When Western United and Sydney FC go head-to-head for Championship glory, the individual journeys of each and every player involved will reach respective crescendos, writes Matt Comito for KEEPUP.
Grand Final glory is earned by amalgamating the individual aspirations of a squad full of players unified in pursuit of one collective goal.
For either Western United or Sydney FC, that goal will be achieved on Sunday afternoon, when the two sides meet in the Liberty A-League decider at CommBank Stadium.
The individual journey of each player involved is what adds to the spectacle, with this weekend’s kick-off in Sydney set to realise the dreams of those on one side of the divide, whilst breaking hearts on the other.
These are the stories transcending the importance of team success as the sides prepare to fight for the title on Sunday afternoon at CommBank Stadium.
KEEPUP’S FULL GRAND FINAL COVERAGE
ULTIMATE GF GUIDE: Everything you need to know
SELECTION: Two options to solve XI dilemma
CUMMINGS: Five words, an unsent text & a raw A-Leagues reunion with a World Cup winner
HAWKESBY PRAISED: The ‘exceptional’ Sky Blue helping unlock Sydney FC
KEANE: Golden Boot winner shows rival club what they missed after 2016 Google search
VINE: I went to the same movie three times in a week with Sydney’s star. That sums her up
LOWE: Sydney FC star reveals 10 months of hidden illness
CANNULI COLUMN: Sydney FC will have to tackle demons from losing Grand Finals – I know, because I faced them down too
INS & OUTS: Grand Final team news
PFA TEAM OF THE SEASON: Grand Finalists aplenty in the XI
WESTERN UNITED: Predicted XI
Hillary Beall
Junior club: So Cal Blues (USA)
Hillary Beall has been a revelation for Western United through her first season Down Under. The goalkeeper was convinced on a loan move to the new Liberty A-League club by none other than Alex Chidiac, Matildas midfielder and Beall’s Racing Louisville FC in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL).
Beall has been one of the key factors in Western’s success this season. The goalkeeper has kept six clean sheets in 19 games, making 74 saves. Beall was named the league’s Player of the Month in both January and February as just reward for a sensational season in between the sticks for the expansion side.
Alana Cerne
Junior club: Fawkner Soccer Club
Alana Cerne made history as Western United’s very first signing ahead of the 2022-23 season. The versatile defender’s first response to the club selecting her as their inaugural recruit was: “are you sure?” But Cerne has since shown exactly why she is so highly rated as an up-and-coming talent in Australian football, putting together a sensational season in Green and Black.
Cerne’s football journey began at Fawkner SC at just seven years of age. She earned her spot in Western’s squad off the back of a stellar body of work put together at NPLW VIC club Calder United. A key cog in Western’s terrific first season in the competition – and undoubtedly one of the players to watch on Grand Final day.
Sydney Cummings
Junior club: St John Vianney Lancers (USA)
September, 2022: Round 1 of the Liberty A-League season was just one month away, and approaching fast. Along came American defender Sydney Cummings, who gambled on a new opportunity at Western United, a club venturing into their first season in existence.
Cummings admits the move was a daunting one. “When I finally put my name on the paper and I was like, ‘oh, crap… I’m moving to Australia, that’s pretty cool!’” Cummings told KEEPUP.
She’s since turned into one of the pre-eminent defenders in the Liberty A-League.
READ MORE OF CUMMINGS’ STORY: Five words, an unsent text & a raw A-Leagues reunion with a World Cup winner
Kahli Johnson
Junior club: Manly United
No Grand Finalist has a story quite like Kahli Johnson’s.
The Young Matildas star departed Sydney FC at the end of the 2021-22 Liberty A-League season in search of new opportunities at Western United.
The 19-year-old has thrived at her new club, playing 16 games, scoring two goals and providing two assists. When these two sides met in the Semi Finals, Johnson was simply outstanding. She supplied the assist to Hannah Keane’s 26th-minute winner, and ran herself ragged in an energy-sapping 90-minute display.
