Dynasties are a very rare and very special thing in sports. To be granted the dynastic honorific is to be acknowledged as having achieved something that distinguishes oneself not just from modern contemporaries, but from champions and dominant sides of lore. This is because one simply doesn’t achieve the title of a dynasty through a singular piece of silverware or a run of merely decent results – this is a label that has to be earned through sustained periods of outright domination over a sustained period.
And without question, Calder United’s run of four-straight Nike FC Cup crowns is verging upon dynastic standards, if it isn’t already there already. To put it another way, since 2017 – the 2020 iteration was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic – no team other than Calder has laid its hands upon Victoria’s state knockout championship. The last time a team other than Calder won the cup was when the Olympics were in Rio, Malcolm Turnbull was Prime Minister, and
Braces from Harriet Withers and Melissa Taranto combined with an effort from Raquel Deralas to lift the NPLW power over the VPLW foes, who had previously won the competition in 2015 when the likes of Amy Jackson, Taryne Boudreau, and Rani Cavaretta all got on the scoresheet. And coach Marc Torcaso’s side appears strong contenders to make it an official half-decade of dominance in 2022 after defeating Boroondara Eagles 5-0 in the opening quarterfinal of the 2022 Nike FC out at Keilor Park Recreation Reserve last week.
Two other former Nike FC Cup champions remain alive in the competition and possibly in the way of Calder’s quest for a fiver, both of whom will be in action on Tuesday evening – their games streamed live on Football Victoria’s Facebook and YouTube page and NPL.tv.
Kicking off at Kingston Heath Soccer Complex at 7.30, 2016 champions Heidelberg United – the last club to win the Cup before Calder’s era – will run out against host side Bayside United with a spot in the final four on the line.
Led by coach Johno Clemente, the Bergers have emerged as a genuine title contender during the 2022 NPLW Victoria season; sitting atop the table after the opening nine rounds and counting a league-leading seven wins to their name.
Boasting a lineup featuring names such as Melissa Maizels, Danielle Wise, Stephanie Galea, and New Zealand international Grace Jale, the side from Olympic Village downed Alamein FC 2-1 in their latest league hitout and have defeated Preston and Geelong Rangers on the way to the final eight.
Hosts Bayside’s league fortunes, alas for those of a more orange persuasion, are almost the polar opposite of their foes on Tuesday evening. With just two points to their name, the side sits bottom of the NPLW Victoria table after its opening exchanges and on Saturday lost 9-0 to a South Melbourne side that, prior to that game, had sat second bottom.
They will run out on Tuesday evening hoping that an upset victory and a continuation of a Cup run that has featured wins over Southern United and Bundoora United can provide them with some form of a platform to build upon for the remainder of the 2022 campaign.
Kicking off half an hour after hostilities commence down in Cheltenham, another previous champion in FC Bulleen Lions will seek to arrest their sputtering form when they take on Alamein at the Veneto Club.
Winners of the cup’s 2014 iteration when Tessa Sernio and Emily Coppock lifted them to a 2-0 win over South Melbourne, Bulleen has required penalties to defeat both Spring Hills and FV Emerging in their two previous cup fixtures.
After initially starting their NPLW Victoria season in red-hot form, the Lionesses have failed to record a win in their last four league fixtures and slipped to third place on the table – just three points clear of their foes on Tuesday evening. Despite taking a 78th minute lead thanks to an Alana Jancevski penalty against Box Hill last Friday, coach Caitlin Friend’s side was dragged back to level pegging six minutes later by Emma Langley.
For their part, Alamein will also be coming into Tuesday’s fixture off the back of league disappointment; going down in heartbreaking fashion as goals in the 88th and 94th minute erased Sidney Allen’s 48th-minute opener and lifted the Bergers to a 2-1 win.
Coached by Kat Smith, who will soon take up a position as boss of A-League Women side Western Sydney Wanderers, Alamein started their Cup run with a 1-0 win over fellow NPLW Victoria side Box Hill, before downing Ringwood City 4-2 in their subsequent hitout.
The final game of the quarters won’t feature a side that has previously lifted the Nike FC Cup, but it certainly hasn’t been for lack of trying on the part of one of its participants.
On three occasions South Melbourne has made the final of the Cup and on three occasions they have fallen at the final hurdle; defeated 3-0 by Calder in the 2021 decider after a brace from Aleks Sinclair and golazo from Montana Mathews.
Coach Sam Young’s side certainly hasn’t been mucking about in their quest to right the ledger in this year’s tournament, opening their campaign with a 20-0 win over Glen Waverley before beating a strong Moreland Zebras outfit 5-1 in the next round.
Their early league form may have put them in a significant hole -- South spending much of the early rounds rooted to the bottom of the table – but they are now undefeated in their last four and just four points back of Alamein in the race for the top-four. Caitlin Pickett’s hattrick highlighted their 9-0 win over Bayside on Saturday.
Standing across from South on Wednesday evening at Lakeside will be the lone remaining State League side in the competition – albeit one whose history has been closely intertwined with South in various other leagues over the years – Caroline Springs George Cross.
One point off top spot in the Women's State League 3 West competition, the Georgies secured a 3-0 forfeit win over Kensington City in their weekend fixture, but the week prior had point Point Cook to the sword via a 7-0 thrashing: Bianca Matina pacing the squad with a hattrick.
Winning their opening Cup tie against Brimbank Stallions via a forfeit, the club beat Greenvale United 4-2 in their first actual match of this year's competition, before then beating Lara United and Monash University 3-0. Another forfeit triumph over Doveton arrived in the next round and booked them a date with South.
Should they pull off the upset, they will become just the third side from outside the Victorian women’s top flight to knock off an NPLW team in Cup history: Casey Comets downing Bayside United in 2021 and Maccabi FC Caulfield beating Southern United in 2019.
All games will be streamed LIVE & FREE on Football Victoria Facebook and NPL.TV.