Three talented teenagers will contest for the prize of Westfield W-League Young Player of the Year award for 2021.
The three nominations earned between January and March, 2021 were awarded to Melbourne Victory sensation Kyra Cooney-Cross, flying Brisbane Roar full-back Jamilla Rankin and 16-year-old Canberra United central defender Jessika Nash.
You can vote today to pick which of the three teenage stars deserve to cap their individually brilliant Westfield W-League campaigns off with the Young Footballer of the Year award.
Voting opens on Thursday, June 17 at 9.00am AEST, ending on Sunday, June 20 at 11.00pm AEST, with the award to be announced at the Dolan Warren Awards in the midweek leading up to the highly-anticipated A-League Grand Final.
Cast your vote HERE and have YOUR say on which bright talent should earn the honour of Young Footballer of the Year for 2021!
January nominee – Kyra Cooney-Cross (Melbourne Victory)
Melbourne Victory midfielder Kyra Cooney-Cross ended the 2020/21 Westfield W-League campaign scoring the winning goal in her side’s stunning Grand Final victory over Sydney FC.
But way back in January, the rising star earned the nod for January Young Footballer of the Year after a superb five-game stretch in the Westfield W-League throughout the month.
The 19-year-old played the full 90 minutes in all five games in January. She created six chances, scored one goal and made 47 ball recoveries as Victory notched two wins, two losses and one draw.
Cooney-Cross produced her best performance of the month in Victory’s 6-0 mauling of local rivals Melbourne City. The teenager scored the sixth of her side’s goals, created three chances and enjoyed a passing accuracy in the final third of 91.7%, highlighting the clinical and creative nature of her attacking play.
Cast your vote for Cooney-Cross here as Young Footballer of the Year for 2021!
February nominee – Jamilla Rankin (Brisbane Roar)
17-year-old Jamilla Rankin earned the February nomination for Westfield W-League’s Young Player of the Year after sparkling at full-back in three big Brisbane Roar wins throughout the month.
The teenage defender earned plaudits for her stellar showings for Brisbane in February as the Roar continued their unbeaten run, registering three wins over Western Sydney Wanderers, Sydney FC and Perth Glory.
Rankin had 106 touches against the Wanderers, won over 82% of her duels and made six recoveries before going on to star against the Sky Blues.
Brisbane defeated Sydney 4-1 on that day as Rankin got a goal and assist for her efforts down the left flank which also produced eight recoveries and an 81% tackle efficiency.
Rankin rounded out the month by contributing to a clean sheet in Brisbane’s 4-0 win over Perth.
Cast your vote for Rankin here as Young Footballer of the Year for 2021!
March nominee – Jessika Nash (Canberra United)
16-year-old Canberra United defender Jessika Nash earned her nomination for Young Footballer of the Year for four stellar performances in three wins and a draw for her side in March.
The central defender made her Westfield W-League debut in 2020/21, showing experience beyond her years to join the Canberra squad and not look out of place in her maiden Westfield W-League campaign.
Canberra went unbeaten in March as Nash helped her side keep two clean sheets in three wins and a draw as the Green Machine sealed a path to the Finals Series.
She began the month by playing back-to-back games with a 100% success rate in aerial duels as Canberra beat both Brisbane Roar and Perth Glory. She then featured in a 1-0 win over Newcastle Jets, before contributing to a second consecutive clean sheet performance in a 0-0 draw with Premiers Sydney FC, which sewed up Canberra’s place in the post-season.
Cast your vote for Nash here as Young Footballer of the Year for 2021!
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