2021–22 Western United FC season

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Western United
2021–22 season
ChairmanJason Sourasis
ManagerJohn Aloisi
StadiumGMHBA Stadium
AAMI Park
Mars Stadium
Morshead Park Stadium
UTAS Stadium
A-League Men3rd
A-League Men FinalsWinners
FFA CupRound of 32
Top goalscorerLeague: Aleksandar Prijović (14)
All: Aleksandar Prijović (15)
Highest home attendance8,127
vs. Melbourne City
(12 March 2022)
A-League Men
Lowest home attendance1,127
vs. Newcastle Jets
(13 November 2021)
FFA Cup
Average home league attendance3,616
Biggest win6–0
vs. Perth Glory (H)
(16 April 2022)
A-League Men
Biggest defeat0–3
vs. Sydney FC (A)
(19 March 2022)
A-League Men

The 2021–22 season was the third in the history of Western United Football Club. In addition to the domestic league, Western United also competed in the FFA Cup for the first time.

They finished third in the regular season and then won the Championship, beating holders Melbourne City in the Grand Final.

The season was documented in the docuseries United.[1]

Review[edit]

Background[edit]

Western United's 2020–21 campaign had seen an eight-game losing streak and a lack of creativity lead to a disappointing tenth-place finish in the league, the club's lowest in their history forcing them to play in the 2021 FFA Cup seventh preliminary round against Newcastle Jets. Three days after their league finish on 8 June 2021, the club parted ways with their head coach Marko Rudan who was their manager since their first season in 2019–20.[2]

Players[edit]

First-team squad[edit]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK England ENG Jamie Young
4 DF Switzerland SUI Léo Lacroix
5 DF Australia AUS Dylan Pierias
6 DF Japan JPN Tomoki Imai
8 FW Australia AUS Lachlan Wales
9 FW Australia AUS Dylan Wenzel-Halls
10 MF Australia AUS Steven Lustica
11 FW Australia AUS Connor Pain
12 DF Australia AUS Dalibor Markovic
13 DF Australia AUS Ivan Vujica
16 MF Slovenia SVN Rene Krhin
17 DF Australia AUS Ben Garuccio
19 DF Australia AUS Josh Risdon (vice-captain)
21 MF Australia AUS Sebastian Pasquali
No. Pos. Nation Player
23 MF Italy ITA Alessandro Diamanti (captain)
25 MF Australia AUS Luke Duzel
26 MF Australia AUS Nicolas Milanovic (scholarship)
27 MF Australia AUS Jerry Skotadis
31 MF Australia AUS Adisu Bayew (scholarship)
33 DF Australia AUS Ben Collins (scholarship)
34 MF Australia AUS Christian Theoharous (scholarship)
36 DF Australia AUS Ajak Deu (scholarship)
37 GK Australia AUS Ryan Scott
38 FW Australia AUS Noah Botic
42 MF Australia AUS Rhys Bozinovski (scholarship)
44 DF Australia AUS Nikolai Topor-Stanley
88 MF Australia AUS Neil Kilkenny
99 FW Serbia SRB Aleksandar Prijović

Transfers[edit]

Transfers in[edit]

No. Position Player Transferred from Type/fee Contract length Date Ref
9 FW Dylan Wenzel-Halls Brisbane Roar Free transfer 3 years 21 June 2021 [3]
17 DF Ben Garuccio Melbourne City Free transfer 2 years 18 July 2021 [4]
44 DF Nikolai Topor-Stanley Unattached Free transfer 1 year 29 July 2021 [5]
1 GK England Jamie Young Brisbane Roar Free transfer 2 years 2 August 2021 [6][7]
38 FW Noah Botic Germany Hoffenheim Free transfer 2 years 2 August 2021 [8]
88 MF Neil Kilkenny Unattached Free transfer 27 August 2021 [9]
4 DF Switzerland Léo Lacroix Switzerland Sion Undisclosed 1 year 1 September 2021 [10]
16 MF Slovenia Rene Krhin Unattached Free transfer 1 year 26 September 2021 [11]
99 FW Serbia Aleksandar Prijović Unattached Free transfer Multi-year 15 October 2021 [12]
34 MF Christian Theoharous Unattached Scholarship 2 years 1 November 2021 [13]

