VU alumni share the Victory

Two Victoria University alumni are proud to have played critical coaching roles in Melbourne Victory Football Club W-League’s 2021 championship.

Liz Di Fazio and Jayden Anderson formed part of the Club’s performance and coaching team during the months of training and hard work that led to Victory’s 1-Nil win against Sydney last weekend. It’s the second time the women in blue have taken home the league trophy.

Any aspiring conditioning coach or sport scientist dreams of helping to take an elite team to a grand final. That dream is realised at VU through its strong partnership with the Melbourne Victory Football Club.

VU students not only have opportunities for internships and placements with the men’s, women’s, and Academy (youth) teams in a range of roles, but VU also collaborates with the Club on research and facilities, and provides industry expertise.

Long-time Melbourne Victory supporter Liz began her career in sports science and strength and conditioning coaching as an intern with the Club’s U15 Academy team while completing her Master of Sport Science (Football Performance); see Master of Sport and Exercise Science. She has performed several different roles, and is currently a performance analyst and team manager for the W-League.

“I’ve been a Melbourne Victory fan since they started, so I feel grateful to have had the opportunity to work with such a special group of staff and players. For me, the grand final victory was a fitting end to a great season and a culmination of a lot of hard work,” she says.

Jayden, who studied VU’s Bachelor of Sport Science before continuing into the Master of Sport Science (Football Performance) is a sports scientist and conditioning coach. This is his fourth consecutive role at Victory – a paid internship while he completes his studies.

“To play a role in improving the performance of the team – to help them win the trophy – makes our work behind the scenes all worth it. Victory’s strong partnership with VU means the coaching staff places a lot of trust in me – they know I have the best education, so they’re confident I know what I'm doing,” he says.

Careers in sport begin at VU

Watch the video about VU's partnership with Melbourne Victory as Leaders in Sport.