Professional Footballers Australia (the PFA) has today revealed the Austraffic A-League Men Team of the Season, with the squad bursting with Subway Socceroos talent and dominated by players gearing up for the 2023 Isuzu UTE A-League Men Grand Final.
Eight players in the player-voted Starting XI are from Premiers Melbourne City FC and runners-up Central Coast Mariners - the two teams set to face off in the Championship decider this Saturday night.
Of the 18-man squad, 11 have represented the Subway Socceroos, with nine of them called up for the recent March window.
The squad highlighs a strong mix of established and emerging talent in the A-Leagues. Five clubs – City, Mariners, Western Sydney Wanderers, Adelaide United and Brisbane Roar – have players represented in the 2022/23 squad.
PFA Co-Chief Executive Beau Busch said: “The Austraffic A-League Team of the Season reflects everything that is great about the A-League. We’ve seen the emergence of brilliant young players who will no doubt go onto create wonderful careers - hopefully here, overseas and in the National Team – promising international players who have strengthened the competition, and A-League regulars who have been huge contributors to their clubs and the growth of the competition.”
The Team
The team comprises a Starting XI in a 3-4-3 diamond formation, with seven substitutes, as voted by A-League members at the end of the regular season.
Forwards
Craig Goodwin (Adelaide United)
Jamie Maclaren (Melbourne City)
Brandon Borrello (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Midfielders
Mat Leckie (Melbourne City)
Calem Nieuwenhof (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Josh Nisbet (Central Coast Mariners)
Aiden O’Neill (Melbourne City)
Defenders
Jordan Bos (Melbourne City)
Brian Kaltak (Central Coast Mariners)
Marcelo (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Goalkeeper
Joe Gauci (Adelaide United)
Subs:
Lawrence Thomas (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Jason Cummings (Central Coast Mariners)
Marco Tilio (Melbourne City)
Jay O’Shea (Brisbane Roar)
Marco Tulio (Central Coast Mariners)
Curtis Good (Melbourne City)
Nectarios Triantis (Central Coast Mariners)
After a standout season in which he helped to steer Melbourne City to a third consecutive Premiers Plate, emerging star Jordan Bos received the most votes from his peers to be named Captain of the 2022/23 Team of the Season.
Bos, an academy product at Melbourne City, was a standout throughout the 2022/23 campaign, demonstrating his work ethic, technical ability and impact in defence and attack.
The 20-year was rewarded for his recent form with a Subway Socceroos debut in March and secured a move to Belgian club KVC Westerlo for a record Australian outbound transfer fee.
Reacting to earning the most votes from across the A-League Men, Bos said: “It’s obviously a big honour, especially since we [play against] each other. For them to vote for me is pretty cool, I wasn’t expecting it.
“I’m definitely proud. I’m happy with the season I have had so far but we’ve still got one more game, and it’s only the start of my career, so one season means nothing if you can’t back it up season after season.”