Women?s Premier League Round 14 Review
Results on the day went pretty much as expected though all games proved to be very competitive.
ELS Hall Park hosted the big clash of the day where semi final contenders NWS Koalas and Marconi Stallions met in a vital match. With places second to fifth on the competition table tightly contested both sides were keen to avoid dropping points.
The early stages of the match saw the two sides testing each other?s mettle without being especially threatening. Possession changed hands fairly readily as both teams attempted to find some rhythm.
In the ninth minute Koalas keeper Lizzie Durack made the first save of the match after a nice run and centre from Trudy Camilleri saw Renee Tomkins volley ineffectually to the young keeper.
The Koalas then moved straight to the opposite end of the park, winning a corner after a fine diving save from Courtney Halpin. This heralded a period of strong attack from The Koalas which included a sprayed shot over the bar by Koalas Maree Patikas. NWS kept up the pressure with a string of corners but were unable to take advantage of their dominance.
A loose ball in The Koalas half saw Marconi?s Jessica Coates make a good burst but her shot from wide out flew into the keeper?s arms.
A good chance was then created by Marconi when Jessica Coates combined with Lyndsay Glohe to put Helen Petinos in a one on one situation with the NWS keeper. However, Lizzie Durack was equal to the task, kicking the ball clear. Durack again showed no fear moments later when Petinos advanced on goal for a second time; diving at the Marconi striker?s feet to stave off the threat.
The Koalas were certainly having the better of play with Chloe Logarzo playing a prominent role on the left hand side of midfield.
In the 23rd minute Marconi failed to clear their line with the ball falling to the feet of Koalas Georgina Stylianou who blasted the ball past Marconi keeper Courtney Halpin to open the scoring.
Play had started to go end to end as both sides looked to make an impression on the scoreboard. Neither side looked entirely effective in the final third but the build up in the lead up to goal was entertaining.
Lizzie Durack had done an outstanding job in goals during the first half, showing plenty of courage in attacking the ball inside her 18 yard box.
Marconi battled hard but were unable to claw back their one goal deficit prior to the break as the home side went to oranges with a 1-0 advantage.
The second half started with The Koalas shooting over the cross bar in the opening minute. Marconi broke away from defence with some enterprising attack but got little result as the final pass went astray.
A Koalas corner caused absolute chaos in the Marconi box with keeper Halpin unable to hold the high ball into the goalmouth. As The Koalas tried to put the ball into the back of the net, The Stallions did everything they could to keep the ball out. After some heart stopping moments Marconi managed to clear the danger but the visitors had certainly dodged a bullet.
Marconi then had an opportunity when Halpin ran from her penalty area to clear the ball. The towering kick forward found Helen Petinos in plenty of space. Petinos turned the lone Koalas defender before attempting to chip the advancing keeper. Unfortunately the Marconi striker only managed to push the ball to the right of goal.
Evelyn Chronis made a nice run through midfield in the 57th minute before failing to get any real purchase on her shot which flew wide of goal. The Koalas similarly created a scoring chance with a cross from the right finding Chloe Logarzo in front of goal. Logarzo?s attempted volley at goal miscued off her foot, flying high in the air, just over the cross bar.
The game itself was a something of a scramble with play tending to be highlighted by individual brilliance rather than dazzling team work. The Koalas defence held strongly, causing Marconi to squander a number of scoring chances.
Marconi Coach Rob Pearce subbed Feliz Urkanci with Haylee Ingle. Shortly after, Evelyn Chronis received a yellow card for dissent after questioning a throw in call from the linesperson.
Marconi worked hard to try and find a way back into the match. They appeared to grow in confidence; starting to press the Koalas defence with more regularity. However, the problems in the final third continued to plague Marconi as play fell down at the final pass.
Marconi went to the bench once more in the 75th minute with Samantha Muscat coming into the game at the expense of Evelyn Chronis.
Muscat had an immediate effect with a strong run before her cross was headed away at the second attempt by The Koalas defence.
The Koalas broke from defence in the 81st minute with Chloe Logarzo making a burst down the flank. A Marconi defender tripped as she turned in pursuit, leaving Logarzo in the clear. Inexplicably, the youngster attempted to cross back to the middle, turning over possession.
Koalas Coach Gerry Gomez made his side?s first replacement Sending Maria Kalageropoulos into the game for Chloe Logarzo. Within two minutes a second sub was on the field for Koalas with Maree Patikas making way for Jade Booty.
Marconi had been forced to start shooting from distance as the clock wound down. A Helen Petinos?s attempt was on target but safely into the keeper?s hands.
The Koalas had frustrated Marconi for most of the afternoon. The Stallions were now quite dominant territorially but couldn?t find the elusive equaliser.
A free kick from 25 metres taken by Renee Tomkins was punched clear by Koalas custodian Durack. Marconi won a corner but were unable to take advantage as Petinos shot wide. This proved to be Marconi?s final hope of escape.
Moments later the referee blew the final whistle with NWS Koalas running out 1-0 winners.
This wasn?t a classic game of football by any means but no-one could question the commitment of either side. The two teams were well aware of the importance of the game overall; the disappointment on the faces of the Marconi players in contrast to the looks of relief from The Koalas players reflected that.
Both coaches lamented interrupted preparations leading into the game.
Koalas Coach Gerry Gomez was pleased with his side?s effort, especially considering loss through injury of a number of players, his side not having played for a fortnight and a rain affected training schedule. Gomez advised that his club are also on the verge of signing the talented Jo Burgess for the remainder of the season; a fine coup for the Koalas club.
