Glory head to Newcastle for their Ninja A-League Women opener with returning favourites, fresh attacking options and something lively to build on after that 4–2 victory over the WA State Team.
Newcastle have their own reasons to hurry the weekend along. Cassidy Davis returns for season number 14, Allie Thornton offers a threat up front, and the opening day provides another opportunity to imagine where this team could go.
Last time these sides met, Newcastle led twice and Perth won in the 85th minute.
Set the alarm.
Perth Glory have kept the core. Now comes the fun part.
Fourteen players signing new contracts is a substantial expression of faith.
With Rola Badawiya, Georgia Cassidy and Onyinyechi Zogg already under contract, Perth have preserved the relationships that can make a team click: the familiar movement, the instinctive pass, the run made because somebody knows where their teammate will look.
There is unfinished business, too.
“We started to believe our own hype a little bit,” Stephen Peters admitted of last season’s fading Finals challenge.
His assessment was specific. Perth competed, worked hard and created opportunities during their final four matches. Too many decisive moments escaped them.
For the returning Perth Glory women players, the challenge is to make that experience useful. Turn familiarity into sharper combinations and promising performances into points.
Supporters already know much of this team. Now they get to watch it grow.
Maggie Jenkins gives Perth another reason to attack
Maggie Jenkins arrives with a scoring record worth getting excited about.
Fifteen goals in nine games for CF Wellington United. Another 15 in seven appearances for Auckland United. Six in her first four matches at Essendon Royals.
A-League defenders will have something to say about continuing that run, but Perth have recruited a striker accustomed to finishing attacks.
She joins Badawiya, who won Glory’s Golden Boot with five goals in 18 appearances last season, while Lincoln’s pre-season double adds another possibility.
That is the appealing part: different players creating different problems. Jenkins occupying defenders, Badawiya finding space and Lincoln threatening the ground behind them.
Peters has competition for places and combinations to explore. After a season in which goals often required considerable effort, that feels promising.
Cassidy and Tovar can get Glory moving
Perth begin without injured midfielders Isobel Dalton and Charli Wainwright, with Susan Phonsongkham listed as captain in the announced squad.
That puts immediate attention on Georgia Cassidy and Emma Tovar.
Their ability to receive under pressure and move the ball forward could determine how much of Perth’s attacking potential we actually see. Find a route through Newcastle’s midfield and suddenly those forwards can run at defenders forced to retreat.
Tovar returns with a season of understanding behind her. Cassidy offers another reason to watch the moments between the obvious highlights: the turn away from pressure, the pass that opens the pitch.
Get those details right and Perth could be excellent company for an early Saturday morning.
Cassidy Davis makes Newcastle feel like Newcastle
Fourteen consecutive seasons with your hometown club.
It deserves a moment.
Davis returns with 185 Newcastle appearances since her 2013 debut. Squads change, seasons come and go, and she keeps turning up.
A Newcastle Jets FC jersey carries a little more meaning when supporters can recognise that history on the pitch.
Saturday brings different surroundings at Hunter City Motor Group Stadium in Weston, home of Weston Bears. Davis supplies a familiar presence as Newcastle begin again.
The key attacking contest could be Thornton against Thew. Thornton’s hold-up play can bring teammates forward; Thew will want to disrupt those connections before Newcastle build momentum.
Having scored and supplied Lincoln during Perth’s final friendly, Thew has confidence to carry into that assignment.
Newcastle Jets vs Perth Glory: Bring on opening day
Their previous meeting offers encouragement for both sides.
Newcastle created two leads. Perth recovered twice before finding the late winner. Both know they can hurt the other; Saturday asks who can make their advantage last.
Jenkins has a new chapter to begin. Lincoln has a case to press. Davis has another season to lead.
And after months of discussing what these teams might become, we finally get to watch them play.
How to watch Newcastle Jets Women vs Perth Glory Women in the UK
Newcastle Jets Women vs Perth Glory Women will be shown live in the UK on TNT Sports 4 and streamed through HBO Max with the relevant sports subscription.
Kick-off is at 5am BST on Saturday, 17 October, so get the kettle ready for an early start to the A-League Women season.
