Maitland FC v Broadmeadow Magic
Cooks Square Park, Sunday 5pm
Broadmeadow Magic coach Nima Nikfarjam is excited to debut an A-League star against Maitland FC in the Women’s League Cup final on Sunday afternoon.
The two sides will go head-to-head in the second annual Cup competition at Cooks Square Park this weekend.
League leaders Magic have lost three key players in their squad in recent weeks which includes goalkeeper Imogene Tomasone, Adrianna Konjarski and Tahlor Thackray.
But in the transfer window, the club have landed A-League striker Ashlee Brodigan who played the 2023/24 Liberty A-League season for Brisbane Roar.
Brodoigan was also a key figure at the Newcastle Jets for many years and has represented Australia in the under-17s and under-20s.
Nikfarjam was thrilled to have the Brodigan join his side and believed her experience could be key to lifting the trophy this weekend.
“Ash is ready and available to be a part of the team.
“She plays at the highest level and her experience can lift the other players as well.
“We have the expectations that she can drive the players and that she is someone that they can look up to.
“Ash has been compliant and followed the directions of myself and the other coaching staff. She looks to be fitting in well.
“It’s a good signing for us.
“We are very pumped and excited about the first real trophy we can win for the season.”
The two sides have met three times this year, the first in the Charity Shield and the other two in round two and round nine of the NPL NNSW competition.
Maitland has won two of the three matches and Nikfarjam is ready for another tough battle away from home on Sunday.
“They already won the Charity Shield but after that, we beat them and then we lost,” Nikfarjam said.
“The last time we played Maitland we didn’t turn up and gave them too much respect. This time will be a different story and we will be ready from the first minute and show more resilience.
“They are in good form but we are also in form.
“Maitland has depth and they have more players to choose from but I am very confident in my side.
“I am looking forward to a good game and a response from the girls.”
Nikfarjam said that it would mean everything to return home with the silverware on Sunday.
“If we get the win, the confidence will go through the roof, especially for the younger girls,” Nikfarjam.
“It would be a great start to winning trophies for Magic’s women.
Magic will be without Kobe Ferguson as she remains sidelined with a knee injury.
The Magpies have also recruited during the window, adding former A-League midfielder and defender Sophie Nenadovic into their side.
Nenadovic comes from the Central Coast Mariners but also has spent part of her football career with the Newcastle Jets.
Hamilton said they were unsure if Nenadovic would feature in Sunday’s match but was looking forward to having her bolster his squad.
“Sophie will be a new player that is coming into the roster and will look to play amongst the midfield,” Hamilton said.
“It is one of those things where we have a lot of competition for players in the midfield, but Sophie only adds to that.
“It’s a great thing for us to be able to attract someone of Sophie’s calibre to our group. Our club wants to be successful and attract the best players possible.”
Maitland was beaten on penalties in last year’s final against Olympic and Hamilton said his side are up for the fight to lift their second piece of silverware for 2024 in front of a home crowd.
“We are looking forward to this weekend, it is always good to be in a cup final,” Hamilton said.
“We feel like our football is trending in the right direction and we are confident.
“I think every fixture is a stand-alone thing. We know each other pretty well.
“Sunday we know will be a tough match.
“We know Broadmeadow have a lot of talent in their squad and we are aware of their changes in roster.
“They have obviously strengthened their side but we haven’t seen how that looks yet.
“We will be as prepared as we can be.
“It would be really special to win. We got beat on penalties last year and we would like to rectify that and take another piece of silverware.
“It is a nice little reward to play at home and makes it a bit extra special for us.”
Maitland defender Alesha Clifford remains touch and go for the weekend as she continues to recover from a back injury. They will also be without Keely Gawthrop, who was handed a one-match suspension for a late tackle in last weekend’s fixture.
Before the first grade match, the Women’s League Cup will also feature finals for Reserve Grade, Under-17s and Under-15s this Sunday at Cooks Square Park.
To kick off the day, Maitland FC and Adamstown JFC will head-to-head in the Under-15s at 10:30am. This will be followed by the Under-17s which will feature Maitland FC and Mid Coast FC at 12:30pm.
The Reserve Grade final will see Charlestown Azzurri take on Broadmeadow Magic at 2:30pm before Maitland FC meets Broadmeadow Magic in the First Grade Final at 5pm.
