Round 3 Review – State League Women’s
After a weekend off for Easter the State League Women’s was back into full swing as UNSW v SD Raiders took centre stage as the Match of the Round.
Match of the Round
UNSW FC vs SD Raiders FC, 3pm,Sunday April 23rd at David Phillips Complex
Our match of the round this week took us to UNSW’s home ground as they played host to the undefeated SD Raiders FC.
UNSW pushed APIA all the way in their last outing but in the end were undone by the clinical finishing of APIA.
SD Raiders were coming off a tough road trip victory against Western NSW Mariners FC and were looking to continue their impressive away form which had also seen them get 3 points at St George.
In a game which promised goal and free flowing attacking football it was SD Raiders which fashioned the first chance just a couple of minutes is as the ever dangerous Caterina Moio pulled her shot across the face of goal after being slid through.
SD Raiders dominated the early exchanges as another chance fell to Courtney Krope as she rounded the keeper but could not squeeze her shot in as it hit the side netting.
SD Raiders early dominance eventually payed off as 8 minutes in Caterina Moio pounced on a loose ball and was able to slot her shot from an acute angle into the back of the net and put SD Raiders 1-0 up.
UNSW through their pacy number 10 Christine Lucantonio was causing the backline of the SD Raiders some issues but the final ball was lacking.
SD Raiders soon doubled their lead ten minutes in as Dominique Caridad blasted an unstoppable drive from 30 yards to leave the UNSW keeper Bronte Finegan with no chance.
UNSW mustered their first shot on target a few minutes later as Christine Lucantonio was slid through but she could only muster a tame effort straight at SD Raiders goalkeeper Rhianna Muscat.
UNSW began to grown into the game even as they found themselves 2-0 down as Tahlia Nolan was next to test Rhianna Muscat in the SD Raiders goal with a shot from just outside the box which was well tipped away by the SD Raiders goalkeeper.
The best chance of the half though for UNSW fell to Christine Lucantonio who burst through the middle in the 39th minute only to see her shot superbly palmed away one handed by Rhianna Muscat.
This proved to be a costly miss as just before halftime SD Raiders made it 3-0 as the ball was intercepted and played through to Nicole Monti who clinically slotted it away. The halftime score was probably a little harsh on UNSW but emphasised the clinical nature of the SD Raiders.
UNSW came out in the second half with a renewed vigour and grabbed an early goal back through their most dangerous player Christine Lucantonio who ran in unmarked from a free kick and bundled the ball over the line.
This gave UNSW some momentum as they looked to push on for a second as SD Raiders struggled to keep possession of the ball.
SD Raiders though still presented a threat on the break and Monti came close in the 57th minute as she saw her shot just clear the bar.
UNSW’s next chance fell to Tahlia Nolan who could only drag her shot wide after being slipped through.
The ever energetic Rhea D’Mello then powered down the SD Raiders right wing and forced UNSW keeper Bronte Finegan into a save as she parried her shot wide and kept the score at 3-1.
SD Raiders should have wrapped up the contest in the 72nd minute as Caterina Moio broke through from halfway but hit her shot straight at Bronte Finegan in goals.
For all their possession UNSW struggled to carve out any real goal scoring chances in the second half as SD Raiders battled to grind out their third win of the season.
SD Raiders coach Catherine Cannuli was pleased with her teams determination and fight.
“UNSW did not stop fighting which was a credit to them, second half, UNSW were coming at us, and we kept composed and dug deep.”
UNSW coach Renato Jelen will again reflect on a performance where there were many positive aspects to their play but will know they need to be more clinical if they are to compete against the top teams in this competition.
Match Stats
UNSW FC 1 (Christine Lucantonio 38’)
SD Raiders FC 3(Caterina Moio 8’, Dominique Caridad 10’, Natalie Monti 43’)
Sunday 23rd April, 2017
David Phillips Complex
UNSW FC : 3. Charlotte Bridson, 35. Lara Campbell, 4. Tara Casserly, 22. Heidi Cummings, 1. Bronte Finegan, 10. Christine Lucantonio, 20. Emma Mccarthy, 9. Tahlia Nolan (2. Nicole Adam 83’), 36. Miranda Summersby- Mitchell, 7. Ashlee Sutherland, 8. Nicole Zwahlen
Substitutes not used: 6. Claudia Bruno, 21. Cassandra Christopher, 11.Summer Dann, 5. Donna Helm
SD Raiders FC: 10. Dominque Caridad, 4. Rhea D’Mello, 6. Sasha Hammoud, 14. Brooke Hankin, 26. Natalia Ignjatovic, 15. Courtney Krope, 11. Caterina Moio (11. Stephanie Berjerie Conejeros 72’), 1. Rhianna Muscat, 7. Jami-Lee Mussett, 33. Helena Ngauora, 5. N Monti (25 I Bucher 79’)
Mt Druitt Town Rangers FC 1 vs APIA Leichhardt Tigers FC 7
In a game which promised plenty of goals APIA Leichhardt again flexed their muscle as they overpowered Mt Druitt Town Rangers to run out winners 7-1.
In a game of contrasting half’s the scores were locked at 1-1 at halftime as Dana Buttegieg opening the scoring for APIA before Stephanie Trovato equalised for Mt Druitt.
The second half floodgates though opened up after Lucy Gilfedder restored APIA’s lead five minutes into the second half as APIA piled on a further five unanswered goals.
The result sets up a mouth watering game next week as APIA take on SD Raiders, while for Mt Druitt it is back to the drawing board as they look to move on form this result quickly.
St George FC 9 vs Parramatta FC 0
St George have inflicted a second heavy defeat of the season on Parramatta FC as they ran out 9-0 winners.
Parramatta’s brittle defence was again exposed as Marissa Nicopoulos scored 5 while Lauren Gardner grabbed a double as did Amy Bennett.
St George will take plenty of confidence away from this result as they continue their positive start to the year while for Parramatta FC, the club will be hoping for a better effort this weekend.
-By Sebastian Kalos
