The Stingrays will be boosted by the return of A-League Women's product Chloe Middleton and their new Japanese attacking midfielder Sakura Nojima for this weekend's match against Blacktown.
Middleton is returning following spending the summer with her ALW club Canberra, whilst Nojima has been finally given clearance to play after being in Australia and training at Guest Park with the side for a number of weeks.
Illawarra are still awaiting the return of other fellow ALW stars Sheridan Gallagher and Danika Matos.
This Sunday, the Stingrays return for a home match for the first time since April 2 against a Spartans side that are just three points behind them on the ladder.
Coming off the back on a 1-0 win in their last match against FNSW Institute - where the Stingrays dominated possession and the shots statistics - Gordon said it was crucial the team capitalised on their win last round.
He added that whilst his youthful squad had done extremely well so far after eight games, bringing in the likes of Middleton and Nojima would add a different dimension.
"This week is obviously a big one because Spartans are sitting where we are on the ladder," he said.
"We've got Sakura free to play now after five or six weeks of her being here and training and Chloe Middleton is back. That will add a bit of quality to us and patience on the ball.
"It's a process this year [with the youngsters]. This year is obviously a bit of a rebuilding one in regards to getting these young ones ready for when they can be consistent first graders. We're getting them more battle-hardened to get them ready for that week in, week out type of playing when they've got to understand the moments.
"But they train hard and the work hard and they want to learn. It just takes time."
The side will be looking for their first home win this season against Blacktown.
Kickoff is 5pm.
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Jordan Warren
From the Illawarra my whole life, I have a passion for sports writing. Favourite sports include football, cricket and rugby league. Career highlights include covering the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup and the 2022 UCI Cycling World Championships in Wollongong. I cover a range of sports, mainly football, but have written about rugby league, rugby union, racing, basketball, volleyball, Aussie Rules, cricket, mixed martial arts plus more. Particularly enjoy providing the latest updates to local fans of the Wolves, Illawarra Premier League (men's and women's) as well as the District League.
From the Illawarra my whole life, I have a passion for sports writing. Favourite sports include football, cricket and rugby league. Career highlights include covering the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup and the 2022 UCI Cycling World Championships in Wollongong. I cover a range of sports, mainly football, but have written about rugby league, rugby union, racing, basketball, volleyball, Aussie Rules, cricket, mixed martial arts plus more. Particularly enjoy providing the latest updates to local fans of the Wolves, Illawarra Premier League (men's and women's) as well as the District League.
