Melbourne Victory trio Terry Antonis, Ola Toivonen and Christine Nairn and Perth Glory’s Sam Kerr, Rachel Hill and Chris Ikonomidis comprise six of the eight nominees for the PFA Player of the Month awards for December.
Victory occupies second position on the A-League ladder and top position in the W-League, with Antonis and Toivonen playing central roles in the A-League, while Nairn has been outstanding in the W-League for Victory this season.
Kerr – an October/November PFA Player of the Month nominee – and her teammate Hill have been central to Glory’s rise to second position in the W-League, while Ikonomidis – also a nominee for last month’s A-League award – has been pivotal in helping Glory reach the A-League summit.
The other nominees consist of Wellington Phoenix’s in-form forward Sarpreet Singh and Adelaide United’s leading goal scorer Veronica Latsko.
Latsko is likely to be a front-runner for the W-League award. The US livewire netted an incredible six goals in December, including doubles against Glory and Sydney FC, and scoring singles in Adelaide’s 3-2 wins over Victory and the Newcastle Jets.
Only Kerr has scored more this season – nine goals in eight appearances – and not only leads the Golden Boot race but heads up the competition in shots and chances created.
In December, Kerr added five goals to her tally of four in November, with her efforts earning back-to-back nominations.
Hill, one of the W-League’s impressive American imports, leads the W-League in assists (four) and has tallied the same amount of goals, including a strike against Victory in December.
The impact of US players on the W-League doesn’t stop there, with Nairn earning consecutive nominations across November and December. The former Orlando Pride, Seattle Reign and Washington Spirit midfielder has been outstanding for Victory this season, helping to guide them to the W-League summit. Nairn netted twice in December, has three assists to her name and is in the top 10 players for chances created and crosses.
In the A-League, Victory duo Antonis and Toivonon have earned nominations after helping guide Victory to a five match unbeaten streak during December, including three wins.
Toivonon, Victory’s leggy Swedish striker, has wasted no time settling at his new club. With seven goals to his name in eight games this season, half of his tally came in the month of December – including crucial strikes in the Melbourne Derby and against Wellington Phoenix in Victory’s last match of 2018.
Antonis has contributed three goals this season from midfield and – alongside his teammate James Troisi – leads the A-League in assists.
Ikonomidis, meanwhile, has continued his fine A-League form for Perth Glory, which has earned him a call up to the Asian Cup with the Socceroos this January. The forward has been a revelation for Glory since making the off-season switch to Perth from Western Sydney Wanderers. Following a four-goal haul in October and November, Ikonomidis added two more goals to his name in December, including netting the sole strike against Melbourne City in the Glory’s 1-0 win.
Singh has been an outstanding figure for Wellington Phoenix this season with his aggressive and dynamic approach. With four assists, a top 10 performer in total shots and chances created, Singh – who is still only 19 – has been central to the Nix’s campaign this season.
Nominated by an awards committee comprised of former players and leading figures in the Australian football media, the nominees are voted on by PFA members from both competitions. The players receiving the highest number of votes from their peers are awarded the PFA Player of the Month award.
