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Who has been the A-League's best goalkeeper this season?

Goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne celebrates. (AAP Image/Dean Lewins)
Roar Guru
11th December, 2017
8

Australia has always been blessed with quality goalkeepers, with the likes of Mark Schwarzer, Zeljko Kalac, Mark Bosnich and Mat Ryan all having had great careers for club and country.

While the current stock might not have as many future Socceroos on the cards, there is still plenty of quality. As much was only display in Round 10 of the A-League, starting with Paul Izzo’s performance in Adelaide United’s 2-1 win over Melbourne Victory.

But who has been the best goalkeeper so far this season?

Ben Kennedy
Kennedy made 114 appearances for the Newcastle Jets between 2006-17. Many players and staff had come and gone but Kennedy was the one thing that remained at the club, so it was a surprise when he signed for local rivals thee Central Coast Mariners in the off-season.

The 30-year-old was Paul Okon’s second choice to the aptly named Thomas Glover, but an injury to the Tottenham loanee saw the Newcastle junior come into the first team, and he has taken the opportunity with both hands.

Kennedy has only conceded four goals in his six matches, keeping three clean sheets and making 19 saves. He has also made seven clearances, and won three fouls.

Eugene Galekovic
Galekovic left Adelaide United for Melbourne City in the off-season after ten years with the Reds. He is the most capped Adelaide player, with 238 appearances, and won A-League goalkeeper of the year four times. A lot was expected of Galekovic joining City.

He has made a promising start to life between the AAMI Park sticks, making 13 saves, keeping three clean sheets, and only conceding nine goals in his eight matches, as well as 12 catches, ten clearances, and four punches.

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However, an injury in the warm-up to the match against Newcastle and a man of the match performance by replacement Dean Bouzanis has kept the 36-year-old on the bench since.

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Paul Izzo
Izzo left Adelaide United in 2015 for game-time due to Galekovic being the No.1 at Coopers Stadium. Two seasons later, Galekovic leaves the club and Izzo replaces him, the Anakin to Eugene’s Obi-Wan (belated Star Wars round reference).

Izzo was immense in Adelaide’s 2-1 win away to Melbourne Victory, keeping out James Troisi, a Besart Berisha penalty, and a near own goal at the death.

In the ten matches he has played this season, he has made 34 saves (second most in the league) conceded 12 goals, and kept one clean sheet. However, he is the only keeper to have conceded a penalty so far this season.

Andrew Redmayne
It was always going to be him. The Sky Blues’ glovesman has kept a league-high five clean sheets in ten matches this season. He has also saved 19 of the 27 shots he has faced, conceding only eight. The 28-year-old has made ten catches, ten punches, 16 clearances, and has made one interception so far this season.

It hasn’t always been this good for the former Australian youth international. Born in Gosford, he made his debut for the Mariners in September 2008, and despite his near decade-long stint in the A-League he has yet to play 100 matches. His journey has taken him from Gosford, to Brisbane, to Melbourne City, to Western Sydney, and now he’s the regular starting keeper with the A-League champions.

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Redmayne has copped a lot of criticism in his career, but he is slowly silencing those critics producing the best form of his career.

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