City star McNamara ready to smash ALW rivals Victory

Holly McNamara won't let her injury recovery keep her from "smashing" bitter A-League Women rivals Melbourne Victory.

The Melbourne City star will make her second start of the season in a top-two clash at Casey Fields on Saturday after bouncing back from a third anterior cruciate ligament tear.

League-leaders City claimed a hard-earned and fiercely physical 3-2 win in the last iteration of the Melbourne derby.

While she admits recovery has been slow ahead of her ninth match since her 2023 injury, striker McNamara is determined to go full-throttle against second-placed Victory.

More than local bragging rights are on the line, with a chance for Victory to hand City their first defeat of the season after 13 matches and knock them out of top spot on the table.

"(Derbies are) 100 per cent physical. We don't like Melbourne Victory, they don't like us," McNamara said on Friday.

"I would do that any week - I think playing every week, you've got to go in the same way, smashing everyone if that needs to happen.

"We want to be the best team in Melbourne. We want to be the best team in Australia.

"To do that, we have to beat Melbourne Victory, who are second."

Tensions between the sides have already begun to simmer ahead of the Saturday derby, with Victory coach Jeff Hopkins issuing an ominous warning.

Asked about the physicality in their last meeting especially surrounding fouls on stars Alex Chidiac and Alana Murphy, Hopkins said: "It's been noted. Don't worry about that.

"Won't happen twice, that's for sure."

His City counterpart Michael Matricciani simply replied: "There's nothing definitely planned from my end. They're just overall winners."

Centre-backs Kayla Ann Morrison and Claudia Bunge will be handed the formidable task of containing McNamara, who enters the match after scoring the match-winner against Western Sydney.

"These are the things that kind of excite you about the derby," Hopkins said.

"It's putting your best against their best and saying, 'we think we're good enough to handle you' - and we do."

Another derby will take place on Saturday with Central Coast hosting Newcastle, before Canberra United play Perth.

Brisbane Roar take on Wellington in a top-six clash on Sunday.