Article: Jeremy Magan
Photo: Anthony Caffery Photography

Monaro Panthers 2 (Edwards 42’, Hardwicke 45’) defeated by Canberra Olympic 10 (Beg 7’, 14’, 39’, 40’, 89’, Sykes 23’, 74’, 86’, Dawson 28’, Farrar 78’)

Monaro Panthers’ tough week ended in a 10-2 loss to Canberra Olympic as the Sykes twins took no prisoners in Riverside, scoring eight of Olympic's goals. Nicole Begg struck twice in the first 15 minutes, first assisted by midfielder Eleanor Jones before her sister served her a goal on a platter. Sykes scored the third at the 23rd minute, beating Josipovic after a through ball by Burdett. Her shot was deflected by the Panthers keeper five minutes later, only to be tapped in by Lily Dawson. Begg put her name on the scoresheet for the third time thanks to a left volley after Alexandra Cook’s corner, and for the fourth time a minute later, served by her sister in the box. At 6-0, Monaro showed they were not done for the count and successfully pressed the Olympic defence, allowing Liz Edwards to beat Cindy Chalker from the edge of the box. Raechel Hardwicke scored her third goal of the season, a screamer just before half time. Receiving the ball 30 meters away from goal, Hardwicke, who saw Chalker a couple of meters off her line before, chipped the ball over the keeper's head right under the crossbar.

The second half could have brought a third goal for the Panthers, but Hardwicke’s shot from the edge of the box crashed into the crossbar. Monaro kept up their hard press but Olympic weathered the storm and slowly started to bring the danger back into the Queanbeyan box. With 15 minutes left to play, Ashleigh Sykes found herself in the box again and beat Josipovic with her left foot. Sienna Farrar added a goal four minutes later, assisted by Sykes, and in the last 5 minutes of the game, the twins both found the back of the net one more time. Sykes is now at the top of the goal-scoring ladder with 8 goals, followed by Begg with 7 goals.

Canberra Croatia 1 (Palombi 15’) defeat Belconnen United 0

In the rematch of last season’s Grand Final in Deakin, Nik Brozinic’s squad got their revenge on the Blue Devils thanks to the unstoppable Brittany Palombi. As is in common between the two sides, the game was a battle of the midfield, as Krista Hagen, Grace Field, and Grace Gill went head-to-head with Michaela Day, Alexia Forner, and Samantha Price. Palombi did not wait too long to show her skills, scoring from what did not look like a dangerous situation for Belconnen. She received the ball 25 meters from goal, and with three Belconnen defenders in front of her, casually put the ball on her left foot and shot from long range. The ball landed just under the crossbar, out of reach of Jess Giovinazzo. The rest of the first half was slightly at the advantage of the Blue Devils, but they never were quite able to threaten Ally Hinson, the home side’s keeper.

The second half did not bring more opportunities for Ahmed Ugool’s players and was rather a tale of Canberra Croatia’s defence. The Deakin never let their opponents bring danger into the box. Grace Gill was even close to scoring a second goal with a cheekily chipped ball on free-kick. The game became a cagey fight in the midfield, and Michaela Thornton and co were not able to find the key to Canberra Croatia’s deadlock. Belconnen recorded their first NPLW loss since 2017, and allow Canberra Croatia to have some breathing space at the top of the table.

Tuggeranong United 2 (Magee 10’, 41’) defeat Wagga City Wanderers 0

The Tuggies had to wait seven rounds for it, but they finally got their first win on the season. In a game between two teams who won’t play finals, Tuggeranong only needed 10 minutes to find the back of the nets. They took advantage of the Wanderers’ high line of defence, and Emma Stanbury timed her through ball perfectly for Madeleine Magee who beat Samantha Emms one-on-one. Magee almost scored a second goal a minute later but her shot lacked the power to be dangerous for Emms. The Wanderers’ timid response was not enough to put Isabelle Sanzari out of her comfort zone. On what could have been a key moment of the game, Stanbury was sent to the sin bin at the half-hour mark for dissent, but Wagga City would not capitalize on that advantage.  A minute before the Canberra United player came back on the pitch, Magee was found once again behind the defence and left Emms no chance, scoring her second goal of the afternoon. 2-0 was the score at half time, and at the end of the game too, despite chances on both sides to score the third goal of the game. Magee found herself one more time facing Emms, but this time the latter won the duel, while Sophie Cary had the most dangerous chance for the away side, but Sanzari denied the youngster from putting her name on the scoresheet.

Woden Weston 2 (Whitfield 70’, 74’) defeat Gungahlin United 0

The surprise result of the round happened in Melrose, where Gungahlin United was prevented from playing their usual passing game by a very organized, very serious Woden Weston side. Mark Boyd’s team will be proud of their game against the Gunners, and can certainly build on it to start thinking about what needs to be done to find success next season. From the first minute onwards, the talented Gungahlin players were starved off space and time to express themselves. Pressing high and hard, with a defence line sitting close to the halfway line, the Wanderers were only put at risk by balls behind their defence, which resulted in the Gunners’ forwards being offside. The first chances of the game fell to Woden Weston. After only 10 minutes, Briana Maguire, who was brilliant on Sunday, found Whitfield in the box, but the striker’s left foot found the crossbar of Kailey Tonini. Ellen Brown found that same crossbar at the half-hour mark, via a free-kick this time. Gungahlin failed to produce the style of play we have seen this season, and the half time whistle seemed welcome for the Gunners.

Unfortunately, the second half started on the same rhythm, as Woden Weston successfully outnumbered their opponent everywhere on the field. The reward came 20 minutes before the end of the game, when Maguire, again, gave everything she had to save a ball from going out for a goal kick. Her lobbed cross found Whitfield, who was able to put a foot on the ball before Tonini was able to grab it. Whitfield added another one five minutes later, this time from outside the box. After a ball intercepted in the Gunners half, the Wanderers’ number 7 put herself on her left foot and her powerful strike ended in the opposite side netting, leaving Tonini helpless. A third goal was close for the home side minutes later, but Gungahlin this time could clear a corner that brought confusion in their box. Diego Iglesias’ squad unfortunately could not take advantage of Belconnen’s loss early in the day, and stays behind the Blue Devils on goal difference.