Melbourne, 27 January 2012
  • Most Goals by a Player in a Game: 3 – Caitlin Friend v Adelaide United, Veneto Club, Bulleen, 19 November 2011 & Jodie Taylor v Perth Glory, 6PR Stadium, Perth, 10 December 2011
  • Most Wins in a Row: 3 – 3 November 2012 to 17 November 2012
  • Longest Undefeated Streak: 7 matches – 1 December 2012 to 20 January 2013
  • Most Goals In a Regular season: Jodie Taylor – 8 goals, 2011–12 W-League
  • Longest Period Without Conceding a Goal: 316 minutes – 18 December 2010 to 23 January 2011. Goalkeeper: Brianna Davey (7 minutes) & Melissa Barbieri (309 minutes)

Most appearances

Maika Ruyter-Hooley holds the record for most league appearances with 54 (including finals) as of January 2013

Last updated 29 January 2013

Competitive, professional matches only.
Name Years W-League Finals Total
1 Maika Ruyter-Hooley2008–50454
2 Enza Barilla2008–40 4 44
3 Stephanie Catley2009–34 4 38
4 Amy Jackson2010–31 4 35
5 Caitlin Friend2010–27 3 30

Leading scorers

Jodie Taylor holds the record for most league goals with 12 (including finals) as of January 2013.

Last updated 29 January 2013

Competitive, professional matches only, appearances including substitutes appear in brackets.
Name Years W-League Finals Total Games per goal
1 Jodie Taylor2010–201212 (19)0 (2)12 (21)1.75
=2 Jessica McDonald2012–7 (11)0 (2)7 (13)1.86
=2 Caitlin Friend2010–7 (27)0 (3)7 (30)4.29
=4 Laura Spiranovic2011–4 (12)1 (2)5 (14)2.8
=4 Katrina Gorry2009, 2011–20125 (17)0 (1)5 (18)3.6
=4 Amy Jackson2010–5 (31)0 (4)5 (35)7
=4 Enza Barilla2008–5 (40)0 (4)5 (44)8.8
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See also

References
  1. "NEW MELBOURNE VICTORY WOMEN'S FOOTBALL TEAM KICKS OFF". The Premier of Victoria. 24 October 2008. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
  2. "Mariners' women denied victory in Melbourne". Football NSW. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
  3. "Mariners women sign off for 2009 with dramatic win". Football NSW. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
  4. Hogan, Jesse (22 January 2009). "Barbieri named goalkeeper of the year in inaugural awards". The Age. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
  5. "Jeff Hopkins appointed as Victory W-League coach". Melbourne Victory. 17 June 2016.
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