Brisbane Roar Women captain Clare Polkinghorne has been given a massive boost ahead of the upcoming Westfield W-League season after she was named Footballer of the Year 2010 at last night’s Australian Football Awards, alongside Qantas Socceroo Mark Schwarzer.
The 21-year-old defender has been an integral part of the Brisbane Roar side since the introduction of the Westfield W-League two years ago, and was a key member of the Westfield Matildas squad that won the AFC Women-s Asian Cup in May, Australia-s first piece of silverware since their inception into the AFC.
Hardworking and fearless in the heart of defence, Polkinghorne made her Australian debut as a 17-year-old in a friendly against China, and since then has worn the green and gold 37 times, finding the back of the net on two occasions.
Brisbane-born Polkinghorne was chosen by coach Jeff Hopkins to captain the Roar in their second season in the Westfield W-League, and led them to their second consecutive grand final, where they were unlucky to lose to a strong Sydney FC team.
In other news at the Australian Football Awards, former Brisbane Roar player Tommy Oar was named U20 Footballer of the Year for 2010.
The award marks a big year for 18-year-old Oar who made his Qantas Socceroos debut against Indonesia in an AFC Asian Cup Qualifier at Suncorp Stadium in March.
In the following month, after two seasons with the Roar, Oar signed for FC Utrecht in Holland with teammates Adam Sarota and Michael Zullo, and was then named in the initial Qantas Socceroos squad for the FIFA World Cup in South Africa, but was not chosen in the final 23.
