Football Federation Australia (FFA) today released the official draw for the Westfield W-League 2014/15 Season.
For the full fixture schedule please visit www.w-league.com.au
Due to Australia hosting the AFC Asian Cup 2015 in January, the upcoming edition of Westfield W-League season will kick-off earlier with the opening round to be played on the weekend of the 13/14 September 2014.
Once again the eight (8) Westfield W-League Clubs (Adelaide United, Brisbane Roar, Canberra United, Melbourne Victory, Newcastle Jets, Perth Glory Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers) will play over 12 rounds with the top four teams advancing to the Westfield W-League 2015 Finals Series, which will be played over two weekends.
The Westfield W-League 2015 Grand Final will be played on Sunday 21 December 2014.
The Head of Westfield W-League, Damien de Bohun was excited to release the draw for the upcoming season.
“The last season of the Westfield W-League was arguably the most exciting season to date with truly world class players competing, included the presence of the 2013 FIFA Women-s player of the year Nadine Angerer at Brisbane Roar,” said De Bohun.
“Following the success of the Westfield Matildas at the AFC Women-s Asian Cup in May, the competition for places in the final squad for the FIFA Women-s World Cup next year will be intense and this Westfield W-League season will be the place for these players to stake their claims.
De Bohun also acknowledged that there was an anomaly with the naming of the upcoming season due to a unique set of circumstances.
“We do acknowledge that there is an anomaly with the name of the upcoming Westfield W-League season considering that the competition culminates on 21 December 2014,” said de Bohun.
“The reason we had to move the Westfield W-League season window to start in September and finish in December is that a number of the Westfield W-League venues will be used as training venues for the AFC Asian Cup 2015 and thus unavailable throughout January.”
“In the interests of the Westfield W-League clubs and players, we decided that it was more important to have continuity throughout the season rather than including a 4 week break.
“From my discussions with the Westfield W-League clubs they are all comfortable with the draw and I am confident that we are well on the way for another epic Westfield W-League season,”
A formal announcement regarding ABC TV-s broadcast of the Westfield W-League is expected shortly.
Westfield W-League 2014/15 Snapshot:
• Westfield W-League 2014/15 Season to kick off on Saturday 13 September when the Newcastle Jets host Melbourne Victory at Magic Park, Broadmeadow • Westfield W-League season window moved due to venue availability in relation to the AFC Asian Cup 2015 • 51 matches in total = 48 regular season matches + 2 Semi-Finals + Westfield W-League Grand Final • Four (4) new venues to be used: Ashfield Sports Club (Perth Glory), Lambert Park (Sydney FC), Broadmeadows Valley (Melbourne Victory) and Vikings Park (Canberra United) • Sydney Derby between Western Sydney Wanderers and Sydney FC in Round 3 • Grand Final rematch between Brisbane Roar and Melbourne Victory in Round 6 • Three (3) Westfield W-League/Hyundai A-League double headers involving Brisbane Roar at Suncorp Stadium in Rounds 5, 9 & 11 • Round 11 is a split round to accommodate Melbourne Victory-s participation at the International Women-s Club Championship in Japan. Melbourne Victory-s round 12 match against Newcastle Jets will also be brought forward and played midweek on Wednesday 29 October. • Ten (10) matches scheduled on artificial surfaces (Ashfield Sports Club and Lambert Park) to compliment the 2015 FIFA Women-s World Cup where all matches will be played on artificial surfaces. • Westfield W-League 2015 Finals Series will see the first placed team host the fourth placed team, and the second placed team host the third placed team. The winner of the each Westfield W-League 2015 Semi-Final will advance to the Westfield W-League 2015 Grand Final which will be hosted by the higher ranked of the two teams.
Click here to download the Westfield W-League draw.