Nielsen, having previously played for Western Sydney Wanderers is excited and impressed by the ever-improving league.

“I think the biggest surprise for me, is how good this league has gotten in just a short amount of time. Two years ago, it was still very good but this year every team is really competitive. You have no idea; you can’t come into a game not ready because every team has the potential to win," she said.

"I think it’s going to be exciting to see where teams end up this year. Hopefully, we’ll get that playoff spot. It’s definitely exciting, it’s an exciting year to be in the W-League.”

She is excited about the challenge set by high expectations as an international player, and starting to find her way around Canberra. 

Following two games this week United have over a fortnight off in December, so there’ll be plenty of time with locals like Melissa Maizels to show imports around.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

All smiles ahead of Sunday. #UnitedWeStand #CBRvSYD Ticket link in bio.

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The two spoke of the challenge of scheduling at this time of year and maintaining momentum.

“Obviously it’s not ideal, every team would love every game to be seven days apart. That’s not how it works. We’re really grateful for the new media coverage that we’re getting, having standalone Thursday night games," Maizels said

"We just need to be professional about our approach. We trust our staff, we trust their scheduling with our training and making sure that our loads stay where they need to be. And we get the right training that we need whether we have a big break or a small break between the games so we can be best prepared,” she said.

For Nielsen, it is much more about how the games go.

“I think it all depends on results. If we win a game and we’re on fire we want to keep playing, if we lose a game a break gives us a chance to regather and refocus and fix things we need to fix.”

Canberra United host Sydney FC at McKellar Park on Sunday December 2 at 4.00pm.