Round 18 Review – PS4 NPL 2 NSW Women’s
Before the round 18 review can begin we must first go through – you guessed it – the result from this week’s midweek catch up match. This time between bitter rivals Inter and Sydney Olympic.
Round 10 Review:
Inter Lions SC vs Sydney Olympic FC, 8pm Wednesday July 27th at Valentine Sports Park NO.2
Sydney Olympic have downed Inter Lions 1-0 in their round 10 catch up fixture on Wednesday night. Amy Jagelman netted her first goal of the season to secure the massive result for Olympic that puts them right back into serious contention for the minor premiership.
It’s a blow for Inter, as a victory here would have made it supremely tough for anyone to catch them at the top, and they’ll now have to regroup to ensure they get the result they need against Southern Branch.
Round 18 now takes on even greater significance with the top 4 now separated by only 3 points, with any of them capable of leading the league at the conclusion of the weekend.
Round 18 Review:
The Northern Tigers have made it well and truly clear now they are a force to be reckoned with in the Playstation® 4 National Premier Leagues 2 NSW Women’s 2016 after they put on an excellent performance against fellow high flyers Sydney Olympic.
Elsewhere in the league, Inter Lions maintained their grip on top spot after securing a late winner against Southern Branch, Sutherland kept the points flowing thanks to their victory over Bankstown, and Nepean kept their slim finals chances alive after scraping past the Mariners.
Match of the round
Sydney Olympic FC vs Northern Tigers FC, 3pm Sunday July 31st at Peter Moore Park
The opening 15 minutes provided a relatively scrappy affair, with the ball spending virtually the entire time in the middle third of the pitch. Both sides applied significant pressure to the ball in an effort to limit the danger of the attacking talent on display, but the Tigers did manage to create the first quality chance of the match.
Ellana Balicki drifted into a pocket of space on the right hand side and put in a teasing ball that was met by Hannah McNulty who’d made a great run from the left wing. Unfortunately for the Tigers she couldn’t get enough direction on the header and it skimmed wide of the mark.
Olympic hit back with a chance of their own shortly afterwards, The first real time they strung more than 3 or 4 passes together saw Danielle Calvi and Amy Jagelman carve open the Tigers defence, but Jagelman’s shot slammed into the outside of the net at the near post.
The Tigers started to look more comfortable after 20 minutes and began gaining control of the match through their midfield.
McNulty had another great chance – this time set up by Eilidh Mackay – to take the lead. Mackay skinned her defender with a sharp turn from a throw in before whipping a flat ball across the face of the goal, all McNulty had to do was direct the ball on target but she couldn’t quite keep her volley under the crossbar.
The goal would come shortly after though. Mackay again was causing issues, this time cutting in from the right hand side, and while she scuffed her shot it presented an opportunity for Balicki. She challenged for the ball under pressure from a defender and Olympic ‘keeper Amanda Seskin in goals, and somehow in the challenge the ball bobbled through everyone, presenting a tap in for Josie Wilson who had followed in from the right like any good winger should. She poked the ball home and the Tigers had the advantage.
Olympic were rattled, with the Tigers finding free players all over the place. Emma Watkins made a run from deep in midfield into space and was found with a simple through ball. She had no one near her at all and as she chased down the pass Seskin flew off her line, but always looked a step behind. Watkins lunged for the ball and poked it past Seskin from the edge of the 18 yard box to double the advantage for the away side.
Unfortunately in the process there was a huge collision between the two players, with their knees colliding awkwardly. Seskin immediately went down in considerable pain, while it took a moment for Watkins to realise the extent of the collision. After several minutes Seskin was stretchered from the field and driven away from the ground, while Watkins was carried to the sideline for treatment.
The Tigers looked to bring the goal scorer back on the park after a few more minutes, but with the two goal advantage the Tigers played the safe option.
Olympic appeared to still be rattled at the resumption of play, as Wilson almost double her tally moments after the kick off. McNulty had gone central in the absence of Watkins, and she laid off a perfect through ball for the pace of Wilson. She burned her defender, but bearing down on goal her final touch was poor and her finish was rushed wide of the target.
2-0 to the Tigers at half time.
Olympic began the second half pressing high up the park in an effort to box the Tigers into their defensive zone. There was a noticeable lift in intensity from the home side, and the Tigers were finding it far more difficult to build up their play from the back.