On Sunday, Johnson will line up for her new side against her former club in the title decider.
HAWKESBY PRAISED: The ‘exceptional’ Sky Blue helping unlock Sydney FC
KEANE: Golden Boot winner shows rival club what they missed after 2016 Google search & the ultimate ‘what if?’
Hannah Keane
Junior club: Land Park Soccer Club (USA)
Hannah Keane was a trialist at Melbourne City in 2016 – but, her Liberty A-League journey wouldn’t truly begin until six years later, when the phone call came from Mark Torcaso asking the American to lead the line for Western in 2022-23.
It’s resulted in one of the great debut campaigns in competition history. Keane scored 13 regular season goals to win the competition’s Golden Boot, and after bagging the decisive goal in a 1-0 Semi Final win over Sydney, heads into the Grand Final as one of the most important players on either side of the divide.
Keane is an artist, a photographer – and a volunteer at a Melbourne animal shelter in her spare time.
Stacey Papadopoulos
Junior club: Calder United
In January, Stacey Papadopoulos suffered a knee injury which kept her sidelined for more than two months. Now, she’s back amongst Western’s starters heading into the weekend’s title decider.
Papadopoulous is one of many Western players with a special connection to head coach Torcaso formed at Calder United. She’s flourished through her first season in Australia’s top flight under the coach she’s known since her early teens.
VINE: I went to the same movie three times in a week with Sydney’s star. Somehow, that sums her up
CATH CANNULI COLUMN: Sydney FC will have to tackle demons from losing Grand Finals – I know, because I faced them down too
Emma Robers
Junior club: Sandringham Soccer Club
Emma Robers won the Liberty A-League Championship with Melbourne Victory last season. A Calder United star, Robers made the off-season switch to Western in what she described at the time as “a once in a career opportunity” – and now, she’s on the cusp of back-to-back league titles.
Robers has played 18 games for Western this season, scoring two goals – including a dramatic 91st-minute winner from long range to nick all three points off Adelaide United in a December epic.
Julia Sardo
Junior club: Meadow Park
Opportunity knocks for Julia Sardo in Grand Final week.
The former Melbourne City and Perth Glory right-back has made 11 appearances for Western this season – but with injury ruling star defender Angie Beard out of contention for the Grand Final, the 27-year-old could be the one key change to Torcaso’s starting XI after the Semi Final win over Sydney.
It’s the defensive “dilemma” for Western who has the most interceptions of any player at her club this season. An epic matchup with Cortnee Vine awaits whichever player is entrusted with the left-back role on Sunday.
Adriana & Melissa Taranto
Junior club: Moreland Wolves
It’s worth mentioning Western’s twin sisters in the same breath, not to downplay their respective roles at the club and the importance of both midfielders as individuals, but for their intertwined journey through football.
The Taranto sisters first debuted in the Liberty A-League at 16 years of age in 2015 at Melbourne Victory. But after one season, the sisters went unsighted in the league until 2022-23, signing contracts to join Western together, on the same day in August of 2022.
The Taranto sisters have long been key cogs at Calder United and it’s been no different under Torcaso at Western. Adriana has played 1,447 minutes for Western this season – the club’s fourth-highest total throughout the 2022-23 campaign. Melissa follows close behind, having played just 14 minutes fewer.
Tyla-Jay Vlajnic
Junior club: Bundoora United
One of the few names on the Western United squad list who achieved Liberty A-League success prior to joining the expansion club, Tyla-Jay Vlajnic is one of the competition’s great characters – and has excelled as a leader and key figure in Green and Black in 2022-23.
The Australian-born Serbia international has scored three goals and assisted three more whilst at the club this season. The versatile left-sided flyer has played in an advanced role on the left wing of late for Torcaso; like Sardo, the 32-year-old is another option for Torcaso to consider at left-back when weighing up his options in replace of the injured Beard.
