Canberra Olympic FC 0 def by Belconnen United FC 5 (Jalocha 5’, Backhouse 25’, 62’, Ryan 26’, Thornton 84’)

3 out of 3 for Michael Zakoski on his new bench, after the Blue Devils showed once again their ruthlessness in front of goals in O’Connor.

It started early too for Belconnen. After a few minutes of back and forth between both teams, Michaela Thornton recovered a ball high in Olympic’s half, and saw the run of Nicole Jalocha. The captain’s through ball was perfectly timed for her partner in crime, who adjusted Aurelia Haynes with a precise strike in the bottom left corner.

It was a harsh start for Olympic, who came into the game playing positive football and were not here to just sit and watch the other team score goals. Nicole Begg’s players alternated the good and the less good in this first half, often bringing the ball in Belconnen’s last third and finding Ash Sykes, but also lacking in execution in that last pass, as well as in their defensive effort.

Belconnen, whether it was in transition or built-up attacks, often reached Haynes’ area too easily. After a few corner kicks came close, the Blue Devils found the breach on their 4^th attempt and superb run and header by Talia Backhouse that left Haynes no chance. The 3^rd goal was a story of miscues for Olympic, obviously shaken. An otherwise anecdotic through ball by Vanessa Ryan was not anticipated properly by Haynes, who saw the ball bounce over her and end in the back of the net. With a 3 goal lead, the Blue Devils could allow the intensity to drop a bit and operate in transition. Olympic went back to trying to create space on the wings to get through their opponents’ solid defence, with little success. And when Sykes or Tara Manthongsy found a little bit of space for a shot opportunity, they found Thornton, working tirelessly as usual, on their way.

The second half started with the return of a familiar face in the capital: 130-cap Matilda and Julie Dolan trophy winner Heather Garriock subbed in for Olympic, and her left foot almost had an immediate impact when she looked for Sykes in the back of Belconnen’s defence straight from kick-off. The action ended in a comfortable save for Esposito, but the added experience of Garriock in Begg’s ranks saw a team more focused on tasks both defensively and offensively. The second act would be cagey, with a few opportunities on both ends denied by crucial defensive efforts.

Once again Belconnen would wait for their time to come, and it did, when Ryan, found in the back of Sienna Farrar, kept her run all the way into the back, and patiently waited for the right move in the box. It came from Backhouse again, who was found in front of the empty net and happily tapped the ball in. The last goal of the day came from another great ball recovery by Thornton, whose intensity this high on the pitch surprised the Olympic defence. The skipper stole the ball in their feet inches away from the box, and comfortably won her 1v1 with Haynes.

The 5-0 score line, although looking harsh, reflected well Belconnen’s ability to make the most of their opponents’ hesitation, as well as their serious setup defensively, with a first clean sheet of the season for Esposito. Neither team will have time to dwell on the result though, with Belconnen “travelling” north to Gungahlin, and Olympic south to Deakin in the 2 most expected fixtures of round 4.

Canberra United Football Club Academy 2 (Hunt 30’, Perry 67’) def by West Canberra Wanderers 1 (Leten 10’)

The duel between 2 teams searching for their first win favoured the home team in a cagey match, with the Academy coming from behind to win their first official game in 2021.

The first alert of the game was on Janet King’s goals, the Wanderers’ keeper happy to see a short-range volley by Anna Hunt landing in her hands. The Academy had the better start, but would be surprised, a little against the run of play, 10 minutes into the game. Kilkie Leten inherited the ball outside the box and made the run on the right wing. Her cross/shot took Jayla Murphy by surprise and ended in the back of the net.

The Wanderers almost did it again 10 minutes later when Murphy gave the ball straight to Leten at the edge of the box but a miscommunication between 2 wanderers aborted the opportunity. The Academy would reap the reward of their early domination with an equalizer at the half hour mark. Following a long ball by Nadia Zakman, Hunt shower her skills by using her body to control the ball and roll around Samantha Briggs. On he right foot, the Academy striker left King no chance, finding the opposite side net to make the game even. The rest of the first half was a battle of the midfield where neither team really prevailed, but the Academy still had the better chances to score that crucial 3^rd game in a tied game.

The second half started with more of the same. The entrance of Emma Stanbury upfront would allow West Canberra to play higher up to pitch and to have a bit more possession in their opponents’ half. The Academy was stull able to create space on the wings and 20 minutes into the second half, Sofia Christopherson ran down the right wing at full speed and adjusted a tight cross in Perry’s direction. The left forward rushed in front of King’s dive and was able to tap the ball into the empty net. The Wanderers tried to put in the work to get that equalizer back but struggled to match the intensity the Academy put into the game. Instead, the Greens continued to be dangerous, forcing King to a couple of spectacular saves to prevent the score to be heavier.

The Academy won the game by the thinnest of margin, and a good bounce back after the severe defeat against Belconnen. Another home game, against Tuggeranong, awaits this weekend. For West Canberra, it is the second time that a late goal takes a point away from them. With 0 point in 3 games, it is not an easy start on the job for Emma Stanbury. Hosting Wagga on Sunday could be the game to really kick start her season.

 

Tuggeranong United FC 0 def by Canberra Croatia FC 6 (Fogarty 15’, Gill 30’, Jones 80’, 90+1’, Bisset 83’, Junna 90+2’)

Second win in a row for Canberra Croatia who remain 2 points behind the leaders Belconnen and Gungahlin on the table. But it was not the easy win everyone would have predicted.