From youth squad[edit]

N
 Pos.
 Nat.
 Name
 Age
 Notes
31 MF Australia Adisu Bayew 19 2 year scholarship contract[14]
36 DF Australia Ajak Deu 20 2 year scholarship contract[14]
42 MF Australia Rhys Bozinovski 17 2 year scholarship contract[15]
33 DF Australia Ben Collins 21 1 year scholarship contract[16]

Transfers out[edit]

No. Position Player Transferred to Type/fee Date Ref
14 MF Max Burgess Sydney FC Free transfer 23 May 2021 [17][18]
4 DF New Zealand Andrew Durante Retired 5 June 2021 [19]
1 GK Poland Filip Kurto Unattached End of contract 18 June 2021 [20]
2 DF Aaron Calver Unattached End of contract 18 June 2021 [20]
9 FW England Kaine Sheppard Unattached End of contract 18 June 2021 [20]
17 MF Brad Inman India ATK Mohun Bagan End of loan 18 June 2021 [20]
22 DF Tomislav Uskok Unattached End of contract 18 June 2021 [20]
34 FW Spain Iker Guarrotxena Unattached End of contract 18 June 2021 [20]
7 FW Kosovo Besart Berisha Unattached End of contract 18 July 2021 [21]
3 DF Brendan Hamill Melbourne Victory End of contract 26 July 2021 [22][23]
20 MF Spain Víctor Sánchez Unattached Mutual contract termination 7 September 2021 [24]
24 FW Ayom Majok Unattached Mutual contract termination 9 February 2022 [25]

Contract extensions[edit]

No. Name Position Duration Date Notes
25 Luke Duzel Midfielder 2 years 23 June 2021 [26]
6 Japan Tomoki Imai Defender 3 years 2 July 2021 [27]
19 Josh Risdon Right-back 1 year 10 November 2021 [28]
10 Steven Lustica Central midfielder 1 year [29][30]
19 Josh Risdon Right-back 2 years 6 December 2021 [31]
10 Steven Lustica Central midfielder 1 year 18 February 2022 [32]
8 Lachlan Wales Winger 2 years 22 February 2022 [33]

Pre-season and friendlies[edit]

  Win   Draw   Loss

10 September 2021 Western United 1–2 Melbourne City Melbourne, Australia
11:00 AEST
Report
Stadium: City Vista Pavilion and Sports Field
1 November 2021 Melbourne City 1–1 Western United Melbourne, Australia
 Report
Stadium: Casey Fields
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors)
5 November 2021 Western United 1–3 Melbourne City Geelong, Australia
 Report
Stadium: GMHBA Stadium
Attendance: 0 (behind closed doors)
Note: The match was played over 135 minutes

Competitions[edit]

Overview[edit]

Competition First match Last match Starting round Final position Record
Pld W D L GF GA GD Win %
A-League 20 November 2021 8 May 2022 Matchday 1 3rd 26 13 6 7 40 30 +10 050.00
A-League Men Finals 14 May 2022 28 May 2022 Elimination-finals Winners 4 3 0 1 7 2 +5 075.00
FFA Cup 13 November 2021 7 December 2021 Playoff round Round of 32 2 1 0 1 2 2 +0 050.00
Total 32 17 6 9 49 34 +15 053.13

Last updated: 29 January 2022
Source: Competitions

A-League Men[edit]

Main article: 2021–22 A-League Men

League table[edit]

