Women?s Premier League Round 20 Review

 There were some vital matches decided once again as the competition moved into its closing weeks.
The girls were relegated to the back fields at Marconi Stadium for the Match of the Day where the Marconi Stallions took on the Macarthur Rams.
The field was not conducive to a great football with more bumps than country road but the two sides came ready to play, despite the conditions.
Marconi went forward from the kick off with a smart run by Sam Muscat putting The Rams defence under early pressure. The Stallions won a free kick on the edge of the Macarthur box only to see Jo Saliba?s kick sail wide of the goal.
Marconi continued the pressure through a corner after a strong run into the box by Saliba but Macarthur had little trouble as the ball was punched behind the goal.
Macarthur then put together some good attacking play which saw first a Stephanie Haim strike go to the keeper before, moments later, Renee Rollason pushed her shot wide of goal.
Feliz Urkanci and Trudy Camilleri then combined nicely for Marconi but Camilleri?s shot at goal presented no danger to Rams keeper Monique Jackson.
Play was moving from end to end in a fast paced game but it was Marconi who had looked the more potent in the opening fifteen minutes.
Macarthur were awarded a free kick some twenty metres from the Marconi goal. Renee Rollason struck the ball well but sent it flying over the crossbar.
Within moments Rams had a great opportunity when Linda Dudek swooped onto a well weighted pass, stepped around the keeper, but couldn?t control the ball to finish her good work. Marconi then raced to the other end where Sam Muscat dashed through but, with the goal at her mercy, placed her shot wide.
The Marconi defence were making sure that Renee Rollason knew just how hard the ground was at Marconi, with some solid tackles leading to a number of free kicks which Macarthur were unable to take advantage of.
Super touch from Rollason and Haim, including a neat back heel from The Rams striker, saw Rollason race into space but a diving save from Marconi keeper Courtney Halpin saved the day for the home side.
Marconi Captain Jodie Bain headed wide from a free kick in the 22^nd minute.  It was no place for the feint hearted in the middle of the field as both teams were putting plenty of vigour into their defence.
Sam Muscat continued to cause The Rams defenders headaches whilst Jessica Coates made a nice run before shooting straight to keeper Jackson.
Much of Macarthur?s attack had come through the deft touches of Renee Rollason whilst Marconi?s Trudy Camilleri was similarly the architect of The Stallions go forward.
A fine Jo Saliba cross from deep on the right touchline bounced to the waiting Jessica Coates inside the penalty box but she was unable to keep her shot down. Coates then made a run of her own down the left before crossing to the face of goal where Sam Muscat headed wide.
Renee Tomkins dispossessed Rollason, commencing another Marconi raid with contributions from Urkanci and Camilleri before the resulting strike flew straight to keeper Jackson.
Marconi then won themselves another corner. Saliba?s high ball into the goal mouth was met by a solid Trudy Camilleri header which bounced off the crossbar, saving a few blushes from Rams defenders.
In the 37^th minute some strong work in midfield by Marie Svinos and Renee Tomkins saw The Stallions advancing on goal. Tomkins popped a ball over the top of the Macarthur defence, finding Sam Muscat in front of goal. The linesperson?s flag stayed down and Muscat calmly slotted away the opportunity to give her side the lead.
Neither side were able to mount any more convincing attacks prior to half time with The Stallions going into the break 1-0 up.
Maddison Strutt replaced Tori Preddy for Rams for the start of the second half.
Within seconds of the resumption Macarthur almost equalised with a fine run by Linda Dudek ending in a shot across the face of goal. Macarthur had come out firing with Haim and Rollason working well together to test the Marconi defence. Haim broke into the box but, just as she was about to pull the trigger, a Marconi defender pushed the ball away. This showed promise of being an absorbing second half.
Macarthur Coach Matt Turvey now called for a second replacement, bringing on Cook for Johnson in defence.
Marconi appeared to have weathered Macarthur?s opening storm and were now settling back into their game.
It was now Marconi Coach Rob Pearce?s turn to look to his bench, replacing Jo Saliba with Helen Petinos and Jessica Coates with Lindsay Glohe.
Renee Tomkins then strongarmed young Macarthur defender Crane; dispossessing her of the ball before rushing towards goal. The Macarthur defence managed  to keep the lanky midfielder wide of goal with her shot being shepherded away by a Rams defender.
Marconi continued to scramble well in defence with the Svinos sisters looking solid. The Stallions themselves were winning plenty of corners but were unable to turn these chances into a second goal.
Most of the pressure was coming towards the Macarthur goal but The Stallions couldn?t find that final pass to open the way to goal. The Rams seemed reduced to playing on the break with signs of frustration starting to show in the Macarthur option taking.
In the 74^th minute Rams brought in Braimah for Crane in a last ditch effort to spark a revival.
The Rams then needed some heroics from goalkeeper Jackson. Ellen Chronis burst upfield before her deflected shot required a leaping grab from the Rams custodian.
If anything the tackles were becoming even harder as Marconi sought to maintain their lead and Macarthur tried to snatch the equaliser. One suspected there were going to be plenty of bruises to be tended after the game!