Marconi Coach Rob Pearce looked shattered after the match. He was disappointed with his side in front of goal and somewhat frustrated at leaving ELS Hall Park without any points. Pearce too was less than happy with his team?s rain affected training schedule of the past week.
NWS KOALAS 1 (G.Stylianou 23m)
MARCONI STALLIONS 0
On the Central Coast a keenly contested affair between the Central Coast FC and Western NSW Panthers was decided by an unfortunate own goal by the home side.
The goal came in the 14th minute of the first half, with the Central Coast girls unable to peg back the deficit in a competitive second half.
The Panthers, with their new coaching duo of Glenn Stedman and Andrew Fearnley, managed their second successive win which moves them to seventh place on the competition table.
Central Coast FC will be disappointed to lose in such circumstances in a game that could have gone either way.
CENTRAL COAST FC 0
WESTERN NSW PANTHERS 1 (own goal 14m)
At Ison Park a goal in only the third minute by Sydney University?s Jenna Kingsley was all that divided the visitors from their Southern Branch hosts at half time.
However, as has been the case in the last couple of weeks Southern Branch struggled to stem the tide in the second half with Sydney University adding three unanswered goals.
Alesha Clifford doubled the University lead in the 65th minute before Kate Trebilcock added a third eight minutes later. Caitlin Jarvie found the back of the net in the 88th minute to round out the scoring.
This was another game effort by the Southern Branch side but their lack of playing personnel bites them hard in the final 45 minutes of matches.
Sydney University took a long time to put the match away but will be happy to have headed back up the freeway with three points. This win consolidates third place on the competition table for the University girls.
SOUTHERN BRANCH 0
SYDNEY UNIVERSITY 4 (J.Kinglsey 3m, A.Clifford 65m, K.Trebilcock 73m, C.Jarvie 88m)
At Seymour Shaw Park all the goals came in the first half as the Macarthur Rams moved into second place on the table with a 3-0 win over Sutherland Shire.
Linda Dudek?s rich vein of goal scoring form continued for Macarthur with the blonde striker opening the scoring for the visiting side in the 11th minute. Defender Lauren Ralston was rewarded for her strong recent performances when she grabbed The Rams second goal in the 25th minute.
Dudek made it a brace three minutes later as the floodgates looked likely to open against a struggling Sutherland side.
Macarthur failed to add to their advantage prior to half time and were similarly unable to breach the Sutherland Shire defence in the final 45 minutes. They didn?t have to; the job had been done and Macarthur banked another three points in a comfortable win.
Sutherland battled away after a less than inspiring start. Unfortunately the gap in class between the two sides was obvious on the day. Sutherland should take heart though that no-one else in the competition right now looks any more comfortable against the high flying girls from the south west.
SUTHERLAND SHIRE 0
MACARTHUR RAMS 3 (L.Dudek 11m/28m, L.Ralston 25m)
Down in Wollongong the Illawarra Stingrays bounced back from their loss to Macarthur rams last Sunday with a strong 5-1 win over Inter Lions.
This was probably a better game than the scoreboard registers but Illawarra took much more advantage of their opportunities.
The pressure was on the home side from the kickoff with Inter Lions winning three corners in the first 10 minutes of play, only to fail to find the back of the net. Some great lead up play resulted in Inter?s Steph De Francesco shooting over the cross bar in the 12th minute. Inter Lions passing was game was on song and they looked the goods in the opening exchanges. However, Illawarra keeper Dimi Poulos was outstanding in goals, taking the sting out of any Inter shots that were on target.
The Inter Lions defence had held together well but in the 32nd minute the lethal Michelle Heyman spun around an Inter defender to put The Stingrays up 1-0. Five minutes later Ashleigh Connor capitalized on Amanda Horafios being drawn out of the goal to extend the Illawarra lead to 2-0. A penalty call for a hand ball against Inter Lions in the 41st minute saw Ann Mayo convert from the spot to give Illawarra a 3 -0 lead at the break.
The 2nd half commenced with Illawarra in an attacking mood. Inter’s defence was tested but managed to hold. In fact it was Inter Lions who opened the second half scoring when, in the 53rd minute, a through ball by Heidi Makrillos put substitute Christy Ferreyra away to beat the Illawarra keeper and score.
Inter Lions put in a very competitive second half effort, holding the Stingrays to their 3-1 lead until the 83rd minute when Jordan Marsh put the game beyond doubt with Illawarra?s fourth goal. This was followed four minutes later by a strike from youngster Zoe Redman to leave the final score at 5-1 in favour of Illawarra Stingrays.
Illawarra?s win keeps them seven points clear at the top of the ladder with Macarthur Rams now their nearest chaser.
Inter Lions winning run comes to an end with this defeat but their performance was quite credible. Whilst their possible big name signings appear to have fallen through Inter are sure to win more games during the second round if they maintain their form of recent weeks.
ILLAWARRA STINGRAYS 5 (M.Heyman 32m, A.Connor 37m, A.Mayo 41m, J.Marsh 83m, Z.Redman 87m)
INTER LIONS 1 (C.Ferreyra 53m)
Thank you to the Inter Lions club for the information used to compile this match report.
So, the weekend ends with a slightly different look to the competition ladder. The Illawarra Stingrays continue to lead the way but Macarthur Rams have leapfrogged the group into second place. Sydney University and NWS Koalas are separated only by goal difference whilst Marconi Stallions drop out of the top four, albeit by a solitary point.
Manly United FC, with two games in hand, loom in the distance whilst the Western NSW Panthers consecutive wins see them move to seventh.
There look to be plenty of twists and turns still remaining in this competition. There are plenty of vital games ahead.
See you at a ground this weekend.
-By Ross Anderson
