No. 15 - David Williams (Melbourne City)
Profile
As one of the myriad of young Australian players dubbed 'the next Harry Kewell', David Williams has not always lived up to expectations. But in Melbourne Heart's dreadful final season, Williams stood tall, scoring a third of his club's goals.
Williams' first senior club was Queensland Roar, although he barely played in orange before joining Danish Superliga club Brondby in 2006. The Queenslander returned to his native state for the 2009-10 A-League season with North Queensland Fury and has remained in Australia since then.
Having never previously broken the 10-goal barrier in an A-League campaign, the Brisbane-born striker hit the back of the net 12 times for the red-and-white stripes in 2013-14, finishing just behind Golden Boot-winner Adam Taggart (16 goals), equal second with James Troisi. Williams ended the season brilliantly, scoring eight goals in the last 11 matches.
Heart's two coaches - John Aloisi and John van 't Schip - used Williams in a variety of roles. He played games up front, wide on the left and in the hole but generally looked more comfortable as the lead striker. Williams' speed and long-range shooting ability makes him an ideal solo striker, as he can chase down long balls and attack on his own. But with greater quality around him at Melbourne City in the upcoming season, Williams could be even better, although he will have to fight for a spot in Van 't Schip's line-up with the likes of David Villa, Robi Koren and Damien Duff at the club.
Strengths
There has always been the feeling that Williams is a genuine goal-scorer but it wasn't until last season that he started to turn that potential into reality. The 26-year-old's nose for goal saw him sniff out and convert plenty of half-chances in the box.
But it is on the break that Williams really shines, with his dribbling ability and speed meaning he can complete attacks without support. A classic example from last season was in round 17, when the former Fury forward picked up the ball on the half-way line in the 89th minute and burst forward, beating two Sydney FC opponents and scoring the winning goal at AAMI Park. With his flowing hair and direct running, Williams is a joy to watch when in full flight.
Williams seemed to become more selfish last season - not necessarily a flaw in a striker - and his almost-blinkered attacking style saw him try his luck from all sorts of areas. The man dubbed 'Australia's Carlos Tevez' by one over-enthusiastic football commentator, finished the season equal-second in terms of attempted shots with 73 alongside Sydney's Alessandro Del Piero, behind only Taggart (94).
Defining moment
Williams' best match of last term came in round 19 when he struck a hat-trick in Heart's 5-0 demolition of the Phoenix in Wellington. Williams scored in the 19th, 51st and 65th minutes as Heart claimed their third of what would be five consecutive victories.
The first was a brilliant opportunistic effort, as his pace saw him get to Orlando Engelaar's ball forward ahead of Glen Moss and Williams chipped the Phoenix goalkeeper on the run to give Heart a 2-0 lead.
Williams' second goal also came on the counter-attack as he combined with Massimo Murdocca before producing a sharp finish from inside the penalty area. The striker completed his hat-trick with a scorching long-range shot, collecting a corner-kick variation from Mate Dugandzic and then curling the ball inside the far post past a diving Moss.
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