Rhianna Pollicina expects Melbourne Victory to showcase their Finals edge again this weekend.<\/p>\n
The Girls in Blue host Melbourne City in Leg 1 of their Ninja A-League Semi-Final<\/a> at AAMI Park on Saturday, May 2, kick-off 5pm AEST.<\/p>\nThis instalment of the Melbourne Derby is part of a special double-header, preceding the Men\u2019s team hosting Sydney FC in an Isuzu UTE A-League Finals Series Elimination Final versus Sydney FC, kick-off 7.40pm AEST.<\/a><\/p>\nVictory earned the clash with City by beating Canberra United away from home a week ago, upsetting the form card to knock out the side that finished the regular season in third position.<\/p>\nSpeaking during her pre-match press conference, Pollicina explained how and why Victory is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to Finals.<\/p>\n\u201cI definitely think we showed that last week against Canberra. Finals is a different game when it comes to Victory as well \u2013 definitely that strong team that you don\u2019t want to come up against. We turned it on last week against Canberra, but we\u2019ve got to do that again tomorrow.<\/p>\n\u201cWe\u2019ve got a lot of experience in the team, and you\u2019ve seen that on the park last week. We\u2019ve got a lot of girls who have played Finals, been in this position before. Jeff\u2019s definitely got the experience when it comes to Finals as well.\u201d<\/p>\nRhianna Pollicina joins Leah Davidson of Melbourne City to preview the Semi-Final.<\/p>\nPollicina spent four years at City, between 2021 and 2025, before switching light blue for navy during the off-season. She is, therefore, well placed to assess the opposition, Victory\u2019s cross-town rivals.<\/p>\n\u201cThey\u2019re top of the table for a reason, and we\u2019ve got to respect that. Congratulations to them on another premiership as well. They\u2019ve got quality all over the park, so we know we have to bring our A game. We know we have to start the game well.<\/p>\n\u201cThey haven\u2019t played in a few weeks, so the first 20 minutes, we can get on top of the game and show that we\u2019re ready to battle it out.\u201d<\/p>\nWatch Pollicina\u2019s full press conference below.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Rhianna Pollicina expects Melbourne Victory to showcase their Finals edge again this weekend. The Girls in Blue host…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2828,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[850,3911,260,332,851,376],"class_list":{"0":"post-2827","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-melbourne","8":"tag-finals","9":"tag-jeff-hopkins","10":"tag-melbourne","11":"tag-melbourne-victory","12":"tag-ninja-a-league","13":"tag-press-conference"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2827","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2827"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2827\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2828"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2827"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2827"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2827"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
This instalment of the Melbourne Derby is part of a special double-header, preceding the Men\u2019s team hosting Sydney FC in an Isuzu UTE A-League Finals Series Elimination Final versus Sydney FC, kick-off 7.40pm AEST.<\/a><\/p>\nVictory earned the clash with City by beating Canberra United away from home a week ago, upsetting the form card to knock out the side that finished the regular season in third position.<\/p>\nSpeaking during her pre-match press conference, Pollicina explained how and why Victory is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to Finals.<\/p>\n\u201cI definitely think we showed that last week against Canberra. Finals is a different game when it comes to Victory as well \u2013 definitely that strong team that you don\u2019t want to come up against. We turned it on last week against Canberra, but we\u2019ve got to do that again tomorrow.<\/p>\n\u201cWe\u2019ve got a lot of experience in the team, and you\u2019ve seen that on the park last week. We\u2019ve got a lot of girls who have played Finals, been in this position before. Jeff\u2019s definitely got the experience when it comes to Finals as well.\u201d<\/p>\nRhianna Pollicina joins Leah Davidson of Melbourne City to preview the Semi-Final.<\/p>\nPollicina spent four years at City, between 2021 and 2025, before switching light blue for navy during the off-season. She is, therefore, well placed to assess the opposition, Victory\u2019s cross-town rivals.<\/p>\n\u201cThey\u2019re top of the table for a reason, and we\u2019ve got to respect that. Congratulations to them on another premiership as well. They\u2019ve got quality all over the park, so we know we have to bring our A game. We know we have to start the game well.<\/p>\n\u201cThey haven\u2019t played in a few weeks, so the first 20 minutes, we can get on top of the game and show that we\u2019re ready to battle it out.\u201d<\/p>\nWatch Pollicina\u2019s full press conference below.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Rhianna Pollicina expects Melbourne Victory to showcase their Finals edge again this weekend. The Girls in Blue host…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2828,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[850,3911,260,332,851,376],"class_list":{"0":"post-2827","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-melbourne","8":"tag-finals","9":"tag-jeff-hopkins","10":"tag-melbourne","11":"tag-melbourne-victory","12":"tag-ninja-a-league","13":"tag-press-conference"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2827","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2827"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2827\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2828"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2827"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2827"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2827"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
Victory earned the clash with City by beating Canberra United away from home a week ago, upsetting the form card to knock out the side that finished the regular season in third position.<\/p>\n
Speaking during her pre-match press conference, Pollicina explained how and why Victory is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to Finals.<\/p>\n
\u201cI definitely think we showed that last week against Canberra. Finals is a different game when it comes to Victory as well \u2013 definitely that strong team that you don\u2019t want to come up against. We turned it on last week against Canberra, but we\u2019ve got to do that again tomorrow.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got a lot of experience in the team, and you\u2019ve seen that on the park last week. We\u2019ve got a lot of girls who have played Finals, been in this position before. Jeff\u2019s definitely got the experience when it comes to Finals as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rhianna Pollicina joins Leah Davidson of Melbourne City to preview the Semi-Final.<\/p>\n
Pollicina spent four years at City, between 2021 and 2025, before switching light blue for navy during the off-season. She is, therefore, well placed to assess the opposition, Victory\u2019s cross-town rivals.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re top of the table for a reason, and we\u2019ve got to respect that. Congratulations to them on another premiership as well. They\u2019ve got quality all over the park, so we know we have to bring our A game. We know we have to start the game well.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey haven\u2019t played in a few weeks, so the first 20 minutes, we can get on top of the game and show that we\u2019re ready to battle it out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Watch Pollicina\u2019s full press conference below.<\/p>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Rhianna Pollicina expects Melbourne Victory to showcase their Finals edge again this weekend. The Girls in Blue host…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2828,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[850,3911,260,332,851,376],"class_list":{"0":"post-2827","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-melbourne","8":"tag-finals","9":"tag-jeff-hopkins","10":"tag-melbourne","11":"tag-melbourne-victory","12":"tag-ninja-a-league","13":"tag-press-conference"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2827","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2827"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2827\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2828"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2827"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2827"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2827"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GettyImages-2273972637.jpg\")
Rhianna Pollicina joins Leah Davidson of Melbourne City to preview the Semi-Final.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1777441689_382_Finals_ALounge_1200x400.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Rhianna Pollicina expects Melbourne Victory to showcase their Finals edge again this weekend. The Girls in Blue host…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2828,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[850,3911,260,332,851,376],"class_list":{"0":"post-2827","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-melbourne","8":"tag-finals","9":"tag-jeff-hopkins","10":"tag-melbourne","11":"tag-melbourne-victory","12":"tag-ninja-a-league","13":"tag-press-conference"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2827","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2827"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2827\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2828"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2827"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2827"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2827"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}