Liberty’s A-League Team of the Week: Socceroos Forward Shines Bright

Stay updated with the Isuzu UTE A-League Team of the Week, powered by Opta.

The Isuzu UTE A-League for the 2025-26 season delivered yet another weekend filled with excitement and drama.

In Round 23, Auckland FC made significant progress in the standings, closing the gap on the ladder-topping Newcastle Jets after the Jets suffered a defeat to Macarthur Bulls.

Key to the Bulls’ success was Socceroos forward Mitch Duke, who led the round’s scoring with a vital brace in their 3-2 triumph over Newcastle.

This season, Opta is driving the Isuzu UTE A-League Team of the Week by employing Opta Points—a thorough player metric that assesses a player’s overall impact on the game. Each Monday, we will showcase the Team of the Week in a 4-3-3 formation, celebrating the standout players.

*Editor’s Note: The Team of the Week comprises matches played from Monday to Sunday—some teams may compete on multiple occasions.

In this week’s forward line, alongside Duke, we have Perth Glory’s captain Adam Taggart, who found the net during the Glory’s 2-2 stalemate with the Mariners, and Melbourne City’s promising talent Marcus Younis, who continued his impressive form since returning to Australia, scoring against his former club, Western Sydney Wanderers.

The three-man midfield boasts three players who each scored in Round 23: Central Coast Mariners’ young star Bailey Brandtman, Auckland FC’s Luis Felipe Gallegos, and Adelaide United’s Ethan Alagich.

On defence, Melbourne City’s Aziz Behich and Nathaniel Atkinson secure their positions after maintaining a clean sheet in their 3-0 win over the Wanderers, alongside Brisbane Roar’s James McGarry and Wellington Phoenix’s Matthew Sheridan, who also kept their goal intact.

Guarding the net in this week’s Team of the Week is Sydney FC’s Harrison Devenish-Meares, who made several vital saves during the scoreless draw against Brisbane Roar.

Opta Points is a scoring system that awards points to players based on specific on-field actions. Players completing the full match usually accumulate a point total ranging from 10 to 40 points. (View the full breakdown of Opta Points below).

Understanding: Opta’s Team of the Week via Opta Points

This scoring framework differentiates solely between field players and goalkeepers, assigning the same points for similar actions to all field players. A key aspect of this system is its exclusive focus on in-game actions, refraining from granting points for post-match performances, such as winning a match or bonus points for clean sheets.

Positive actions (goals, passes, tackles, etc.) increase a player’s score, whereas negative actions (cards, own goals, goals conceded) decrease their total points. In theory, a player’s point total can be unlimited, and it’s possible to conclude a match with negative points. However, players who participate for the entire game typically see their score range from 10 to 40 points.

Included in Opta Points calculations are goals, shots on target, shots off target, blocked shots, own goals, assists, passes, crosses, tackles, interceptions, fouls won, fouls conceded, offsides, yellow cards, red cards, goals conceded, penalties won, and saves, including penalties saved.