Potential substitutes
Natasha Dakic
- Junior club: Casey Comets
Alyssa Dall’Oste
- Junior club: Bulleen Lions
Francesca Iermano
- Junior club: Essendon Royals
Tiana Jaber
- Junior club: Glenwood Redbacks
Chloe Logarzo
- Junior club: Carlingford Redbacks
Jaclyn Sawicki
- Junior club: Coquitlam Metro-Ford Soccer Club
Danielle Steer
- Junior club: Coastal FC
Aleksandra Sinclair
- Junior club: Brimbank Soccer Club
Western United’s Grand Final squad
1. Alyssa DALL’OSTE (gk), 2. Stacey PAPADOPOULOS, 4. Jaclyn SAWICKI, 6. Chloe LOGARZO, 7. Francesca IERMANO, 9. Hannah KEANE, 10. Kahli JOHNSON, 11. Emma ROBERS, 13. Danielle STEER, 14. Natasha DAKIC, 15. Adriana TARANTO, 16. Melissa TARANTO, 18. Aleksandra SINCLAIR, 19. Tyla Jay VLAJNIC, 20. Sydney CUMMINGS, 21. Hillary BEALL (gk), 22. Alana CERNE, 24. Julia SARDO, 25. Tiana JABER
Ins: 6. Chloe LOGARZO, 7. Francesca IERMANO, 18. Aleksandra SINCLAIR (promoted), 25. Tiana JABER (promoted)
Outs: 23. Angie BEARD (injured)
Unavailable: 5. Aimee MEDWIN (injured), 12. Harriet Withers (injured)
READ: FULL INS AND OUTS
Have you got your Liberty A-League Pass?
This season, we’ve proudly offered registered footballers under 16 the chance to attend the Liberty A-League for free!
As a Liberty A-League pass holder your digital/physical pass will gain the participant entry to the Liberty A-League 2023 Grand Final. As a Parent/Guardian you are able to redeem one General Admission ticket to accompany the Liberty A-League pass holder by entering the barcode number of your Liberty A-League pass into the password box on Ticketek – You can redeem your ticket here.
SYDNEY FC: Predicted XI
Kirsty Fenton
Junior club: Toronto Awaba FC
Kirsty Fenton is a Young Matildas star, who has greatly benefited from an off-season move from Newcastle Jets to join Sydney FC. The 19-year-old battled through injuries in her first season in Sky Blue, but whenever fully fit has been a mainstay on the left side of the best defensive unit in the league.
The left-back is rated in high regard in Australian football circles; you will often hear Fenton’s name mentioned in conversations as a potential bolter for the Matildas’ 2023 World Cup squad as a result. Senior international call-ups will be in Fenton’s future, that much is certain. But for now, she’s looking to contribute to Sydney’s pursuit of the Premiership/Championship double.
Madison Haley
Junior club: Dallas Texans SC
You simply cannot omit Madison Haley’s name from the ‘signing of the season’ debate. The American striker has scored nine goals in 14 games since her arrival Down Under, persevering through a mid-season hip injury to score the solitary goal in Sydney’s 1-0 Preliminary Final win over Melbourne Victory to book a spot in the decider.
Haley is the daughter of an NFL legend – but is forging her own path in professional sport. The 24-year-old had big shoes to fill at Sydney after the early-season departure of Matildas forward Remy Siemsen, but has risen to the challenge emphatically. Sydney fans will hope to see Haley make her presence felt in the Grand Final – and then, stick around to create more memories in future campaigns.
Mackenzie Hawkesby
Junior club: Illawarra Stingrays
Mackenzie Hawkesby could just be the most underrated player in the Liberty A-League. Her consistent contribution over the past two seasons should equate to greater plaudits.
The attacking midfielder has notched six goals and five assists from 19 appearances this season, backing up from a 2021-22 campaign in which she contributed five goals and 10 assists to Sydney’s cause.