80 minutes. For 80 minutes, Tuggeranong’s defensive solidity and eagerness to get back in shape and fight every ball was a work of art. They had conceded twice in the first half but were successfully frustrating the reigning champion and holding them to “only” a 2-goal advantage until they collapsed in the last 10 minutes of the game. The picture was clear very early in the first half.

Tuggeranong would “park the bus”, have 9 players behind the ball the all times, and cut the passes between the midfield and the attack in the middle of the park that would put them in too much danger.

The Deakin side, seeing going through the middle would not work, asked their full backs to help on the wings. Alice Churchill happily indulged and recorded a hat trick of assists to give her team the points it needed. 2 of them came in the first half. At the 15^th minute, a lovely ball between Jess Abbott, spectacular on Sunday for her first NPLW game, and her defence, found Fogarty whose volley left the Tuggeranong keeper no chance. Then at the half hour mark, Churchill’s cross found Grace Gill, whose header was first masterfully saved by Abbott, before she took the rebound and smashed the ball in the back of the net. 2-0 was the score at half time, despite a very one sided game that saw Canberra Croatia with most of the possession in their opponents’ half.

The second half started the same way, an attack-defence scenario where Tuggeranong’s only offensive weapon, Maddie Magee, was always left to her own device to try and create some magic. Nik Brozinic’s player did not panic and kept playing their game, slowly finding breaches within the Tuggies’ defence. A plethora of chance started from the 70^th minute onwards, and after Gill saw 2 of her attempt go wide, her teammates finally found the target to score 4 goals in the last 10 minutes. Chantel Jones subbed in halfway through the second act, was the first to strike. At the end of the third successful cross by Churchill, Jones found herself alone facing Abbott and tapped the ball in. 3 minutes later, while Jones was asking for a foul against her in the box, Jenny Bisset took advantage of a ball the Tuggies struggled to clear off, and kicked the ball through an unorganised defence and in the back of the net. Jones would make it 5-0 in injury time, following a perfectly timed chipped through ball by Bisset. The Canberra United keeper-turned-NPLW-striker used her pace to find herself in the box before sneaking the ball between Abbott and her near post. She added an assist to her impressive contribution seconds later, offering Renee Junna her very first NPLW goal.

The 6-0 score line seems a bit harsh for Tuggeranong given their efforts, but no doubt Stan Mitchell and his hopefully-soon-to-be coach of the NPLW program will be able to capitalize on that performance, solidarity and fighting spirit shown by the home team. Next week will be a true test of what the Tuggies can do this season, against the Academy. Canberra Croatia did the job, looking after their goal difference in the meantime. The next game will be no doubt another story, against Canberra Olympic on Saturday in Deakin.

Wagga City Wanderers 0 def by Gungahlin United FC 4 (J. Brown 5’, De Marco 23’, 39’, Pennyfield 55’)

The trip to the Riverina was a success for Diego Iglesias and his team, who keep up with Belconnen’s pace a week before hosting them at home.

Both Wagga and Gungahlin were fired up from the get-go in an intense game that saw two teams trying to play attractive passing football for 90 minutes. The Gunners were quick to reap the reward though, with right back Ella-Rose Brown finding Jade Brown in behind the Wanderers’ defence after 5 minutes. The young striker faced Samantha Emms cool-headed and slipped the ball in the bottom left corner for her third goal this season. The ball kept going from one side to the other of the pitch until 15 minutes later, Natalie De Marco found her sister Stella with a silky through ball between 2 Wagga defenders. De Marco entered in the box and fired a shot in the top left corner that left Emms helpless. That second goal hit the Wanderers hard, who lot a couple of easy balls and needed a good 5 minutes to get back into their game. Offensively they were rarely able to threaten Kaley Tonini unfortunately, besides a solo attempt by Piper Lockley. On the other end of the pitch the Gunners kept trying to put the ball behind their opponents’ defence and after a couple of opportunities stopped by Ava Tuksar or Sammy Emms, Ella-Rose Brown re-enacted her first goal assist, this time finding Stella De Marco. Emms was able to put a hand on the midfielder’s shot, but that was not enough to prevent the ball from slowing rolling in the back of the net. A minute later both De Marcos had a chance to make it 4-0, but right after Stella hit the cross bar from the edge of the box, Natalie’s goal was disallowed for offside.

The home side is not known to go down without a fight, and they came back from the locker room with attacking intentions. Unfortunately, each pass in the box, each cross would find a white shirt on its course. Gungahlin can attack fast, but they also proved they were very solid defensively, with a second clean sheet in 3 games. The best opportunities for the Wanderers came from a set piece, but Megan Castle’s glancing header ended on the wrong side of the post. A free-kick earned by Steffi Leijins offered Erika Pennyfield the opportunity to bring the danger in Emms’ box once more. The experienced midfielder decided to go for goal instead, and her long strike took the perfect dive in the top right corner of the target, out of reach for the Wanderers’ keeper. Even with a 4-goal advantage, the Gunners kept a compact shape and offered very little room for the home team to endanger Kailey Tonini. A couple of shots above the cross bar or straight at her is the most the Gungahlin keeper had to deal with in the last 15 minutes.

Hard return to reality for the Wanderers after 3 points won in Tuggeranong last week. They saw this week the road yet to travel to match a solid Gungahlin team, before their game at Melrose this weekend. The Gunners made the most of their opponents’ weaknesses, with 3 goals coming from balls behind the defensive line in the first half. Diego Iglesias will face another coach with a perfect record this Sunday, Michael Zakoski and his Blue Devils.