PS4 NPL NSW Women’s 2 Round 13 Review
Round 13 saw the weather play havoc with the fixtures. Northern Tigers’ match with Sydney Olympic was washed out, while the UNSW v Sutherland match was relocated to the heart of shire territory at Seymour Shaw.
Elsewhere, Marconi were gunning for three points away to Inter, while Southern Branch faced Nepean in a Saturday/Sunday double header on the south coast.
Match of the Round
UNSW Lions v Sutherland Shire FA, 3pm Sunday 21st June at Seymour Shaw
Sutherland ran out convincing winners in the end over UNSW Lions in what proved to be a tighter encounter than what the scoreboard shows.
Both sides began slowly as they each struggled with making their passes count early on.
The midfield became a key battleground, with Sutherland number 11 Toni Vukasin and Inter Lions number 22 Gracie Rowland acting as the lynchpin for either side. The composure on the ball from each player was a key factor for the entirety of the first half as both sides looked to assert control over the match.
The main danger in the early stages for either side came due to their fierce commitment in playing the ball out from the back. Sutherland nearly played themselves into trouble on multiple occasions, only for goal keeper Brianna Griffin to bail them out when the back pass to her wasn’t quite ideal.
The first real chance came on 16 minutes when UNSW failed to cleanly deal with a corner, and in the resulting scramble Catherine Fsadini could only manage to lift the ball wide of the goal.
UNSW would continue to play out from the back, looking to Rowland to help link the play between attack and defence.
After a sustained period of play from the Lions where they continually attacked down their right hand side, Sutherland got a foothold in the game.
In the 38th minute after chasing one of the match’s rare long balls, Raegan Deeley played a delightful through ball for Morgan Maxwell. Thankfully for UNSW Sheridan Rainey pulled off a magnificent one on one save to deny Maxwell and as the ball broke wide Fsadni could only hit the side netting.
The breakthrough would come shortly afterwards though, as Kate Dale would pounce just before half time. Sutherland’s hopeful free kick into the box was fumbled by UNSW keeper Rainey, who couldn’t regain her footing in time to stop Dale from scoring the simplest of tap ins.
It would remain 1-0 until half time.
Rain began to fall just before the players came out for the second half, and it would provide a continuous presence for the rest of the match.
The early period of the second half was very similar to the first. The midfield of each side was trying to assert itself while both sides were very happy to play out from the back on every occasion they had possession.
The discipline and commitment to playing passing football was outstanding, as the two well drilled sets of players looked for the first breakthrough of the half.
UNSW had the better of the opening 15 minutes as Rowland was again the architect of a couple of excellent passing movements and counter attacks, but the final ball was lacking each time and the Lions couldn’t carve out a clear opportunity.
Sutherland then created a few chances of their own, the closest coming from Vukasin, who’s placed shot from outside the box veered just wide of the goal.
The highlight of the match came in the 75th minute as Sutherland took a 2 goal lead. A free kick 25 yards out resulted in a brilliantly executed training ground move. Instead of a shot, the ball was played into the striker’s feet, who in turn played in Vukasin who had made a run in behind the wall. Her shot was blocked, however Deeley was right on hand to side foot the rebound home.
UNSW pushed hard for an equaliser after this, but they only succeeded in leaving themselves open on the counter, a fact which Sutherland ruthlessly exploited.
Some one touch passing on halfway released Nicole Besz who used her pace to easily round the goalkeeper to make it 3-0, and Anneolette Birdsall tapped home a second in the 90th minute after a scramble from a corner, making it 4-0 and adding an exclamation point to the victory for Sutherland.
Inter Lions v Marconi Stallions, 3pm Sunday 21st June, Concord Oval
Marconi got back to winning ways courtesy of a 2-1 away win at Inter. Inter took the lead in the 65th minute through Christina Ferreyra, but Marconi were able to hit back almost instantly through Hannah Voloder. Marconi immediately asserted their dominance and showed why they lead the league by taking the lead for themselves two minutes later through Renee Tomkins. The win extends Marconi’s lead at the top to 18 points, while Inter are now three points behind third place Sutherland, and will want a result next weekend to keep pace with the finals race.
Southern Branch v Nepean FC, 3pm Saturday 20th and 3pm Sunday 21st June at South Nowra Football Complex
Southern Branch and Nepean squared off twice in two days, with both teams gaining ladder positions when all was said and done. Nepean got themselves off the bottom of the table with a 1-0 win in Saturday’s fixture, netting themselves a valuable three points after a recent poor run of form. Southern Branch hit back in Sunday’s fixture though, running out 3-2 winners, putting them into outright 4th spot on the ladder and maintaining the one point gap between themselves and Sutherland. Both teams may see the weekend’s results as a missed opportunity to ignite their seasons, however three points apiece still leaves each side in a better position than last week.
Northern Tigers FC v Sydney Olympic FC, 3pm Sunday 21st June at Mills Park
Washed out.
Reserves Grade
On Saturday Nepean defeated Southern Branch 6-2, with the Sunday fixture going the way of Southern Branch 1-0. Marconi ran out 3-1 winners over Inter Lions, while Sutherland salvaged a 1-1 draw with UNSW courtesy of a late Jade Melrose header.
–By Eamonn Warner, PS4 National Premier Leagues NSW Women’s 2 Reporter
