Calder United is the benchmark for Victorian women’s football and is looking to win a record sixth-straight Nike F.C. Cup in a row.
Calder United have won the last five editions of the Nike F.C. Cup and in 2022 they defeated South Melbourne 3-0 in the Grand Final at Hume City Stadium.
Calder United Head Coach Helen Winterburn said she has a “feeling of responsibility” to continue her side's golden run in her first season in charge.
“Calder has never lost a game in the Nike F.C. Cup because they have won it every year, there is going to be a lot of pressure but good pressure,” Winterburn said.
“It’s a pride thing as well you want to make sure you keep winning any game that you play but more so a cup competition that is held in such high regard at the club.”
Winterburn also highlighted how exciting it was to see Calder reach the Grand Final with a completely different playing list to previous seasons.
“To see some of the young U19s girls come through and play seniors and even come on score goals, defend well, and play for the team has been good for the club.
“Once we got some of the girls back who were at Western United and other A-League clubs to just have them bring the experience to the younger players.”
In their first round of the campaign, Calder defeated fellow NPLW club, Southern United 2-1 in a tough contest.
Izzy Fernandez opened the scoring for Southern before second-half goals to Isabella Sewards and Larissa Walsh ensured Calder progressed to the next round.
“The game against Southern was a battle,” Winterburn said.
“We have played Southern three times this year and every match we have won 2-1, it is always a tough contest.”
Three weeks later, the defending Champions came up against FC Clifton Hill and a goal to Larissa Walsh in the 12th minute allowed Calder to gain control.
Alexis Mitchell doubled the hosts' lead in the second half, as they moved onto the Quarterfinals with a comfortable 2-0 victory.
Calder faced much harder opposition in this match-up, coming up against Heidelberg United.
The NPLW side have Calder a run for their money, but the home side prevailed 5-2 in a high-scoring affair.
“I feel like the Heidelberg game we played really good football, especially going into the second half,” Winterburn recalled.
"There was a red card against Heidelberg and then either the opposition rallies or you have an extra player and dominate, and I think we were able to control the game from that moment and score some good goals,” Winterburn explained.
“There were some really good individual performances in that game and team goals as well.”
A highly anticipated 2022 Grand Final rematch awaited Calder United in the Semi-Finals and it didn’t disappoint.
The two teams couldn’t be split at half-time, with both teams unable to find the back of the net. Kiewa Hieda broke the deadlock in the 58th minute for Calder and then Alexis Mitchell extended their lead 10 minutes later as they finished the game 2-0 victors.
“We weren’t great in the first half against South Melbourne, they had lots of chances, but our goalkeeper Natalie Picak was awesome, she made some pretty big saves to keep us in it,” Winterburn remembered.
“We then fixed a couple of things at halftime and came out and played the football we wanted to play. We controlled possession, created some chances, and scored a couple of nice goals.
“We won that and are now in the final, which is pretty damn exciting.”