Women’s State League Round 12 Review
Round 12 of the Football NSW Women’s State League saw the Mt. Druitt Town Rangers come from behind to upset Bankstown City at Jensen Park, capitalised on by the Western NSW Mariners who take a six point lead atop the table.
MATCH OF THE WEEK – Bankstown City FC vs. Mt. Druitt Town Rangers FC: 1-2
The sun was shining over the west of Sydney as Bankstown City FC and Mt. Druitt Town Rangers FC faced off at Jensen Park.
Both sides began tentatively, with neither team pressing too high. First balls were contested with caution, perhaps a result of the chilly afternoon air. But after ten minutes, the game began to warm up.
Bankstown were crucially without the league’s top goalscorer, Samantha Muscat.
A rough fifty-fifty in the twelfth minute saw Bankstown’s Kristen McMahon and Mt. Druitt’s Stefanie Trovato exchange a few choice words, which seemed to ignite the fixture.
The first goal came only moments later, in the fifteenth minute, where Bankstown took the lead in spectacular fashion. A long cross to the back post saw Jessica Burgess perform a controlled overhead kick, sending the ball back into the centre of the box, where Melissah Parlato volleyed home.
In the twentieth minute, tensions exploded after a rough challenge from Mt. Druitt on Allegra Vickas. McMahon and Trovato were again involved, physically this time, and were lucky to escape seeing yellow.
Mt Druitt struggled to find a way through a very strong Bankstown City defence. Centre halves Vickas and Marie Sim-Sing were comfortable in dealing with the Rangers’ speculative through balls over the top. They also played out from defence with great confidence.
The Rangers’ best chance of an equaliser in the first half came in the thirty second minute, where Brianna Trigg made a smart run in behind the Bankstown defence and was played through. However, Vickas sped back quickly and made a goal saving tackle in the box.
Nevertheless, the second half started perfectly for the visitors, thanks to a brilliant individual effort from Kristy Hope. After using blistering pace to leave her fullback for dead, Hope cut in past her last defender and powered the ball through the keeper into the back of the net. A well-earned equaliser for Mt. Druitt, who had fought hard to keep themselves in the game
In the fifty seventh minute, it looked like Bankstown had regained the lead after a beautiful move was finished by Parlato. However, a controversial late offside call stifled their celebrations.
Moments later, Mt. Druitt were the ones to take the lead, in similarly controversial style. Trovato went into a fifty-fifty challenge with the Bankstown City goalkeeper Lana Ferreira, which left Ferreira injured on the floor. Despite calls from the sideline, the referee did not stop play, and the ball fell to Kristy Hope who coolly finished into the relatively open net.
Bankstown were in shock, and after seeming in control for the majority of the match, now had to find an equaliser.
In the sixty eight minute, Hope had a huge opportunity for Mt. Druitt to double their lead and claim an impressive hattrick. An incisive through ball found her one on one with the Bankstown goalkeeper. However, with almost too much time on her hands, she fired her shot wide.
In the seventy eighth minute, Parlato for Bankstown made a dazzling run down the left wing, cutting inside and out her defenders before launching a lofted shot towards the back post. It rattled off the crossbar, and then agonizing over for a goalkick.
Bankstown threw everything at Mt. Druitt to no avail. The Rangers remained compact, were very physical and determined not to let their lead slip. In goal, Emma Davies comfortably collected everything that was fired in her direction. In the eighty seventh minute, she made a spectacular diving save, denying Bankstown a late equaliser.
The game finished with Mt. Druitt the victors, after an impressive display of determination. An important three points lifts them to fourth place, while Bankstown slip six points behind first placed Western NSW.
Match Stats
Bankstown City FC 1 (Melissah Parlato 15’)
Mt. Druitt Town Rangers FC 2 (Kristy Hope 49’ / 59’)
Sunday, 28th of June, 2015
Jensen Park, Regent’s Park
Bankstown City FC: 8. Jessica Abraham, 17. Tania Baban, 4. Liana Babic, 26. Jessica Burgess, 1. Lana Ferreira, 2. Lindsay Kohlet, 39. Kristen Mcmahon, 9. Jami-Lee Mussett (18. Labra Ponlina 73’), 7. Melissah Parlato, 13. Marie Sim-Sing, 6. Allegra Vickas.
Substitutes Not Used: 3. Rosie Bacon, 22. Kirsty Gacon, 20. Elyse Cuerden, 1. Katerna Hinton.
Yellow Cards: N/A
Red Cards: N/A
Mt. Druitt Town Rangers FC: 10. Brooke Conroy, 41. Emma Davies, 9. Lisa Fressard, 5. Kristy Hope, 22. Melinda Martin (7. Lynne Wegrzyn 87’), 3. Melanie Murray, 6. Taryn Rockall, 24. Kiera Rogerson (11. Jazz Lundt 65’), 14. Brianna Trigg, 12. Stefanie Trovato (21. Melina Manna 82’), 16. Natasha Vaccari.
Substitutes Not Used: 17. Nubia Lopez, 26. Beth Watling.
Yellow Cards: N/A
Red Cards: N/A
Round 12 Summaries:
Western NSW Mariners FC vs. Parramatta FC: 2-0
The Mariners will have been nervous coming into this fixture, having been beaten at home by Parramatta in their previous encounter. Nevertheless, the home side maintained their cool and claimed a crucially important three points against Parramatta this Sunday. Goals came thanks to familiar names, with Kristy Collingridge scoring her seventh of the season, and Meg Embleton scoring her tenth.
After a hot streak of wins earlier in the year, Parramatta have slowed down dramatically and slide down to fifth place. The Women’s State League newcomers must regather and focus on improving their consistency for the final stretch of the season, leading into the finals series. They have proven throughout the year that they are capable of outplaying any team in the league.
APIA Leichhardt Tigers FC vs. Southern Districts Emeralds: 1-0
The Tigers continued their winning form against Southern Districts this weekend, but were nowhere near as convincing as in previous weeks. They were made to work hard for three points against the league’s bottom team.
A win is a win, nonetheless, and APIA Leichhardt will not be too concerned. Their goal came by way of pacey winger Dione King, who has been one of their standout players this season.
Another week, another loss for the Southern District Emeralds. Earlier in the season, their poor performances were masked by the even worse efforts of APIA Leichhardt, but with the Tigers turning a corner, the Emeralds have been left behind.
That being said, they put up a strong fight against APIA this weekend and were close to coming away with a point against the league’s in form side. They can be proud of that effort, and it demonstrates that there is promise for the future.
St. George FC vs. Gladesville Ravens: 3-2
St. George have made third place their own, and continued their impressive season with an exciting victory against the Gladesville Ravens. Rachelle Wang was the hero, with two vital goals complemented by a debut goal from Kate Emanuel. They now lie five points behind Bankstown in second place, but have a crucial game in hand.
The Ravens disappointing season continues, despite an impressive performance against St. George. The Ravens have rarely looked outplayed this season, but have lacked the cutting edge and composure displayed by other sides. Nevertheless, an extremely strong finish to the season can still see them find a spot in the finals.
-by Daniel Palmer, Women’s State League Reporter
