Football NSW

And I was thinking about this today, doing some... preparation.

The one area I think that Football NSW really has a strength in the women's division is in the goalkeeping ranks.

You look at some of the names and we'll go through them a bit later, but so many names, A-League quality and coming through the ranks, there is some serious talent wearing the gloves every weekend.

I 100% agree there.

That game also finished 1-1.

Both goals in that game coming in the first half of the game, and then neither of the sides were able to find a second chance I was on the call for this game and I want to say just an absolute thanks to Mark Stavralakis and the team at Football NSW.

who, you know, who let me call that game such an honour and such a privilege and I'll, you know, forever be appreciative of all the opportunities I've been given over the years by football in New South Wales and to cap it off with, you know, this year, my fifth year calling games, you know, being able to call the NPL Women's New South Wales Under-23s Grand Finals is an achievement and an honour that I don't take lightly.

So thank you to Mark Stavrolakis and you know, the team at Football New South Wales for, you know, their continued faith in me.

It's just, yeah, let's hope it doesn't come to that realistically because I don't think that will be a good look for anybody if he ends up having to go out in the middle.

But it's just such a strange circumstance to be finding ourselves in where obviously last week it was flying refs in from Singapore and now it's Watt bringing them up from Football New South Wales level.

It's just, yeah, I think it just goes to show how quickly this needs to be sorted out because it's It's the kind of stuff we just really don't need as we get closer and closer to the season.

Just more uncertainty and just, yeah, it's not going to be a good look if this continues for much longer.

Well, with regards to sort of why these two teams are here and what you would do to prepare for them, let's start with Bulls as the defending champions.

Marty Garces said in his post-match interview that was on the Football NSW social that this season they were the hunted and not the hunters.

Do you feel as though they actually changed their approach fundamentally from last season to this season to adjust for the fact that they had fewer secrets? And perhaps some of the players who had breakout campaigns last year, like a Petria Phillips, were now known and teams would be preparing for sort of established, exposed form this season.

And thus, did you see any great difference in how they approached the campaign?

So they've done really well to make the top four this season and make it quite comfortably, putting quite a gap between themselves and the rest of the league.

They totally outdid my expectations.

I know on the Football NSW podcast at the start of the season, I pointed out that I think they only had two players over the age of 20 And that was Amy Hall and Chelsea Barton.

Amy Hall, who's been out of the team.