The 2026 Senol NPLW Grand Final Preview
Box Hill United v Avondale
Venue: The Home of The Matildas
Date/Time: Sunday, September 20, 4:00pm
Preview
A decade on from the inaugural NPLW season, the competition will crown the season 2026 Champions on Sunday evening at the Home of The Matildas.
From Calder United lifting the first Championship in 2016 to the rise of some of Victorian football’s biggest clubs and players, the NPLW has continued to grow and evolve over the past ten years. Now, Box Hill United and Avondale will meet in the Grand Final, with another chapter of the competition’s history set to be written and a Champion to be crowned.
Box Hill United is chasing back-to-back Championships after claiming their first NPLW title in 2025. That triumph took their tally to 10 state-level Championships, level with Greensborough for the most in Victorian women’s football history. The reigning Champions have continued their strong form this season, adding the 2026 Premiership and earning a direct path to the Preliminary Final.
After defeating Bulleen Lions 2-0 in a clinical display, Box Hill now have the chance to complete the double and become back-to-back Champions.
Avondale have been one of the stories of the 2026 season, reaching the Grand Final in their first NPLW campaign after earning promotion from the VPLW last year. The Avengers are now just one game away from becoming the second team to win the NPLW Championship in their debut season after Calder United achieved the feat in the competition’s inaugural season in 2016.
They have already shown they have the firepower and quality to compete with the league’s best, defeating Essendon Royals 2-1 in the Preliminary Final to book their place in the decider.
Avondale will also be led by plenty of experience on Grand Final day, with Gülcan Genitsaris set to play her final NPLW match before retiring from the game. The Team of the Decade defender will make her 308th Victorian top-flight appearance in her swansong after debuting as a 14-year-old with Ashburton in the 2005 Women’s Premier League.
Across two decades of senior football, Gülcan has made around 480 league and cup appearances, including 129 in the NPLW Victoria. An A-League Champion with Melbourne Victory in 2014 and a two-time Champion with Calder United, the Turkish international will chase a third Championship in her final match.
She will be joined by former Matildas Elise Kellond-Knight and Beattie Goad, Kiwi international Hannah Wilkinson and the in-form Aideen Keane, who has shown her ability to find the back of the net in recent weeks, with nine goals from eight starts. With quality throughout the squad, including Taylor Ray and Isabella Accardo, Avondale have plenty of experience and talent to call upon.
Box Hill United will also have an anbundance of firepower at their disposal, with Erin Keyt, Kiara Bercelli, Rhianna Pollicina, Sofia Sakalis and Juri Kawano all capable of making an impact in front of goal. Team of the Season goalkeeper Keely Segavcic and defender Sofia Palywoda have also been key to Box Hill’s success.
After setting the standard across the past 18 months, Box Hill will look to stick to the approach that has delivered the Premiership and a successive Grand Final appearance.
The two sides had never met before 2026 and have faced each other twice this season. Avondale have claimed the only win between the two in a tight contest, while Box Hill went on to secure the Premiership.
Sunday’s Grand Final promises to be a fitting finale to an unforgettable 2026 season.
Head-to-Head Record
Played: 2
Box Hill United:
Avondale: 1
Draws: 1
Last Time They Met
Friday August 14 2026, 7:30pm
Wembley Park, Box Hill
Box Hill United: 1 (Kawano 17’)
Avondale: 1 (Pickett OG 80’)
Referee: Nathan Urbaniak
Box Hill United: Keely Segavcic, Amelia Tartaglia, Rhianna Pollicina, Sydney Minarik, Sofia Palywoda, Holly Murray, Maho Murakami, Nikolina Bucalo (Kiara Bercelli 66), Laura Pickett, Juri Kawano, Sofia Sakalis
Avondale: Brooke Bennett, Georgia Traynor (Azhia Claridge 87), Cameron Barreiro, Isabella Accardo, Elise Kellond-Knight, Sloane Young, Daniella Galluccio, Asuka Miyata, Beattie Goad, Eloise Wilson (Alana Bogers 72), Hannah Wilkinson
Match Commentators: Oscar Rutherford, Melissa Barbieri & Georgia Rajic
The 2026 Senol NPLM Grand Final will be broadcast LIVE and FREE on the NPL Victoria YouTube Channel.