New-look MUM FC, Subi to start season

Report by Tommy Doleman

New coaches Luke Thompson of MUM FC, left, and Subiaco's Greg Farrell

The 2022 NPLWA – Women’s season kicks off tonight when defending champions Murdoch University Melville host Subiaco at Besteam Stadium.

While the fixture is a clash between top and bottom from the first two seasons of the competition, both sides have undergone significant changes in the playing and coaching ranks.

MUM FC were treble-winners last season under interim Head Coach and Technical Director Mark Jones. This season the club turn to former Sorrento player Luke Thompson, who coached at Kingsley Westside last season.

“I’ve worked with Mark over the past three or four years (in the Trinity College soccer program) and was given the opportunity to coach at MUM FC. We have similar philosophies, and he was keen to keep the same message going at the club,” Thompson said.

“Mark told me about how eager the girls are to learn. I watched a lot of NPLW football last season, and I was really impressed.”

Thompson admits it has been a challenging start to life at MUM FC with many of the senior players from last season’s squad moving on. And the serious injury suffered by 2021 Gold Medal winner Tia Stonehill has compounded matters.

“We’ve been greatly affected by the girls moving over east, but it’s positive for the club that we’ve been able to get the players here to a standard where they’ve had an opportunity to take the next step,” he said.

“The day I signed on we had a squad of 18 players and then it was almost a domino effect which has been compounded by injury. It’s been very much unexpected and it’s thrown a lot of curve balls.

“Most of the girls that have come in have come through the club system, know the ethos of the club and are keen to grow, develop and prove themselves. But it’s also going to be a jump for some of these girls.

“The young group will handle anything thrown at them though and we’ll do our best to be competitive. Every change is an opportunity for someone and that’s the message we’re trying to drive.”

Subiaco are also under new leadership with Greg Farrell taking the reins last week after several years with Northern Redbacks’ U21 team.

“The attitude has been really good. The players have been really welcoming, as have the committee, and for the most part everything’s been really smooth sailing,” Farrell said.

“The sessions we’ve had have been high intensity and we’ve played a game among each other which was a really good hit-out. So I think while the short turnaround is not ideal, the players have made a really good fist of it and they’ll do everything to try and progress this year.

“I don’t think in a short period of time you can change things enormously. You can make little changes and there’ll be some slight adjustments in personnel, but the messaging will be that we’re going to try and play good football.

“It might mean in the short term there’s a little bit of pain, but over a period of time we’ll develop an identity for the first team and work on progressing it through the female side of the club. There’s good players at the club and players with experience, but there will be a bedding-in period where we’ll work together to make sure everyone’s eventually on the same page.

“It’s about improving and changing the mentality over the course of the season. There’s going to be a little bit of pressure on everyone on the field on Friday to perform, because the Subiaco players are wanting to cement first-team places and the MUM FC players will likely be in the same boat.”

Farrell also believes there’s good potential for the club to progress in the seasons ahead.

“I spoke with the club about the way I would want to do things and it seems the vision I had aligned with what the club wants to happen,” he said.

“The club as a whole is huge. Even looking at the immediacy and seeing what Goran Stajic has done with the men’s team, who had a really good win at the weekend. They also have quite a few Subiaco juniors and youth products in a young squad.

“Success (for us) doesn’t necessarily mean winning the league in the next three seasons or finals next season, whatever it ends up being. It’s about progressing year on year.”

Elsewhere, Night Series winners Perth RedStar host Hyundai NTC in Joondalup on Saturday. The match kicks off at 5pm, immediately after the NPLWA – Men’s clash between RedStar and Inglewood United.

Balcatta are at Perth SC, who are now led by former MUM FC title winning coach Peter Rakic. The game kicks off at 5.15pm and was also set to be part of a NPLM-NPLW double-header. However, the men’s fixture between Perth and Armadale has been postponed due to Covid. Instead, the game will be preceded by the NPLW U21 match between Perth and Balcatta.

Fremantle City and Curtin University complete the opening weekend of fixtures with a 3pm kick-off at Hilton Park on Sunday.

Fixtures

Friday (7.30pm): MUM FC v Subiaco. Saturday (5pm unless stated): Perth RedStar v Hyundai NTC, Perth SC v Balcatta Etna (5.15pm). Sunday (3pm): Fremantle City v Curtin University.




Comments

Comment Guidelines: The SportsTG Network is made up of players, families and passionate sports followers like you who have a strong opinion about sport. That's great - we want you to have your say and share your thoughts with the world. However, we have a few rules that you must follow to keep it fun for all. Please don't be rude, abusive, swear or vilify others. Apart from some pretty serious sport sanctions, we also can ban you and report you if things get out of hand. So play fair and have fun, and thanks for your contribution.

Download the GameDay App!

Stay up-to-date with your favourite teams and keep an eye on your rivals by accessing the latest match results, fixtures and stats via GameDay App.

GameDay Splash Screen
App Store Google Play