Image: Graeme Furlong
Coach: Mark Torcaso
2016 finish: 1st (premiers and champions)
Summary: It was a whirlwind campaign for the new NPLW consortium, with Calder sweeping all before them in the league to claim the premiership-championship double, including an extra-time grand final victory over Galaxy United
Ins: Dani Gudelj (Bulleen Lions), Emma Robers (Bayside United), Emma Meckfessel (USA)
Outs: Tyla-Jay Vlajnic (Bulleen Lions)
Re-signed: Rachel Alonso, Jessica Au, Enza Barilla, Rachel Binning, Holly Boldiston, Shanel Camilleri, Claudia Fruscalzo, Kelsey Hildred, Gulcan Koca, Cindy Lay, Bethany Mason-Jones, Kasha Meyer, Stacey Papadopoulos, Marie Rampal, Brydie Siryj, Bianca Trimboli
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Player Q&A: Jess Au
How’s pre-season going? Where have you been with the team?
Pre-season with Calder has been amazing so far, we started early and have been building on the foundations we created last year. All the girls have been working hard and taking on all the feedback they receive from the coaches. There are so many quality players in the squad and the fight for starting spots has definitely improved our training environment with each player trying to make their mark on the team. Personally, I’ve enjoyed every second of pre-season, I’ve been there from the beginning and I think we’ve played really well in practice games, and it’s great to see how much we’ve improved over such a short period of time.
What have the club’s pre-season results been?
Pre-season results have been great, we’ve won all our games so far, defeating Southern United, Alamein and Bulleen, with our main focus being on the way we play rather than the score line. We also had a good win against Heidelberg United in the Community Shield.
How are the new signings settling in?
Our new signings for this year have been settling in really well. They’re all amazing players and it’s great to see them adopt the culture at Calder united and they fit so well into the team setup. I feel the transition for them has been smooth and that we’ve already started to gel quite well, with 3 of our signings scoring on their debuts in the Community Shield game.
Who are the Calder players to watch in 2017 (new or existing) and why?
Cindy Lay will be a player to watch this year, she found great form towards the end of the season last year after overcoming injuries and was one of our most important players. She works hard at training and is an absolute goal scoring machine, who will be a big contender for the golden boot if she continues this form into the season.
Emma Robers will definitely be one to look out for in 2017. She’s an absolute work horse in midfield, has great vision to play our strikers in and also has a keen eye for goal. She’ll definitely be one that W-league clubs will want to keep on their radar if she continues her preseason form into the 2017 season.
Other players to also keep an eye on include Holly Boldiston, a young gun and impact player who provides so much energy in the midfield and Brydie Siryj who can destroy teams with her blistering pace.
Who are the some of the bigger characters off the pitch and why?
Calder is full of characters, with the likes of Enza Barilla, Cindy Lay, Marie Rampal and Stacey Papadopoulos always finding new ways to make everyone in the team laugh, whether it be playing pranks on each other or cracking jokes when everyone least expects it. However, the best character off the field by far would have to be Ian Williamson, before every training session he carefully plans his kit to make sure everything is colour coordinated, he has an amazing sense of humour! He’s always got a new catchphrase every week, and he has the best comebacks for whenever we complain about sprints.
How’s Mark Torcaso been preparing the squad?
Mark along with Ian have been preparing the squad the best they can, ensuring our fitness is at an all high with intense training sessions and several practice games. Pretty much building on the same things they did in last year’s pre-season which led to a championship.
Which team/player are you most looking forward to facing this year?
Haven’t thought about it much, but it’s hard to pick a single team because I feel like everyone is starting with a clean slate with so many talented signings and shifts in personnel. I’m just excited to be able to play in what I think will be the most competitive NPLW season yet.
Which opposition club(s) have impressed you most in pre-season?
All the teams we came up against in pre-season played really well and look like they’ll be set to have very competitive seasons and will be pushing us to play at our best. With the talent spread quite evenly amongst teams, it’s clear that no team in the league should be taken lightly and I feel the ladder at the end of the year will be very close.
What are the expectations/objectives in 2017?
I think we did really well last season as a new club and our goal for this year will be quite similar, just try to aim for the top 4 without adding too much pressure on ourselves. We’ll be hoping to score more goals and concede less than we did in 2016 and are just looking to take the season one game at a time.
What’s one headline we may see about Calder this season?
Calder United with a contender for goal of the season