Hakwesby is one of the competition’s best technicians; whenever the Sky Blues launch a clinical attack, the 23-year-old is bound to be at the heart of it. A potential Matildas star in the making, Hawkesby looms as one of the players capable of turning Sunday’s Grand Final at any moment.
Sarah Hunter
Junior club: Northbridge FC
Sarah Hunter is just 19 years of age, but in her second season at Sydney FC has already become one of the shining lights of the competition. After last year’s Grand Final heartbreak, Hunter ventured to Costa Rica with the Young Matildas and proceeded to star in the U20 Women’s World Cup.
Australia were bundled out in the group stage, but Hunter returned as one of her country’s best performers. She carried that form into the Liberty A-League.
Hunter has scored four goals and provided three assists from midfield for Sydney this season, and her 69 tackles are the most of any Grand Finalist heading into the weekend.
In 2021, a match-winning Grand Final display from Kyra Cooney-Cross helped catapult her to stardom. Hunter is on a similar trajectory to the former Victory player, who is likely to play from the start for Australia at the World Cup. Sit back and enjoy the show as Hunter continues her mesmeric rise.
Princess Ibini
Junior club: Earlwood Wanderers FC
With more than 100 appearances to her name, Princess Ibini’s Liberty A-League story is a long one.
She’s just 22 years old.
Ibini became the youngest player to reach the century mark this season, and by some distance; the incredible statistic points to just how impressive the fringe Matilda has been in the competition through her teens and into her early 20’s.
As Ibini heads toward Sunday’s Grand Final, she does so as one of the few players on either side of the contest capable of winning it off her own boot. Ibini will start on the left of a rampant Sydney attack against Western, and will look to cut onto her favoured right side to cause havoc.
Rachel Lowe
Junior club: West Pymble FC
A reinvented Rachel Lowe came to the fore in mid-season to help keep Sydney FC’s Premiership pursuit on track. With Haley sidelined by injury, the Sky Blues lacked a focal point to their attack – and head coach Ante Juric turned to the 22-year-old midfielder to play an unfamiliar role at number nine.
From late February to early March, Lowe rewarded Juric’s faith. She bagged the solitary goal in a 1-0 win over Wellington, and backed up that performance with a brace against this weekend’s Grand Final opponents in a 3-0 victory. In last weekend’s Preliminary Final, she played in a midfield three alongside Hawkesby and Hunter, providing attacking support to Haley and Co.
Charlotte Mclean
Junior club: North Epping Rangers FC
Charlotte Mclean’s Liberty A-League career is just three seasons old – but in her brief spell in Australia’s top flight, the 23-year-old has proven herself as one of the competition’s most composed and consistent defenders.
Mclean operates at the heart of Sydney’s defence alongside captain Nat Tobin; no player from either Sydney or Western has made more interceptions (49) than Mclean this season, and she’s equally assured in ball playing as she is in ball winning.
Mclean missed more than a month of football with a fractured cheek; when the Sky Blues confirmed their Premiership status, Mclean was an anxious bystander. She returned in time for the post-season, and did not take a backward step in Semi Final defeat to Western, despite her recent facial injury.
Charlize Rule
Junior club: Queens Park FC
Charlie Rule is one of Sydney FC’s great characters. Yet another Grand Finalist who formed part of Australia’s 2022 U20 Women’s World Cup squad, Rule is an emerging talent at full-back for both club and country – and a TikTok star.
On the pitch, Rule is an energetic cog in the Sydney machine. She’s equal with Western’s Sydney Cummings as the Grand Finalist with the most passes (913) through the season, she’s created 25 scoring chances for just one assist this season, and her 66 tackles in 2022-23 is second to only Sarah Hunter at the Sky Blues.
Natalie Tobin
Junior club: Berowra FC
Natalie Tobin’s Liberty A-League debut came in the 2013 Grand Final. She was a substitute in Sydney FC’s Championship triumph over Melbourne Victory.
Tobin has ventured to a further four title deciders, but has never managed to repeat the feat of that dream debut a decade ago.