They were kept relatively quiet, and that allowed Olympic to claw their way back into the match. Calvi and Jagelman were again behind a great chance for Olympic, with the latter being played through by a delightful flick from Calvi. Bearing down on goal, Jagelman was put under significant pressure from Amanda Skellern, and was only able to win her side a corner from her eventual shot.
Shortly after, McNulty once again had a magnificent chance to get on the scoresheet. She charged onto a loose ball in the Olympic backline, intelligently heading the ball into her path, but she couldn’t bury the chance as the goalkeeper stuck out a leg at the last moment, making a superb save that then deflected off McNulty and out for a goal kick.
Olympic began piling players forward, changing their shape to play with a front three in an effort to find the goals they needed, and it nearly paid off after an almighty scramble from a free kick. Jagelman whipped the ball in; it took a deflection onto the crossbar and was eventually cleared up field.
It fell straight to Tigers number 9 Balicki in the right hand channel, who held the ball up supremely well as she waited for support to arrive in the middle of the park. She found a yard on her defender and lofted a smart ball into the Olympic box for Wilson to rush onto from the left wing. She took advantage of some hesitation in the Olympic back line to control the ball with her chest, take a steadying touch, and then blast it into the roof of the net to all bar seal the points for the Tigers; clinical piece of counter-attacking football.
Calvi created a good half chance for herself in the final 10 minutes, but the third goal really took the sting out of Olympic for the remainder of the second half and they couldn’t come up with any serious threats to the Northern goal.
So 3-0 it finished at Peter Moore, as the Tigers yet again send a message that they are serious contenders for the title in 2016.
Central Coast Mariners FC vs Nepean FC, 2.05pm Sunday July 31st at Pluim Park NO.3
Nepean have scraped past the Mariners, defeating them 1-0 up at Gosford. Number 8 Britney Pelle proved the difference between the two sides, as her goal secured the much needed three points for the away side as they seek to climb into the top 4 by the end of the season. A big result for Nepean, especially after their last two performances against the Mariners where they threw away 4 points that could have kept them right amongst it going into the last few weeks of the year.
Still no win for the Mariners, and as things stand it’s tough seeing how they’ll find that win over the last three weeks of the year. It’s been a long hard slog for the Central Coast, but they have to keep believing that the win is coming. Bankstown next week is their best chance, and they need to make it count.
Sutherland Shire FA vs Bankstown City FC, 3pm Sunday July 31st at Harrie Denning Centre
Sutherland have kept the pressure up on their fellow top 4 sides with a 2-0 win over Bankstown City. The ever reliable Raegan Deeley opened the scoring for the home side, before Toni Vukasin sealed the win before half time when she doubled the advantage. Sutherland have been notoriously fast starters, and getting that cushion early on against Bankstown proved to be the perfect scenario for them. They’re much more comfortable without the pressure of chasing the game, and forcing the opposition to come at them plays right into their hands.
It was always going to be a tough ask for Bankstown to repeat their least result against Sutherland. Despite the shire side’s occasional wobbles, they still possess a varied and potent attack, which is a huge key to success in this league. Officially out of the running now, Bankstown now have a few games left to show exactly what they are capable of in this competition – then they can reload and come at it hard next season.
Southern Branch FC vs Inter Lions SC, 3pm Sunday July 31st at South Nowra Football Complex
Southern have also been eliminated from finals contention after Inter stole the points with a very late goal down in Nowra. Southern were able to keep things tight and contested for the first half, denying inter the lead. Both teams pushed a little harder in the second half, and Southern thought they’d gotten away with a point before Inter finally broke through just before full time – a cruel blow for Southern Branch, who now need a near miracle to claim 4th spot by the end of the season.
Inter show once again that they are better than anyone at staying in a game. They’ve now won 2 more games than anyone else in the league, showing just how good they are at claiming the points in the tightest of encounters. After their setback on Wednesday night it was imperative that Inter found a way to get the job done in this game, and now they remain in the box seat to claim the first piece of silverware for the season.
Reserve Grade:
Olympic and Northern played out a 0-0 draw. Bankstown won a thriller against Sutherland by the tune of 3 goals to 2, while down on the south coast Inter crushed Southern branch 5-0. Nepean had the bye this weekend.
By Eamonn Warner, PS4 National Premier Leagues 2 NSW Women’s Reporter
