Senol NPLM Victoria March Player of the Month: Adisu Bayew

Hume City winger, Adisu Bayew, has been named the New Balance NPLM Victoria Player of the Month for March after receiving the most votes from the commentary team during Rounds 4-7.

Since losing their first game of the season at home to Altona Magic, Hume are unbeaten, much due to Bayew's efforts.

"I'm ecstatic," he said.

"To be recognised [as] player of the month... it's a surreal feeling."

The tricky winger has enjoyed a great start to his Hume career, playing a huge part in their six-game unbeaten run, scoring four times and assisting once. His four goals this season is twice as many as he's scored in his previous 28 NPL Victoria games.

Two of those goals came in March, as Hume have continued to show that they're a force to be reckoned with in the Premiership race.

"I've found my feet," he said.

"I'm in a great environment here at Hume [and] we play a good style of football that suits my style of play."

Bayew's explosiveness and dribbling ability has always made him a hard player to deal with, but this season the 24-year-old has added another dimension to his game.

"My positioning has improved a lot," Bayew said.

He attributes the improvement to head coach Nick Hegarty, who won two Gold Medals during his time as a player at Hume.

"I've been scoring and getting in the right positions because of the information he's given me."

Bayew's been getting closer to goal this season, with both of his goals in March coming from inside six meters, one of them a nicely slotted finish against Dandenong Thunder and the other a back post header from a corner against Preston.

That was his second headed goal this season, despite his relatively small size.

"I'm always moving around [and] waiting for the ball to drop in a specific area," he said

"I don't look like the most threatening player in aerial duels."

"Maybe opposite teams underestimate my ability."

The last few seasons have been tough for Bayew, who's struggled with injuries since he was released by Western United in 2023.

"I've had a full preseason, which is something that I haven't had in the past two years," he said.

A good preseason, a consistent run of games and great load management by his club has brought Bayew up to speed. His body now feels "better than it ever has".

"I haven't played consistently like this since my A-League days," he said.

"I'm finally getting a little bit of consistency and my body's adapting again."

With his fitness levels at an all-time high, Bayew hopes he can continue his good run of form and cement himself as one of the league's top players.

"I just came into this season wanting to play every single game... but also with the mentality of trying to be the best player in this league," he said.

"I still have ambitions to play at a professional level."

As for Hume's ambitions for the season, they have a clear goal in sight.

"We're definitely eyeing up the Premiership," he said.

"You could say we're underdogs and no one would have expected us to start the way that we did, but we're building something special."

Bayew and Hume's next hurdle in the hunt for the Premiership comes on 11 April at 4:30pm when they face Oakleigh away at Jack Edwards Reserve.

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