With the opening round of the NPLW coming in the last week of February, we will be incorporating that with March’s fixtures for the inaugural NPLW Player of the Month.
The opening five rounds of the league season has seen Galaxy United shoot to the top of the ladder, with South Melbourne and Calder United breathing down their necks. There are no surprises to see those three clubs represented in our nominees, with our two other picks coming elsewhere. Make sure you have your say and vote below for who you think deserves to take out the award.
TCF is also excited to announce that the winner at the end of the voting cycle will also win a $100 gift voucher courtesy of Soccer 5s Dandenong, to use on pitch-hire and a range of other offerings.
Melina Ayres (South Melbourne)
While statistics don’t always paint the full picture of a player’s impact on a team, it’s clear as day in the case of Melina Ayres. The pre-season recruit and reigning NPLW Golden Boot recipient has carried her form over into 2017 and leads the league in goals with a stunning eight goals in five games. They have come in the form of four consecutive match-winning braces as South currently sit second on the NPLW ladder largely thanks to the exploits of their star forward. She has adopted a more central role in 2017, playing up top alongside Caitlin Greiser and is reaping the rewards for the positional shift.
Rachel Binning (Calder United)
While others at the club have hit soaring heights – take Rachel Alonso’s five goals from three appearances in 2017 – no player has performed to the consistent standard that Rachel Binning has upheld over the opening five rounds of the season. Surrounded by a talented support group, Binning has been the gel that has provided structure and stability to the league’s most stringent defence. The centre half has played her role in two clean sheets, scored once and has made three Team of the Week appearances to start the season.
Kristina Hall (Box Hill United)
From the reigning top scorer in Ayres to the player that barring suspension would’ve been the reigning Gold Medallist of the NPLW. Box Hill’s fiery midfielder Kristina Hall has strung together a brilliant opening month of football in spite of her club’s league position. The vivacious and energetic box-to-box midfielder has gotten amongst the action on both ends of the pitch, which has culminated in four appearances in the NPLW Team of the Week to start the season.
Amy Marron (Alamein FC)
Barring the outlier 4-0 result against Galaxy United in Round Three of the NPLW, Alamein FC have boasted one of the best defensive records in the league in 2017 with two clean sheets from five starts. Much of this can be attributed to Amy Marron who has lead from the back after making a swift adjustment to life in the Victorian top-flight. The American wore the captains armband in the absence of Amy Jackson, which is testament to her outstanding leadership abilities which has helped bring the best out of her younger defensive teammates Jaimee Williams, Anita Les, Ash Lefevre and Marianna Anthony. Was on track to play every minute before unfortunately being stretchered off in the narrow 1-0 win over Bayside United, which proved to be her last fixture for the club.
Adriana Taranto (Galaxy United)
It was incredibly tough to single out individual performers from the league leaders, such was their dominance as a unit throughout the opening five rounds of the NPLW season. While players such as Kariah White, Caitlin Pickett, Jess Tay and Leigh Gray all laid strong claim for a nomination, it was the architect Adriana Taranto that gets the nod for her general link up play in the heart of midfield. She has shouldered a lot of the creative responsibility to begin the season and has played a large role in not only carving out chances and breaking up the play, but also contributing with two goals of her own.
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