Round 3 Review – PS4 NPL 2 NSW Women’s
Round 3 of the Playstation4 National Premier Leagues 2 NSW Women’s 2016 saw out first real upset of the season, and a couple of surprising performances sprinkled throughout. Southern Branch held the Mariners at arm’s length in a 2-1 victory, while Sutherland proved too strong for Nepean, edging them 1-0 in St Mary’s.
Bankstown got their first win of the season with a 2-1 victory of the Tigers, and in the game of the round Inter came out on top against Sydney Olympic, defeating them 1-0 at Peter Moore Park.
Match of the round:
Sydney Olympic FC v Inter Lions SC, 3pm Sunday 17th of April at Peter Moore Park
The opening 15 minutes were extremely cagey, with both sides finding it difficult to keep a hold of the ball for significant periods of time. This would prove to be a pattern of the half as both teams worked very well defensively, cutting off space and forcing errant passes.
The first chance came after 15 minutes, when Sarah Mandile was played in 1 v 1 with Amanda Seskin in the Olympic goal. Her initial shot was saved well by Seskin, and on the rebound Mandile dove in and collected Seskin with her boot, resulting in a stoppage and a yellow card for the striker.
From here the game became a real arm wrestle in midfield, with clear cut chances very hard to come by. Aside from a few speculative efforts from distance the game was played solely in the middle third of the pitch.
Danielle Calvi finally became involved for Olympic after 42 minutes, when she was narrowly ruled offside as Olympic sprung a quick counter attack. Olympic were sceptical of the decision, as Calvi would have been centimetres offside at the very most.
Mandile had a golden chance to give inter the lead just before halftime. Freya Hickey played a delightful through ball, but again Seskin was out to smother the initial shot exceptionally well. This time though, the rebound fell kindly for Mandile, but with the goal at her mercy she stabbed her effort over the crossbar.
The second half gave us a much more entertaining display from both sides. Inter should have opened their account with the opening play, as Mandile was again through on goal only to once again shoot straight at Seskin.
Hickey took matters into her own hands immediately afterwards as she rattled the crossbar from 30 yards. Hickey collected the ball, turned, and rifled it, hitting the join of the posts.
Hickey would soon add another to the list of missed chances. Maria Kalogeropoulos found Mandile with a cute reverse ball, before the ball was squared intelligently for Hickey to stroke home. However she opened her body up too much trying to find the perfect finish and her shot could only trickle wide of the far post.
Olympic started to come into the game now, pressuring Inter and forcing them back into their own half. Despite this pressure though, Inter would finally break the deadlock in the 65th minute.
Some smart play in midfield to hold possession allowed the ball to fall to Hickey, who flicked the ball over her head before controlling it and punching the ball with the instep into the bottom corner from 25 yards. She generated great power from a standing start and it left Seskin with no chance as the ball was placed perfectly.
Calvi nearly struck back immediately for Olympic, but her chipped effort was headed clear thanks to some desperate defending.
The intensity lifted as Olympic pushed numbers forward to find the equaliser. Inter were also dropping numbers deep behind the ball to deny Olympic space in behind.
A few tough challenges started to occur as both sides desperately fought for control of the ball in the dying stages.
Olympic had calls for a penalty in the 90th minute after a goal mouth scramble, but the referee waved it away and that was all she wrote.
A hard fought win here for Inter on Olympic’s turf, and an extremely valuable 3 points this early in the season.
Northern Tigers FC v Bankstown City FC, 3pm Sunday 17th of April at Mills Park
Yet another disappointing result for the Northern Tigers after they were beaten 2-1 at home by Bankstown City. This was a big match for the Tigers and a great opportunity to get their first win of the campaign, giving their season the kick start it needed. Carly Ussher’s goal brought them back into the game in the second half, but they’re making a habit of hanging in matches but still dropping points.
Bankstown will be ecstatic with their first victory of the season. That it came in a good display away from home will be a bonus that will serve them in good stead over the coming weeks. They can thank Tania Baban and lynchpin Samantha Muscat for the goals that got them the 3 points, and Muscat getting on the scoresheet again shows that she has the ability to really mix it in this division.
Nepean FC v Sutherland Shire FA, 3pm Sunday 17th of April at Cook Park
An excellent result for Sutherland here going away from home and taking 3 points away from the inform Nepean. Once again Rochelle Borromeo was the only goal scorer, in what is Sutherland’s second consecutive 1-0 win. She’s unsurprisingly proving a real danger for teams, and her ability to find space is such a key component of Sutherland’s attacking structure.
Nepean would have looked to this game to continue their good form from last weekend, but unfortunately it wasn’t to be. It just goes to show how tight this competition is, and no team can bank on three points in any given fixture. There’s still a lot to like about this Nepean side however, and this result shouldn’t derail their ambitions by any stretch.
Southern Branch FC v Central Coast Mariners FC, Sunday 17th of April 2pm kick off at South Nowra Football Complex
Southern Branch bounced back from last week’s defeat with a comfortable 2-1 win against the Mariners. Goals to Amanda Stevenson and the dangerous Samara Wehmeyer put the home side up 2-0 going into the half time break, a lead that would prove to be unassailable for the Mariners outfit.
While the table won’t reflect it, this is an improved performance from the Mariners after their more significant defeats in the opening rounds. They held Southern at bay in the second stanza and kept themselves in the game for the full 90. Tricky winger Natalie Waddel got the only goal for the Mariners.
Reserve Grade:
Inter salvaged a 1-1 draw at Olympic thanks to a penalty in the dying minutes, Nepean defeated Sutherland 2-1 at home, and Northern Tigers demolished Bankstown City 7-0. Southern Branch had the bye.
By Eamonn Warner, PS4 National Premier Leagues 2 NSW Women’s Reporter
