Bulleen Lions’ star signing Taryne Boudreau has admitted she came close to not renewing her stay in the Victorian top-flight, having seen a move to Europe fall through during the off-season.
The Lionesses will be extremely delighted to have obtained the services of the Canadian forward, having played a starring role in her side’s 3-0 win against Bayside United on Friday night.
She netted either side of the break, including a wonder strike in the second half to bury the contest after just 51 minutes gone.
“I thought we played well tonight,” Boudreau said in the aftermath of the win.
“We had some problems in pre-season in terms of missing players but it’s all coming together and I feel great coming into this year”
“Ricardo has done his homework – he works with us three times a week and I think the training sessions are really constructive.
“We’ve improved as a group over the last couple of months so it’s really coming together. We got the three points we wanted tonight and we said we were going to start off strong.”
Touching on her off-season, Boudreau details her journey since the heartbreaking Grand Final defeat last year with former club Boroondara Eagles, which has seen her travel, work and enjoy her time Down Under.
“To be honest, I took a bit of a break. I didn’t get the chance to play W-League so I did a little bit of travelling, stayed around here and did a bit of work, took some time off then got back into training for this upcoming season,” she said.
“I was actually going to go over this season to Europe. I had a contract but that fell through because I was trying to crack W-League here.
“Either way, I’m happy with my decision and I’m excited for this upcoming season with Bulleen.”
“I love the girls, I love the coach and all round I thought it was a good move.
“It’s a really family oriented club, coming from [Boroondara Eagles], it’s the same kind of feel and same kind of vibe, so I thought this was the best move I could make.”
Boudreau hasn’t yet turned her back on playing W-League, despite being overlooked last season, and admits that her time in Australia has taught her what she needs to work on most to get to that next level.
“I just want to improve overall as a player and this past season has taught me a lot about what I need to do better and improve on.
“I’m really excited and I’ll focus on this season at hand, then I’ll see where I go after.”