If her sunny disposition is anything to go by, Christine Nairn is enjoying life down under.
A loan signing from Washington Spirit this season, the American international has become a key cog in Melbourne Victory Women’s machine, racking up goal involvements as the reigning champions sit in third place on the W-League table after a tough first half of the season.
The playmaker will be part of Melbourne Victory’s team to face Canberra United at Etihad Stadium in a curtain raiser for the men’s Melbourne Derby on Saturday.
“The team is really excited to be the curtain opener for the Melbourne Derby, we are excited to be here and potentially play in front of a sold out crowd before the men play and we can’t wait to get started,” Nairn said.
“They have the best fans that I’ve seen so far in this league, especially on the women’s side, so we are excited to put on a show for them.
“Its been great, I think we are still working on putting a full 90 minutes together but we’ve managed to get results out of a tough schedule so far, we’ve had away games in big cities such as Brisbane, Sydney and Canberra so we can build off those results and we are looking to get three points out of this one.”
With half the season now behind her, Nairn was complimentary to the quality of the W-league, believing it to be comparable to the quality in America with a greater emphasis on possession and attractive football.
“I’ve heard from great players such as Jess Fishlock and Lisa De Vanna who just rave about this league and that’s the reason why I came, to be a part of such a prestigious league and club,” she said.
“I think it’s right up there with the American league, you have a little more younger players here but they are willing to learn, they are doing whatever it takes to make the league better each and every year.
“Just the quality of the play, quality of the players, it’s a possession oriented style league and I think that plays to my strengths and our strengths as a team so I think we are exciting to watch, we want to get the ball down and play pretty football an hopefully we can make it exciting this week.”
After Victory’s championship winning run last season, the 24-year-old is hungry to help the club go back-to-back and taste the same triumph for herself, believing current coach Joe Montemurro to be the right man to lead the team to success.
“It’s very important for us [to go back-to-back],” she said.
“We know each and every game we have a huge target on our back, everyone is going to give us our best game and that’s what great players do, they rise to the occasion – we are ready for each and every team for whatever they throw at us.
“[Joe’s] a great guy, he talks with his hands a lot and he is very passionate about everything that he does which is what you want from a coach.
“He’s one of the hardest working coaches, he cuts videos, he does absolutely everything for this team, I’m blessed to be under a coach that wants to be here as much as he does and I’m learning things every day from him.”
After playing four of their six games on the road this season, the Victory Women return home to face Canberra United at Etihad Stadium in a curtain raiser to the men’s Melbourne Derby, with kick-off scheduled for 4.30pm.