NPL Women Match Preview: Round 1 vs Brunswick Juventus
Box Hill United’s Senior Women will open their season with a Round 1 clash against Brunswick Juventus at Wembley Park on Friday night.
For the visitors, the occasion marks Brunswick’s top-flight debut, having worked their way up from the state leagues to higher divisions and now find themselves in the NPL Women’s competition. Led by Head Coach Josip Loncaric, a young squad will embark on a new challenge and will have reason for optimism in 2024.
Box Hill United heads into this season with a new-look team of new signings and will be an upcoming campaign full of excitement. Among the re-signings is Asuka Doi, a key player for Pythagoras in 2023 who netted 10 goals from 20 appearances in the league. Bobby Zdrakovski is at the helm once again as Head Coach in his second season with the Club.
Brunswick Juventus players to watch:
Cindy Lay is the captain and has contributed to the Club’s rise to NPL Women. While she hasn’t been at the NPL Women level for a couple years, the former South Melbourne player’s experience includes being part of Melbourne Victory’s A-League Women set up.
Brunswick has injected experience in its team by looking at local talent. One example of this is Rosie Wild, who heads across from Essendon Royals. She is a direct and tough central defender with the added ability of going into midfield if needed. A New Zealand native, the 26-year-old should be a staple of the defence.
Last time we met:
An incredible game took place in Round 5 of the Nike F.C. Cup in 2023.
At Brunswick’s home of CB Smith Reserve, it was Box Hill United who came away with a 7-5 victory.
Doi was the standout for Box Hill with a brace, while for Brunswick it was two goals each for Lay and Ayumi Horikoshi.
Pythagoras came from behind after trailing at half-time 2-1, making this a memorable cup tie.
Match details:
What: NPL Women Round 1
Who: Box Hill United vs Brunswick Juventus
Where: Wembley Park
When: Friday March 15, kick-off 7:30pm
Live on the NPL Victoria YouTube channel
