Matchweek 1 preview: Canberra United v Adelaide United

There will be a new face in the dugout and some returning favourites in the forward line when Canberra United welcome Adelaide United to their new home at Viking Park for their Westfield W-League opener.

It may be all change for the Green Machine with club favourite Heather Garriock replaced in the coach’s seat by Vicki Linton, but two-time Golden Boot winner Michelle Heyman makes her Westfield W-League comeback and Nikki Flannery returns to the nation’s capital from the Newcastle Jets.

The competition’s second top scorer, Heyman, was tempted out of retirement as the three-time Premiers seek a finals return following a three-year absence, starting with a clash against another newly-appointed coach, after former Reds assistant Adrian Stenta was promoted into the big chair.

While many teams in the competition have seen a major overhaul in their squads, a youthful Adelaide collective maintain much of the chemistry developed over the past few seasons, including the dangerous goal threat of American striker Mallory Weber.

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