Opinion
So 2021/22 finishes for the Wander Women in the Liberty A-League Womens.
Finishing ninth, and avoiding the wooden spoon on goal difference, is hardly a successful season. Nine seasons out of 10 without finals is not good enough for a club like the Wanderers.
But there is always plenty of hope. As always there were youngsters who shone when given the opportunity, whether they come back will be entirely up to Catherine Cannuli and the Wanderer’s management.
Some veterans stood up too when it counted.
Let’s revisit another season!
OVERALL SCORE
D +
BEST PLAYERS
1. Clare Hunt – The inaugural Pat O’Connor Medallist was superb in the first seven-and-a-half games this season. Her injury cost the team, before she went down we conceded only five goals, the remaining six-and-half games saw us leak 22.
Hunt’s ability to read the play and team up with Caitlin Cooper and the youngsters in the team made the Wander Women formidable down back.
A Matildas jersey may be in the offering if her body can hold up next season.
2. Bryleeh Henry – Missed a few games towards the end but was one of our most consistent across the season. Her tireless running saw her play as a midfielder and a forward, sometimes at the same time. It was an impossible task but the teenager took to it with great zest.
Offers from other clubs and overseas will come in the off-season. The Matildas hopeful will likely wait and see what happens with the Wanderer’s plans next season before committing.
A World Cup berth for 2023 is well within her sights and she will be doing everything to give herself the best chance possible.
3. Sarah Langman – A top notch performance in goals this season. She made 45 saves from 67 shots on target. If it wasn’t for her, the scoreline would have been worse in most games.
STRENGTHS
1. Youngsters are promising – Henry, Ella Abdul Massih, Sheridan Gallagher, Ashlie Crofts and Alexia Apostolakis are all bright ones for the future.
All of them showed glimpses of what they are capable at this level. Consistency is the key.
Henry is all class and works relentlessly. She showed plenty of skill and endeavour, often beating two or three opponents at a time.
Gallagher was versatile and played down back, in the middle and up front throughout the season. She goes hard at the contest and doesn’t back down. She won over a lot of fans with her style, but must maintain discipline, something that will come with maturity.
Apostolakis and Abdul-Massih are only 15 but showed they were willing to learn and mature as the season went on. Both are highly regarded by the playing group. Apostolakis had several games while Abdul-Massih only had a few. Both will be exciting prospects and surely will return next season.
Crofts didn’t have much game time early but finished the season strongly to clinch the Golden Boot. Her goals against Newcastle away and Wellington at home in consecutive games were classy. Her early season goal on her Club debut was also clever. She is a local girl and a childhood Wanderer’s fan, that should count for something.
Whether these kids are willing to come back to Wanderland next season is an important question that only the Wanderers can answer.
An experienced coach to help Cannuli in the dugout would provide an incentive for them to stay.
Alexia Apostolakis. (Photo by Ashley Feder/Getty Images)
2. Positive environment – By all accounts, despite the poor results, there is plenty of team spirit at the club. The players all got along well and that is vital for cohesion and retaining key players for the future.
The players speak of a positive work environment but one that doesn’t shy away from the disappointing results.
Leaders like Cooper and Erica Halloway should be given credit for this along with Cannuli.
It’s likely Halloway will retire after this season, meaning others will need to step up.
3. Middle tier players did well – Libby Copus-Brown and Danika Matos had underrated seasons. Copus-Brown finished the season strongly and probably won herself a new contract. She was strong in the midfield and created plenty of chances, especially in the back half of the season.
Matos, in her third season, was terrific down back. Her tackling and ability to win contests was impressive. Her passing game also got better as the season went on.
We need these middle tier players to take their game to the next level in 2022/23.
WEAKNESSES
1. Inexperience – A forward line compromising of an 18-year-old (Henry), first year A-League players Isabella Habuda, Sheridan Gallagher and the inexperienced Ashlie Crofts was always going to struggle against top quality A-League defences.
They fought hard but just didn’t have the class and physical presence when needed. An experienced forward would have helped the young kids develop.
2. Lack of speed – This was supposed to be one of our strengths, but Erica Halloway and Teigan Collister were inconsistent throughout.
To be fair to both, especially Collister, they didn’t have enough consistent game time. Collister especially was on the bench more often than not and couldn’t find any rythm when she came on. Halloway is slowing down and the veteran may have played her last game in the Red & Black.
3. Poor recruiting – While we signed some impressive youngsters, some players didn’t get enough game time even though they were fit and available. Perhaps this was an indication that recruitment wasn’t on point.
Sarah Morgan and Isabella Habuda (visa) didn’t play that much. Habuda did well in the QLD NPLW, but couldn’t find her feet at this level. She has played senior football overseas, so isn’t unfamiliar with a professional environment. Spending a visa spot on her instead of a marquee forward wasn’t the smartest move.
Liz Ralston, who has had a history with injury, didn’t feature at all and was on the bench only in the latter part of the season.
BEST GAME
The 1-0 win in Brisbane care of a Henry penalty was important. But the 0-0 draw at Leichardt against Sydney FC showed the Wander Women could compete with the best.
The defence was outstanding that day. They became the first team to take points off the Sky Blues this season.
Competitive performances against Sydney FC (twice) and Melbourne City (twice) were good signs for next season.
WHAT WE NEED
We can sum this up in one word…experience! The team fought hard but lacked that class and polish that comes with experience.
Some proven Australian players and a marquee visa would be just what the doctor ordered.
Ella Mastrantonio, a former player, is fighting for a Matilda’s jersey. With Australian coach Tony Gustavsson moving to Australia in time for next season, luring her home wouldn’t be a bad move.
Another former Wander Woman in Irish international Denise O’Sullivan is apparently willing to play down under again.
With many foreign players willing to come to Australia to acclimatise for 2023, it may be a great opportunity for the Wander Women to use their visa spot to go for someone who will bring that world class ability as well as attract crowds.
COACH
Catherine Cannuli was in her first season as head coach. She had limited resources and a restricted budget.
She tinkered with the line-up regularly to find a winning combination, but her teams couldn’t find any consistency or rhythm as a result. A short season doesn’t help when you are doing this.
The Wander Women’s passing accuracy was ordinary throughout the season. This could have been due to inconsistent combinations and uncertainty about the playing style or formation.
Cannuli was smart in ensuring we didn’t concede goals, but our problems in the final third were evident throughout the season. Often Henry was isolated up front and needed to take on three or four defenders on her own.
The lack of penetration in the final third often led to the opposition getting easy possession and turning defence into attack. As the season went on, and with Hunt’s absence, it led to a tsunami of pressure which meant plenty of goals conceded.
To her immense credit, Cannuli didn’t care about reputation and blooded some youngsters who were impressive. She was keen to build for the future this season and was successful in that regard.
Sheridan Gallagher of the Wanderers pulls the hair of Taylor Ray of Sydney FC during the round four A-League Women’s match between Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers at Leichhardt Oval, on December 27, 2021, in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Jason McCawley/Getty Images)
She created that positive environment we spoke of above and that is a testament to Cannuli’s understanding of how a team first mentality is crucial. Players want to be there which is the most important thing.
Cannuli is a year older and wiser now which will help considerably going into next season. She should consider a role with a senior NPLW team this year, it will help her hone her craft.
She had Nahuel Arrarte helping her at the start of the season gone by, but he left to help Alen Stajcic with the Philippines. Another experienced coach to help her next season will be good.
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