Tara Murray
While many people have been surprised by the stunning rise of Western United’s women’s side, United’s women’s football manager Amanda Stella isn’t one of them.
Stella has had a first hand view of many of the squad, developing as players and people, before getting the opportunity with United. The club in its first season is through to the A-League Women’s decider to be played this Sunday.
While a key piece in the United women’s program, Stella is also the president of National Premier League Women’s club Calder United.
“The idea was always to put together a Western United A-League Women’s’ side with a core group of players that had played together,” she said.
“The club had a partnership with Calder United and that has come to fruition. There’s 11 or 12 players who were at Calder, who are in that group.
“There’s some scholarship players and there’s some that have made a couple of appearances.
“There’s been four or five that have been playing well and in the team every week like Mel and Adriana Taranto, Emma Robers, Stacey Papadopoulos and Julia Sardo.”
Stella said not many people were surprised that the squad consisted of the majority of Calder players.
The club’s development program had 90 per cent from Calder and was led by Calder coach Mark Torcaso, who would later be appointed Western United’s inaugural women’s coach.
Stella said having that core group was one of the reasons they were able to get a licence.
She said having had a core group together, they were then able to add in four amazing internationals along with some players with A-League experience.
She said the key for the group had been their togetherness, which was one of their key values.
“The team has gelled and they are working for each other,” she said.
“That was evident on the weekend’s game [semi final]. We weren’t as tactical as the other team but we were still able to find some sort of strength and fought through and got over the line in the end.”
Speaking to players throughout the season, it’s evident that the culture that had been so successful at Calder United, helping winning a number of titles, had been brought into the Western United system.
Stella said it was pretty amazing to see all the hard work they had done, have such an impact.
“I started as team manager at the start [of Calder United],” she said. “I was secretary and then president… I’m still president.
“You put in seven or eight years into the club, all voluntary. It is hard work, it is really difficult work, you don’t have full time employees.
“It’s so special the culture we had was very successful, but we had to put in the hard work.”
Stella said while they had ticked so many boxes in the first season, there was still so much more to come in the future which is exciting.
She said they had already re-signed 12 or 13 players for next season and were keen on having sustainable success.
As for winning a title in their first season?
“I would be so proud and so happy,” Stella said.
“So much work has gone into it, it would be a little bit of a relief as not many people thought we could do it.”
