Image: Rachel Bach
As the final whistle ended Bulleen Lions’ emphatic 8-1 Team App Cup semi-final win over Boroondara Eagles, Maddie Stockdale was part of a defensive line that, apart from a few early scares, had enjoyed a steady day at the office.
Lia Privitelli, Keely Lockhart, Em Coppock, Beattie Goad and Dani Gudelj all featured on the scoresheet, with six goals in the second half completing the rout.
It was in vast contrast to the all-NPLW clash to come later in the night, in which Heidelberg and Alamein slugged it out for 120 minutes before the Bergers triumphed on penalties.
The results mean Bulleen will face first-time cup finalists Heidelberg for the big prize – with the Lions and Stockdale having redemption on their minds.
Now in their third consecutive cup final, the Lions backed up their win in 2014 with a defeat in 2015.
But while many of Stockdale’s teammates, including Coppock, Gudelj, Lockhart, Emily Dolzan, Bella Scott, Liana Iaconis and Tessa Sernio all have the cup competition chalked up on their CVs, the win eludes Stockdale, who was still in the NTC program in 2014.
The former Under-17 Australian representative did, however, form part of the Lions squad that suffered defeat at the hands of the Eagles last year in a 5-3 thriller at Lakeside, scoring an infamous own goal in the process.
So major silverware awaits Stockdale, and she says the team will be primed for the occasion.
“It’s very exciting. We were in the same position last year and we didn’t really pull through,” Stockdale said.
“It’s going to be tough with the game coming up, but we’ve got to prepare and be ready and hopefully we get a win this year.”
The semi-final win against a state league opponent provided welcome relief for the Lions, who have had to endure a busy fixture and many squad changes in 2016, often leading to formation tweaks and hampering club form throughout the year.
With the Team App Cup also forcing taxing midweek games, Stockdale says the opportunity to win a trophy vindicates the run to the final and the team would work hard to get itself right for the occasion.
“We’ve recently changed our structure, we’re playing a 4-4-2 now, we’re just working out what’s working for us, what doesn’t work, how we want to play,” she said.
“In the first half we were a little shaky, it was just a matter of calming our nerves down and playing the good football we can play most times.”
“We’re trying to focus on reducing the load a little bit, especially with this final coming, so it’s just a matter of resting, making sure that people are sorting out their injuries, people coming back from overseas, lots of girls were away, so we’ve just to regroup and get the team back and ready for this grand final.”
2016 is also looking more positive at the Veneto Club in league terms, having improved on missing finals last year by taking the league lead at various points this season.
However, the Lions hang onto top spot by a thread. Calder sit only a point behind with two games in hand after Bulleen’s last two league fixtures saw a defeat to the NTC and draw against Southern United.
With the likes of Alamein, Galaxy and Heidelberg also breathing down their necks, Stockdale says there’s no particular focus, but the club is excited by its upcoming challenges with the cup and league double still very much a possibility.
“We’re pretty good [off the pitch]. As soon as we’re all in the change room we’re all pretty excited – it’s all about getting the mood set for the game, we love blasting some tunes before the game,” she said.
“But it’s just Sunday [and Monday] games can be difficult as well, people are tired from the weekend, all the training we’ve done throughout the week, so it’s just about resting before this grand final.
“We’re trying to take every game as it comes one-by-one, we’re not focused too much ahead of time.”