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Melbourne City 26 14 7 5 55 33 +22 49 Qualification for finals series and 2023–24 AFC Champions League group stage[a]
2 Melbourne Victory 26 13 9 4 42 25 +17 48 Qualification for finals series[b]
3 Western United (C) 26 13 6 7 40 30 +10 45
4 Adelaide United 26 12 7 7 38 31 +7 43
5 Central Coast Mariners 26 12 6 8 49 35 +14 42
Source: A-Leagues
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Points per game; 5) Least red cards; 6) Least yellow cards; 7) Toss of a coin in an event of a tie of two clubs.
(C) Champions
Notes:
  1. ^ Determined by which of the Premiers for the 2021–22 or 2022–23 seasons accrued the most combined points over both seasons.[34] Melbourne City qualified as they were Premiers in both seasons.
  2. ^ The top two teams enter the finals series at the semi-finals, while the teams ranked third to sixth enter the finals series at the elimination-finals.

Results by round[edit]

Round1234561112107141591617191813202123242226825
GroundHHAHHAAHAAAHHAHHAAAHHHHAAA
ResultLWWWWLLWDWDWWWWDLDWDLWWLDL
Position126332432212222222222222333
Points036912121215161920232629323333343738384144444545
Source: Ultimate A-League
A = Away; H = Home; B = Bye; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Matches[edit]

The league fixtures were announced on 23 September 2021.[35]

20 November 2021 1 Western United 0–1 Melbourne Victory Geelong
19:45 AEDT Report
Stadium: GMHBA Stadium
Attendance: 8,120
Referee: Lachlan Keevers
26 November 2021 2 Western United 1–0 Perth Glory Melbourne
19:45 AEDT
Report Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 3,013
Referee: Jonathon Barreiro
4 December 2021 3 Melbourne City 0–1 Western United Melbourne
19:45 AEDT
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 7,019
Referee: Alex King
11 December 2021 4 Western United 1–0 Brisbane Roar Geelong
17:05 AEDT
Stadium: GMHBA Stadium
Attendance: 2,845
Referee: Jonathon Barreiro
17 December 2021 5 Western United 1–0 Adelaide United Melbourne
19:45 AEDT
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 2,353
Referee: Kurt Ams
26 December 2021 6 Melbourne Victory 3–1 Western United Melbourne
19:45 AEDT
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 13,186
Referee: Shaun Evans
21 January 2022 11 Wellington Phoenix 2–1 Western United Wollongong
19:45 AEDT
Report
Stadium: WIN Stadium
Attendance: 586
Referee: Shaun Evans
29 January 2022 12 Western United 1–0 Melbourne City Melbourne
19:45 AEDT
Report Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 4,740
Referee: Ben Abraham
2 February 2022 10 Macarthur FC 2–2 Western United Sydney
19:45 AEDT
Report
Stadium: Campbelltown Stadium
Attendance: 2,002
Referee: Tim Danaskos
5 February 2022 7 Western Sydney Wanderers 0–1 Western United Sydney
17:05 AEDT Report
Stadium: CommBank Stadium
Attendance: 5,987
Referee: Jack Morgan
12 February 2022 14 Sydney FC 1–1 Western United Sydney
19:45 AEST
Stadium: Netstrata Jubilee Stadium
Attendance: 4,228
Referee: Shaun Evans
20 February 2022 15 Western United 3–2 Western Sydney Wanderers Melbourne
18:35 AEDT
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 3,200
Referee: Ben Abraham
23 February 2022 9 Western United 3–0[a] Sydney FC Melbourne
17:45 AEDT
Report Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 1,850
Referee: Alex King
27 February 2022 16 Perth Glory 0–2 Western United Launceston
19:05 AWST Report
Stadium: UTAS Stadium
Attendance: 1,552
Referee: Jonathon Barreiro
5 March 2022 17 Western United 2–1 Newcastle Jets Ballarat
15:05 AEDT
Report
Stadium: Mars Stadium
Attendance: 2,674
Referee: Lachlan Keevers
12 March 2022 19 Western United 2–2 Melbourne City Melbourne
19:45 AEDT
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 8,127
Referee: Alireza Faghani
19 March 2022 18 Sydney FC 3–0 Western United Sydney
19:45 AEDT
Report Stadium: Netstrata Jubilee Stadium
Attendance: 3,269
Referee: Daniel Elder
23 March 2022 13 Melbourne Victory 1–1 Western United Melbourne
19:05 AEDT
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 5,022
Referee: Alireza Faghani
26 March 2022 20 Brisbane Roar 2–3 Western United Brisbane
16:05 AEST
Report
Stadium: Moreton Daily Stadium
Attendance: 4,935
Referee: Adam Kersey
2 April 2022 21 Western United 2–2 Central Coast Mariners Ballarat
16:05 AEDT
Report
Stadium: Mars Stadium
Attendance: 1,423
Referee: Lachlan Keevers
9 April 2022 23 Western United 1–4 Wellington Phoenix Ballarat
14:05 AEST
Report
Stadium: Morshead Park
Attendance: 1,423
Referee: Daniel Elder
16 April 2022 24 Western United 6–0 Perth Glory Launceston
17:05 AEST
Report Stadium: UTAS Stadium
Attendance: 2,231
Referee: Ben Abraham
19 April 2022 22 Western United 2–0 Macarthur FC Launceston
17:05 AEST
Report Stadium: UTAS Stadium
Attendance: 1,569
Referee: Alex King
30 April 2022 26 Central Coast Mariners 1–0 Western United Gosford
16:05 AEST
Report Stadium: Central Coast Stadium
Attendance: 5,273
Referee: Alex King
4 May 2022 8 Newcastle Jets 1–1 Western United Newcastle
19:05 AEST
Report
Stadium: McDonald Jones Stadium
Attendance: 3,567
Referee: Jonathan Bareiro
8 May 2022 25 Adelaide United 2–1 Western United Adelaide
18:20 ACST
Report
Stadium: Coopers Stadium
Attendance: 6,398
Referee: Shaun Evans

