Captain Isabel Hodgson says Adelaide United is due its first win of the Liberty A-League season and has no fear of travelling to take on top-of-the-table Perth Glory on Saturday night.
Hodgson played a part in her first game of the season in the weekend’s loss to Melbourne Victory, having missed the opening two matches with an ankle injury.
While she is not sure whether the coaching staff will decide she is ready to start against the Glory, the defender is confident whoever takes the park will have the quality to get the three points.
Speaking after training at Marden, Hodgson said the intensity remained high as the side targeted its first win, having only recorded one point from its three matches.
Isabel Hodgson on going down to Melbourne Victory last Saturday:
“Victory has a great side and it’s really hard to play at AAMI Park in front of the victory home crowd. They really made us defend for a long time and scored some quick goals back to back, which is really hard to come back from. We’re trying to leave that in the past and keep eyes fixed on Perth.”
Isabel Hodgson on making her return and playing her first game after an off-season ankle injury:
“Obviously, it feels good to be back on the field but it would feel better if you’ve got the three points. That’s football sometimes, but we’re looking onwards for the rest of the season.
“I was excited to get back out there. It’s always tough coming on the last 10 minutes when you’re two-nil down. I just figured I’d give what I can for the girls playing up top, which is a little bit different, but I just decided to as run as much as I can.”
Isabel Hodgson on having vice-captain Maruschka Waldus playing her first game following off-season surgery on a foot and leg injury:
“Having Maruschka back in the defence is super important for us. She’s such a great player and such a great leader for us. I think, ideally, we get some more players back in like Nano (Sasaki), and then we’ve got some more experience on the field where I think it’s really going to help us for the rest of the season.”
Isabel Hodgson on the week at training so far:
“It was intense training session, obviously, coming off a loss, people want to try and prove their spot and prove that we need to get that win so it was a bit of an intense training. But that’s what we need to do. We can’t really dwell on the past. We’ve got to move forward. It’s a long season and losses are going to happen. But it’s about how quickly we can turn that around.
“We’ve got to keep in mind that no matter who we play, we can always get a result out of it. It’s a pretty close ladder and teams are beating teams and it can really be anybody’s game. So we’ve just got to keep that in the back of our mind that we might have had a couple of losses in a row now but that win can definitely be coming.”
Isabel Hodgson on this week’s opponent, the so-far unbeaten Perth Glory:
“They’ve been fantastic. They’re three for three And they’re looking like a really great side, but we always battle really well against Perth. I was just saying earlier that no matter how our season’s going, or how their season’s going it’s a really close match. It’s a great game for us to be playing with the team that we definitely can beat. We’ve just got to bring our A-game and I think it’s time that we get that win.”
