Finals berth awaits Greater Westrn Sydney Vikings invasion

The start of the game was an even affair with the Vikings shading most of the possession and Barcelona looking dangerous on the quick counter attack.
Barcelona came closest to breaking the deadlock when Melissa Corringham passed to Melissa Teuma who returned a delightful defence splitting pass back to Corringham but her shot went wide.  
Vikings keeper Sheena Stubbs was then on hand to tip over the crossbar a fierce drive from Barcelona?s Carla Rugger.
Perhaps with a finals berth in mind the Vikings looked a little tentative as their shooting was often way off target and Barcelona were being well marshalled in defence and this only added to their frustrations.
As the first half wore on the Vikings gradually stepped up the possession and pressure. Barcelona keeper Renee Loizou made a great stop from Jacinta Ling and another fine save to deny Larissa Monkerud to keep the game scoreless.
The breakthrough finally came when Larissa Monkerud received the ball on the far left touchline and her attempt from the tightest of angles near the corner post evaded the keeper struck the far goalpost and Maryanne Mikhail was on hand to sweep the ball over the line for a 1-0 lead.
The second half started evenly but the Vikings gradually began to assert their control once again. Corringham made a great block to deny Evangelia Vourlis from increasing the lead.
The second goal came when Maryanne Mikhail dispossessed a defender ran on and forced the ball past the advancing keeper to give her side a valuable 2-0 lead.
Barcelona played with plenty of spirit the whole game and nearly pulled one back when Melissa Teuma stabbed the ball just wide and Amanda Xuereb almost scored when her shot from the right had keeper Sheena Stubbs grabbing the ball at the second attempt.
With the Barcelona defence starting to tire the Vikings put the game beyond reach with a very fine goal when Larissa Monkerud received the ball on the right touchline. With a lot of work still to do she rounded the last defender and slotted the ball past the advancing keeper to give the Vikings a match winning 3-0 lead.
Barcelona competed strongly for much of the game but were beaten by a committed Vikings team with much more to play for. A finals berth is in sight for the Vikings who will be a tough hurdle for the sides sitting above them on the table.