Notes:

  1. ^ Awarded score. Original score 1–0 to Western United; result was changed after Australian Professional Leagues determined there were insufficient players on the match list for Sydney FC below a certain age.[36]

Finals series[edit]

Main article: 2021–22 A-League Men § Finals series
14 May 2022 Elimination final Western United 1–0 Wellington Phoenix Melbourne
19:45 AEST
Report Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 3,376
Referee: Alex King
17 May 2022 Semi-final 1st leg Western United 0–1 Melbourne Victory Melbourne
19:05 AEST Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 7,295
Referee: Alireza Faghani
21 May 2022 Semi-final 2nd leg Melbourne Victory 1–4
(2–4 agg.)		 Western United Melbourne
17:15 AEST
Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 15,349
Referee: Alex King
28 May 2022 Grand Final Melbourne City 0–2 Western United Melbourne
19:45 AEST Report
Stadium: AAMI Park
Attendance: 22,495
Referee: Chris Beath

FFA Cup[edit]

Main article: 2021 FFA Cup
13 November 2021 Play-off Western United 2–1 Newcastle Jets Geelong
19:00 AEDT
Report
Stadium: GMHBA Stadium
Attendance: 1,127
Referee: Jonathan Barreiro
7 December 2021 Round of 32 Western United 0–1 Wellington Phoenix Geelong
19:30 AEDT Report
Stadium: GMHBA Stadium
Attendance: 1,217
Referee: Jack Morgan

Statistics[edit]

Appearances and goals[edit]

Players with no appearances not included in the list.

