History depicts that if you mention the Sportsmart Victorian Women’s Premier League in conversation, the names South Melbourne, Box Hill, Heidelberg and Sandringham are synonymous with the top five positions. Now add Bundoora, Ashburton and Boorondarra who have all recruited heavily for the 2015 season and you have a real dogfight for those precious finals spots.
As a relative newcomer to the WPL, FC Bulleen Lions is content to “fly under the radar” as it develops and nurtures one of the youngest squadrons in the league through one of the most experienced and respected commanders in the business.
Season 2014 delivered the first silverware for Bulleen, winning the State Knockout Cup by defeating the experienced South Melbourne in the final. Much to the chagrin of many, this young group performed admirably after a tumultuous entry into the league in 2013.
The catalyst for the turnaround was the appointment of veteran Victorian coach Bobby McGuinness and what an impact he’s had. McGuinness is a well-known identity in Women’s Football circles and his direct yet honest approach to coaching and mentoring is refreshing and revered by the women he mentors. Just ask them!
FC Bulleen Women finished second in the 2014 Sportsmart Women’s Premier League ranking, making its way through to the semi-final again “flying under the radar”. Unfortunately, they succumbed to Heidelberg United in the preliminary who went on to challenge South Melbourne for the title. Injuries depleted the team running into the post-season but McGuinness offers no excuses. Instead, he has taken it upon himself to strengthen the squadron with some additional firepower that will provide the depth needed to challenge in 2015.
In Stocky’s Scribbles exclusive interview with the squadron commander, we learn a little more about the leader, his expectations, philosophy and the culture he is creating at FC Bulleen Lions.
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Bob, tell us about yourself and your plans for FC Bulleen?
I took over at FC Bulleen Women’s half-way through their inaugural WPL debut, when they were promoted from Division 1. Since I arrived, my aim was to build a culture where the players could learn their trade and perform in an environment which was supportive, encouraging and fulfilling. Last year we built a plan together at the start of the season and we got buy-in and engagement from all players. It’s fair to say that we exceeded our expectations and yet we were still a little disappointed at the way the season finished for us. This is indeed fuel for the year ahead.
We looked this year at building on what was a very young side and the interest from external players was staggering and quite humbling. We had many players contact us and ask for an opportunity to join the squad, made even more special considering the Club doesn’t pay players. My plans this year are to be competitive in the WPL but more importantly continue to build on the premise that FC Bulleen will be viewed as an incubator for quality women footballers in Australia.
2014 season saw FC Bulleen take home the State Knockout Cup. Can you give us your thoughts on last year?
Really last year was a super year for us, second season in the league and bringing the club a piece of silverware in the form of the State Knockout Cup was gratifying. Equally, we also had four players in consideration for the Melbourne Victory Women’s squad and this was extremely pleasing for the club.
Two of those players suffered injuries and so were not available for selection however one player, Alex Natoli, was selected in the final squad. There were a couple of players who would not have been out of place in that squad and we will work towards having several others this season being in the frame for selection in 2015.
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Liv Ellis (Biscuits) was selected to travel with the NTC Squad to the 2014 NTC challenge in Canberra and then offered a position in the NTC squad for 2015 which is terrific for Liv. We really grew as a team throughout the season and with South Melbourne being the benchmark, our aim was simple. Be able to compete consistently with the best WPL teams so beating South in the final of the Cup was a tremendous boost for our young squad, and we look forward to renewing the acquaintance this coming season.
Where did the team exceed your expectations and why?
I set high expectations – both from the team and the individual contributors within it. To be honest, the team and players certainly didn’t disappointed me. In particular, I felt our mental toughness during the season was pleasing especially given the long season and the youthful make-up of the squad. Having said that, it was disappointing that in the final with Heidelberg this was an area of weakness for us on the day. It should be noted that this is no reflection on Heidelberg who I believe developed into a tight unit as the season unfolded.
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What are the areas of improvement and challenges you are planning to tackle with the team in 2015?
Consistency is fundamental to a successful year. At FC Bulleen, our mantra is about developing players to reach their full potential and then maintaining this level for the entire season. With a young team, we have the unique capability of grooming players in positions that best suit their strengths and building a winning culture around this.
We dropped important points during the season by allowing late goals to be scored. This was caused by switching off at critical times of the game and by being overzealous and maybe too aggressive in our attacking play.
This season we will look to control games when in winning positions but we won’t ever shut up shop just for the sake of it either. We are an attacking team by nature and we will continue to foster that attribute but we will look to be a little bit smarter about how and when to manage our opposition at vital times in the match. The other area of focus is our finishing, we get into so many great positions and our conversion rate could and should certainly improve in 2015.
Seems you have recruited further for 2015 – who and why have you added to the team?
We have introduced a number of new players to the team this year – that’s true. However, before I talk about them, I want to make special mention of the players who have moved from last season’s team. We had some really good young footballers namely Salma Tawfic, Olivia Ellis, Fede Frew and Holly Richardson decide to move. All discussed their personal situation with both myself and our football administrators and made the decision to move based on study commitments, their desire and need to play regular football or in Liv’s case, joining the State Development Program. They will be missed and all know they are welcome back anytime to the club. So that being said, my thoughts have always been that we did not need to go out and blanket the market place for players.
Instead, we needed positional players who would improve the balance of the squad and easily fit into the environment we have created. Our in’s this year are Caitlin Friend, Beattie Goad, Maddie Stockdale, Giulia Sepe, Mel Camilleri, Charlee West, and Cassie Dimovski. Every one of these players will add value to our squad and bring something different. Some had been offered incentives to join other clubs but after a few training sessions and exposure to our facilities, they chose to join FC Bulleen which is really a great credit to our existing squad.