Melbourne City’s sensational six Westfield Matildas go straight into the hunt for a Westfield W-League Championship as the Finals Series kick-off this weekend.
The recently-crowned Premiers will welcome the six Green and Gold stars – Lydia Williams, Ellie Carpenter, captain Steph Catley, Aivi Luik, Emily van Egmond and Kyah Simon – back into their squad ahead of their crunch Semi Final clash against Western Sydney Wanderers on Sunday.
Another recently capped Westfield Matilda, Emma Checker, is expected to be in action for Dario Vidosic’s side as they square off against the Red and Black in a historical occasion for the visitors.
City claimed a 4-0 win on the only occasion the sides met in the regular season, with Carpenter on the scoresheet twice at Marconi Stadium, and the number one seeds will be clear favourites against the team that finished fourth to book their spot in their first ever Semi Final.
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Amy Harrison's side may be the underdogs against the undefeated Premiers but Dean Heffernan’s team have had a full week to prepare for the challenge while City’s six Westfield Matildas faced a winner-takes-all two-legged Olympic Games qualifying playoff against Vietnam, winning 7-1 on aggregate, and only arriving back in Australia two days before the match.
In the opening Semi Final on Saturday, Alanna Kennedy and Princess Ibini will take the field for defending Champions, Sydney FC, against Big Blue rivals Melbourne Victory at Epping Stadium.
Big V's defence is set to include Jenna McCormick and Laura Brock, while goalkeeper Teagan Micah and defender Teigen Allen will feature in the Navy Blue’s match-day squad in a rematch of their Round 14 encounter in Victoria, where the hosts triumphed 3-1 to seal home advantage in the finals.
Westfield W-League Semi Finals
Melbourne Victory v Sydney FC
Date: Saturday, 14 March 2020
Venue: Epping Stadium, Epping
Kick-off: 2:00pm (AEDT)
Broadcast: FOX Sports, ABC TV
Stream: ABC iview, Kayo Sports, MyFootball App
Melbourne City vs Western Sydney Wanderers
Date: Sunday, 15 March 2020
Venue: ABD Stadium, Broadmeadows
Kick-off: 1:30pm (AEDT)
Broadcast: FOX Sports, ABC TV
Stream: ABC iview, Kayo Sports, MyFootball App
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