No. Pos. Nat. Name A-League Men FFA Cup Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
1 GK England Jamie Young 30 0 1 0 31 0
4 DF Switzerland Léo Lacroix 27 3 1 0 28 3
5 DF Australia Dylan Pierias 11(14) 2 1(1) 0 27 2
6 DF Japan Tomoki Imai 26(1) 0 1 0 28 0
8 FW Australia Lachlan Wales 29(1) 4 1 1 31 4
9 FW Australia Dylan Wenzel-Halls 12(15) 5 1 0 28 5
10 MF Australia Steven Lustica 25(1) 5 1 0 27 5
11 MF Australia Connor Pain 23(3) 3 1 0 27 3
12 DF Australia Dalibor Markovic 0 0 1 0 1 0
16 MF Slovenia Rene Krhin 12(5) 1 0 0 17 1
17 DF Australia Ben Garuccio 28 2 1 0 29 2
19 DF Australia Josh Risdon 19(2) 0 1 0 22 0
23 MF Italy Alessandro Diamanti 10 0 1 0 10 0
25 MF Australia Luke Duzel 0 0 1 0 1 0
26 FW Australia Nicolas Milanovic 1(10) 1 1 0 12 1
27 MF Australia Jerry Skotadis 5(12) 0 1(1) 0 19 0
31 MF Australia Adisu Bayew 4(12) 2 1 0 17 2
33 DF Australia Ben Collins 0(2) 0 0 0 2 0
34 FW Australia Christian Theoharous 1(3) 0 1 0 5 0
37 GK Australia Ryan Scott 0 0 1 0 1 0
38 FW Australia Noah Botic 0(3) 0 0 0 3 0
39 FW Australia Sabit James 0 0 0(1) 0 1 0
42 MF Australia Rhys Bozinovski 0(4) 0 0 0 4 0
44 DF Australia Nikolai Topor-Stanley 18(3) 1 1 0 22 2
55 DF Australia Daniel Di Francesco 0 0 1 0 1 0
88 MF Australia Neil Kilkenny 25(1) 0 1 0 27 0
99 FW Serbia Aleksandar Prijović 24(3) 13 0(1) 1 28 14

Disciplinary record[edit]

The list is sorted by squad number when total cards are equal. Players with no cards not included in the list.

Rank No. Pos. Nat. Name A-League Men FFA Cup Total
Yellow card Second yellow card Red card Yellow card Second yellow card Red card Yellow card Second yellow card Red card
1 6 DF Japan Tomoki Imai 6 0 1 0 0 0 6 0 1
2 4 DF Switzerland Léo Lacroix 8 0 0 0 0 0 8 0 0
3 19 DF Australia Josh Risdon 7 0 0 0 0 0 7 0 0
4 44 DF Australia Nikolai Topor-Stanley 5 0 0 1 0 0 6 0 0
5 8 FW Australia Lachlan Wales 5 0 0 0 0 0 5 0 0
6 9 FW Australia Dylan Wenzel-Halls 4 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0
88 MF Australia Neil Kilkenny 4 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0
8 10 MF Australia Steven Lustica 2 0 0 1 0 0 3 0 0
11 FW Australia Connor Pain 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0
23 MF Italy Alessandro Diamanti 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0
99 FW Serbia Aleksandar Prijović 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0
12 26 FW Australia Nicolas Milanovic 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0
27 MF Australia Jerry Skotadis 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0
13 5 DF Australia Dylan Pierias 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
16 MF Slovenia Rene Krhin 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
17 DF Australia Ben Garuccio 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
34 FW Australia Christian Theoharous 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
42 MF Australia Rhys Bozinovski 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0

Clean sheets[edit]

