Four of the Ninja A-League’s brightest young forwards have united to play on the same team in NPL NSW – and they’ve helped engineer an incredible turnaround.
It’s not uncommon for Ninja A-League stars to head back to their local NPL side to keep fit in the off-season, but compiling a side featuring four of the competition’s rising stars together feels like something of a cheat code.
After 12 rounds, Sydney Olympic sat dead last on the NPL New South Wales ladder with just three points to their credit.
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That is, before the arrivals of Aideen Keane (Canberra United), Alyssa Whinham (Wellington Phoenix), Tiana Fuller and Peta Trimis (both Central Coast Mariners) sparked a rapid turnaround in their fortunes.
Since Whinham debuted on May 29 in a 7-0 win over the Newcastle Jets Academy – a match in which she scored a hat-trick – Olympic have played eight times, won five, drawn two and lost one, scoring 23 goals and conceding nine in the process.
Prior to that, they had played 10 matches, winning zero, drawing three and losing seven, seeing them move up from last to 11th, now with 19 points in the bank.
That turnaround has been headlined by huge contributions from their Ninja A-League stars.
Keane, who played 15 times for Canberra United this past season, has been on absolute tear in front of goal. The 23-year-old has featured eight times for Olympic so far, scoring seven goals.
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Whinham, who has already played 60 times in the Ninja A-League despite being just 21, has scored six goals in seven games.
Fuller, the 16-year-old who took Australian football by storm this season with six goals in her debut pro campaign where she won the Championship with the Mariners, has four goals in five games, including a double in the recent 2-2 draw against fourth-placed Manly United.
Her Mariners teammate Trimis, an Australia Under-20 international who is also just 19, has one goal in her five outings.
Between them, the quartet boast 170 matches of experience in the Ninja A-League.
It also helps that Olympic have recruited Annalee Grove, on the books at Adelaide United, to play in goal. Grove has conceded just seven times in her first six matches for the club.
“It’s been very turbulent, we haven’t really had a solid or consistent starting line-up, so it’s hard to really connect with the players you’re playing with,” Olympic midfielder Chloe Gordon told The Official Football NSW Competitions Podcast.
“But in the first half of the season, we actually started decently well. We had a lot of draws against really good teams, we were playing good football but there was a lot of stuff happening behind the scenes that really effected the way we played and our focus on what we were trying to do.
“The additions that have happened halfway through the season have really lifted everything, brought a fresh start, especially with a new coach who is very respected, very professional.
“I think it’s brought a whole new perspective to us.”
She added: “ There is a huge difference in the way everyone trains, in the way everyone plays, in our faith and trust in each other.
“Yes, the A-League players really added a lot to us, but also the girls that were there originally, we really lifted and tried to get to their point – I think that’s made a huge difference.”
Mariners star Taylor Ray is also on the books at Olympic, while there are over 70 players from the Ninja A-League featuring across NPL NSW.
Olympic have eight matches still to play this season and will be focused on avoiding relegation, which is decided by Club Championship standings.