A Rams throw in deep in Marconi territory saw Rollason and Thomson work together before a cross to Haim saw the striker?s overhead kick fly just over the bar.
A Haim corner then brought a goal line sliding grab to Marconi keeper Halpin as The Rams mounted a final effort.
Macarthur were creating chances but they just could not find the target. With five minutes to go Ward replaced Dudek in the final Rams throw of the dice. Marconi threw Samantha Huynh into the game for Sam Muscat.
Despite the best efforts of both sides Sam Muscat?s first half goal was to be the decider as the fulltime whistle blew with Marconi 1-0 winners.
An exciting match, worthy of two top five sides.
Marconi Coach Rob Pearce was pleased with his side?s performance, quoting ?persistence? as the word to best describe the quality that saw the Stallions take the points.
Macarthur Coach Matt Turvey was circumspect, paying due credit to Marconi?s effort whilst lamenting one or two missing links in his side?s line up.
MARCONI STALLIONS 1 (S.Muscat 37m)
MACRTHUR RAMS 0
Over at Cromer Park fans were treated to another high calibre game between Manly United FC and Illawarra Stingrays.
The home side grabbed a surprise early lead when Rachel Parsons scored in the 32^nd minute. Manly maintained this advantage until half time before, in the 61^st minute, they conceded an equaliser to Stingrays through Kim Bonilla. Within three minutes The Stingrays were in front with a Caitlin Cooper goal proving to be the match winner.
Manly, knowing their season was on the line, put in a superb performance. However, the Premiers dug deep through a very emotional week to score the sort of win only champions sides achieve.
MANLY UNITED FC 1 (R.Parsons 32m)
ILLAWARRA STINGRAYS 2 (K.Bonilla 61m, C.Cooper 64m)
Blacktown Spartans proved less than hospitable to the visiting Sutherland Shire side, handing out a 5 -1 belting at Francis Park.
Erin Connell put The Spartans on the way to victory with a first half brace; her first goal coming in the 21^st minute. Sutherland replied with a 40^th minute goal to Hitchen. Connell?s second goal came right on half time, giving Blacktown a 2-1 lead at the break.
Bronwyn Jarvis made it 3-1 three minutes into the second half before Connell rounded out the scoring with another two goals in the 83^rd and 88^th minutes.
A comprehensive win for the home side over a disappointing Sutherland outfit.
BLACKTOWN SPARTANS 5 (E.Connell 21m/45m/83m/88m, B.Jarvis 48m)
SUTHERLAND SHIRE 1 (J.Hitchen 40m)
At ELS Hall Park the NWS Koalas kept up their finals momentum with a comfortable 4-0 win over Central Coast FC.
Star recruit Jo Burgess opened the scoring for The Koalas in the 16^th minute before Chloe Logarzo added a second at the 32 minute mark. 
After the break NWS extended their lead to 3-0 through a Dimarco goal in the 51^st minute before Katerina Kraft rounded out the scoring in the 59^th minute.
The Koalas continue to impress with their finals participation now ensured. Central Coast tried hard but couldn?t match the scoring potential of the home side.
NWS KOALAS 4 (J.Burgess 16m, C.Logarzo 32m, C.Dimarco 51m, K.Kraft 59m)
CENTRAL COAST FC 0
Southern Branch once again turned in a game performance but went down 4-1 to Inter Lions at Ison Park.
A Heidi Makrillos double in the 12^th and 35^th minutes saw Inter in front 2-0 at the break.
Johnston snatched one back for Southern in the 59^th minute but Steph Ascone reinstated Inter?s two goal buffer in the 67^th minute. Dahdah added a fourth goal for The Lions in the 80^th minute to ensure that the trip back to Sydney was a happy one for the visitors.
SOUTHERN BRANCH 1 (S.Johnston 59m)
INTER LIONS 4 (H.Makrillos 12m/35m, S.Ascone 67m, A.Dahdah 80m)
Finally, Sydney University enjoyed a successful trip to Bathurst, coming away with a 5-0 win over the Western NSW Panthers.
The University side established a 3-0 lead by half time through a 1^st minute goal to Jenna Kingsley and a brace to Olivia Kennedy in the 12^th and 25^th minutes.
Kingsley completed her hat trick in the second stanza, scoring in the 55^th and 64^th minutes.
Not many sides travel to Bathurst and come home such convincing winners. Sydney University kept themselves in second place on the competition ladder with this strong win.
SYDNEY UNIVERSITY 5 (J.Kingsley 1m/55m/64m, O.Kennedy 12m/25m)
WESTERN NSW PANTHERS 0
The final five now looks set in stone, though the finishing order may still be up for debate. The Stingrays will certainly finish top of the ladder, claiming yet another Premiership trophy. Sydney University are very close to locking up second spot with Marconi, NWS Koalas and Macarthur Rams in hot pursuit.
Two rounds of football to go, plenty more excitement to come. Next weekend offers more quality football. Don?t stay home and wait to read the Football NSW Review; get out to a ground and see the stars of the Football NSW Women?s Premier League in action.
See you next weekend.
-By Ross Anderson