Sydney’s captain is the only member of the squad who couples football with a full-time job, where she works as an occupational therapist. The 26-year-old was the star of Episode 22 of A-Leagues All Access, titled One More Chance. Within the episode, Tobin claimed its “time for redemption” after three consecutive Grand Final defeats.
Cortnee Vine
Junior club: Peninsula Power FC
Over the past two years, Cortnee Vine has used the Liberty A-League as a launchpad to Matildas stardom. A near-certain starter under Tony Gustavsson at the upcoming World Cup, Vine is the big-ticket item of this weekend’s Grand Final.
After eight games in the 2022-23 season, Vine had just one goal and one assist to her name. In a World Cup year, it was not the sort of form any watching on had expected to see from the rapid winger.
Soon enough, Vine exploded into life. She heads toward the Grand Final with seven goals and eight assists to her name from 20 games.
Lightning in a bottle.
Jada Whyman
Junior club: West Wagga FC
There would be no better way for Jada Whyman to cap off an impressive three-season stretch than to pull out one of her typical brick-wall displays in a Grand Final triumph. At just 23, Whyman is an exciting goalkeeping prospect for both Sydney FC and Australia.
Her call-up to Gustavsson’s most recent Matildas camp suggests she is next player in should one of Mackenzie Arnold, Lydia Williams or Teagan Micah drop out of Australia’s goalkeeping brigade through injury or form.
Whyman was awarded Player of the Match in the 2020-21 Grand Final, despite being on the losing team in 1-0 defeat to Melbourne Victory. She’s one of so many Sky Blues tired of tasting Grand Final defeat.
Potential substitutes
Rola Badawiya
- Junior Club: Matrix FC
Teigan Collister
- Junior club: Miranda Magpies
Deborah-Anne De la Harpe
- Junior club: Cronulla Seagulls
Indiana Dos Santos
- Junior club: Shellharbour Junior FC
Anna Green
- Junior club: Hokowhitu Junior FC
Shay Hollman
- Junior club: Seaforth FC
Abbey Lemon
- Junior club: Carlingford Redbacks
Katie Offer
- Junior club: Caboolture Sports FC
Mary Stanic-Floody
- Junior club: Kenthurst FC
Sydney FC’s Grand Final squad
1. Jada WHYMAN (GK), 2. Mary STANIC-FLOODY, 3. Charlotte McLean, 4. Anna GREEN, 5. Kirsty FENTON, 6. Sarah HUNTER, 7. Teigan COLLISTER, 8. Rachel LOWE, 9. Madison HALEY, 11. Cortnee VINE, 12. Natalie TOBIN (c), 14. Abbey LEMON, 15. Mackenzie HAWKESBY, 16. Deborah-Anne DE LA HARPE, 19. Charlize RULE, 20. Princess IBINI, 21. Shay HOLLMAN, 22. Indiana DOS SANTOS, 25. Rola BADAWIYA, 30. Katie OFFER (GK)
(4 to be omitted)
Ins: 2. Mary Stancic-Floody (promoted), 4. Anna GREEN (promoted), 7. Teigan COLLISTER (promoted), 14. Abbey LEMON (promoted)
Outs: Nil
Unavailable: 18. Taylor RAY (injured)
READ: FULL INS AND OUTS
WHERE DO I BUY TICKETS?
Tickets for the Grand Final are available via Ticketek – with general admission ticket prices from $20 adults, $15 concession, $10 children and $40 for a family.
Liberty A-League Pass holders can get free entry and redeem a complimentary general admission ticket.
The Liberty A-League Pass was a new initiative for the 2023 season designed to give under-16 football participants the opportunity to attend Liberty A-League games for FREE at their local club.
SIGN UP FOR THE LIBERTY A-LEAGUE PASS
HOW DO I WATCH THE FINALS?
The Liberty A-League Grand Final will be broadcast live and free from 3.00pm AEST on 10 Bold and 10 Play, and live on Paramount+.
