Adrian Stenta spoke to the media after Adelaide United’s heartbreaking 2-1 defeat to Melbourne Victory in the Pride Cup at AAMI Park on Saturday evening, praising the incredible support of the travelling fans.
The Reds showed late resilience, clawing back into the game late after going behind, but a stoppage-time goal to the hosts meant Stenta’s side left empty-handed. Despite the result, the squad remains firmly focused on the remaining two matches before Finals.
Stenta on going for the win late in the match…
“Once we scored, we kind of went for it a bit at the end and threw an extra player up top and just got caught going the other way. That’s on the coaching staff, not the players, because we told them to do that. But we felt like we really wanted to try and go for the win.”
Stenta on resilience and belief in the squad…
“I’m really proud that we were resilient and showed a bit of fight today. I think we can get better and push the top two in the Finals series if we get the chance.”
Stenta on 16-year-old goalkeeper Ilona Melegh’s debut…
“Illy was fantastic. She’s not going on camp with the Young Matildas next week for no reason. She’s a quality keeper. I thought she did exceptionally well—not just because of her age, but because of the circumstances of her debut. It can be a pretty intimidating place to play here.”
Stenta on Claudia Jenkins’ injury…
“She just fell a bit awkwardly on her left knee during the warm-up and wasn’t feeling 100% confident in it, especially diving. So we just made the call to take her out and put Illy in. I don’t think she needs scans.”
Stenta on managing squad fitness and health…
“We’ve had challenges all year. The first time we played Victory, we had no Izzy Hodgson, no Dylan Holmes, our top goal scorer from last year, and our Player of the Year. It’s been next player up all year. The break comes at a good time for us—we’ll try to freshen the squad up.”
Stenta on their goals for the remainder of the season…
“We’ve got two tough games ahead. That’s brilliant preparation for the Finals. We won’t worry about the result. We’ll do what we always do—try and give ourselves a chance to win. That’s been our mantra all year.”
Stenta on playing through injury challenges…
“[Chelsie] Dawber wasn’t feeling 100% in the second half, and Fiona [Worts] was a pre-planned change. When you consider some of the players we were missing, it’s probably understandable we didn’t create more. But I’m proud the girls showed a bit of resilience and made a game of it.”
Stenta on the travelling supporters in Melbourne…
“It felt like a home game. Our travelling fans were great—they turned up early, they were loud, and it’s fantastic to have the Red Army here. I’m glad they came, because we brought their bloody drum over for them as part of our equipment!”
Stenta on last week’s standalone match at Coopers…
“We’re really grateful to AVM for supporting us with that game. It was great to spend time with our fans after the game, rather than running off because the sprinklers are coming on. It’s the best venue in the league. The pitch here today was terrible—very slippery, very difficult to play on.”