Rank No. Pos Nat Name A-League FFA Cup Total
1 1 GK England Jamie Young 12 0 12

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Hughes, Nick (30 November 2022). "Unprecedented look at A-League Men Champions in 'United' series". Western United.
  2. ^ "Western United and Mark Rudan have mutually agreed to part ways". Western United FC. Football Australia. 8 June 2021.
  3. ^ "Striker Dylan Wenzel-Halls joins Western United". Western United. 21 June 2021.
  4. ^ "Western United bolster squad with Ben Garuccio signing". Western United. 18 July 2021.
  5. ^ "Western United strengthen defence with Topor-Stanley capture". Western United. 29 July 2021.
  6. ^ Monteverde, Marco (2 August 2021). "Socceroos: Football Australia officials hopeful of securing travel bubble for clash against China in Sydney". The Daily Telegraph. United have also secured the services of former A-League goalkeeper of the year Jamie Young following his departure from Brisbane Roar.
  7. ^ "Jamie Young joins Western United goalkeeping union". Western United. 4 August 2021.
  8. ^ "Western United signs talented youngster Noah Botic". Western United. 2 August 2021.
  9. ^ "Western United confirms Neil Kilkenny capture". Western United. 27 August 2021.
  10. ^ "Swiss star Leo Lacroix signs with Western United". Western United. 1 September 2021.
  11. ^ "Western United signs Slovenian midfielder Rene Krhin". Western United. 26 September 2021.
  12. ^ "Western United sign Serbian striker Aleksandar Prijovic". Western United. 15 October 2021.
  13. ^ "Western United confirms Christian Theoharous signing". Western United. 1 November 2021.
  14. ^ a b "Western United announces new scholarship contracts". Western United. 21 July 2021.
  15. ^ "Rhys Bozinovski puts pen to paper on scholarship contract". Western United. 5 August 2021.
  16. ^ "Ben Collins signs scholarship deal with Western United". Western United. 16 November 2021.
  17. ^ Lewis, Dave (23 May 2021). "Burgess heads back to Sydney FC on two-year deal". The World Game. SBS.
  18. ^ "Max Burgess Returns To Sky Blue". Sydney FC. 6 July 2021.
  19. ^ "A-League's highest appearance-maker Andrew Durante announces retirement from football". A-League. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  20. ^ a b c d e f "Western United farewell departing players". Western United FC. Football Australia. 18 June 2021.
  21. ^ "Western United bids farewell to Besart Berisha". Western United. 18 July 2021.
  22. ^ "Brendan Hamill departs Western United". Western United. 26 July 2021.
  23. ^ "Melbourne Victory signs Brendan Hamill". Melbourne Victory. 26 July 2021.
  24. ^ "Victor Sanchez to depart Western United". Western United. 7 September 2021.
  25. ^ "Western United agrees mutual termination with Ayom Majok Ayom". Western United. 9 February 2022.
  26. ^ "Western United re-sign young talent Luke Duzel". Western United. 23 June 2021.
  27. ^ "Tomoki Imai commits to Western United until 2024". Western United. 2 July 2021.
  28. ^ "Alessandro Diamanti and Josh Risdon to lead Western United this season". Western United. 10 November 2021. Archived from the original on 10 November 2021. Retrieved 10 November 2021.
  29. ^ Polkinghorne, David (17 July 2021). "Lustica backs Aloisi to return Western United to A-League finals". Western United.
  30. ^ "Isuzu UTE A-League: Your club's ins, outs and full squad". Keep Up. 15 November 2021.
  31. ^ "Josh Risdon signs multi-year extension". Western United. 6 December 2021.
  32. ^ "Steven Lustica signs one-year extension at Western United". Western United. 18 February 2022.
  33. ^ "Lachlan Wales pens new two-year deal with Western United". Western United. 22 February 2022.
  34. ^ "A big AFC change has sparked a new A-Leagues table scramble: How it works". Australian Professional Leagues. 30 March 2023. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
  35. ^ "Western United to host opening round of 2021/22 A-League Season". Western United FC. 23 September 2021. Archived from the original on 14 November 2021. Retrieved 23 September 2021.
  36. ^ "Sydney FC penalised for repeatedly breaching youth requirements". ABC News. 14 April 2022. Retrieved 14 April 2022.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2021–22_Western_United_FC_season&oldid=1214289021"