Round 14 of the National Premier Leagues NSW Women’s competition provided tight contests and dominant wins across the six matches that took place.
Have a read of our full review of the weekend’s matches below.
Match of the Round – Sydney University 1-1 APIA Leichardt at Sydney Uni Football Ground
Sydney University SFC scored late in a dramatic match in round 14 of the National Premier Leagues NSW Women’s competition to secure a 1-1 draw against league leaders APIA Leichhardt in front of a healthy crowd at the Sydney Uni Football Ground.
Click here to view the match report.
NWS Spirit 3-0 Sydney Olympic at Christie Park
Ahead of a busy Sunday of fixtures, NWS Spirit defeated Sydney Olympic 3-0 in the sole Saturday match of the round.
Spirit continued their dominant form at Christie Park in the win, as Olympic found it difficult to keep out their opponents in a tough away trip that followed on from a draining double game week the week prior.
Olympic had the early share of attempts on goal in the first half, however Spirit quickly took hold of proceedings and shifted the game in their favour as they put Olympic under a heap of pressure.
The second half would see Spirit break the deadlock through Morgan Roberts, the no. 13 finishing off a ruthless counterattack that was sparked by an industrious tackle from Sarah Morgan and a subsequent perfectly-placed pass from Rola Badawiya. 1-0 to Spirit in the 61st minute.
That pairing would again turn providers for goal no. 2 of the day as Badawiya saw her heavy touch miraculously best the Olympic defence and sniffed out by an intuitive run from Roberts, who smashed the ball into the back of the net for 2-0.
Spirit finished off an assured second half when Rachel Perrins crossed from deep on the left edge and found the head of substitute Emily Jensen, who headed on to midfield hero Morgan for the final goal of the day.
The 3-0 win sees Spirit making up for their 0-3 loss to Olympic in Round 1 and maintaining their place at second on the ladder.
Bulls FC Academy 3-1 Emerging Jets at Northbridge Oval
Bulls FC Academy proved to be too strong for the Emerging Jets on Sunday evening, with the home side running out 3-1 winners.
The two A-League club academy sides are experiencing wildly different seasons – the Bulls’ victory against the Jets will give them confidence heading into next week’s massive game against first-placed APIA Leichardt.
A superbly floated free-kick from Isabella Volkanovski would be the spark for the Bulls to open their scoring in the second half, with her dead ball taken on by defender Jessica Seaman for a well-taken volley past Jets keeper Xanthe Parsons.
Cate Gyzen would play a pivotal role in the Bulls’ second goal of the evening as she harassed Jets defender Sian Wilde and forced an errant pass into the pathway of Bulls winger Peta Trimis, who gladly took the opportunity to bury the ball emphatically via a half-volley on the edge of the 18-yard box. 2-0 to the Bulls.
The Jets, desperate for their first win of the season and a response after going 2-0 down, found some hope through the ever-impressive Brinley Gentle who, as she has done throughout the season, clawed her side back into the match with a low finish underneath Bulls goalkeeper Trudy Simmons.
Trimis successfully earned her brace in the 92nd minute after launching her own counter after a Jets corner, dribbling beyond Parsons, and making her way toward goal for an easy finish that was well-earned after a magnificent full field run. 3-1 to the Bulls was the final score.
Bankstown City Lions 3-0 Blacktown Spartans at Jensen Park
A fiery matchup between the Bankstown City Lions and Blacktown Spartans ended with a 3-0 lead and a red card to the home side.
There was plenty of grit and determination shown by Bankstown and Blacktown in this match, particularly as both teams went into it searching for a much-needed three points to steer themselves as far away from the relegation zone as possible.
Rasamee Phonsongkham continued her exceptional form for Bankstown when she scored her side’s first goal of the day in the 35th minute via a fine header. The lead up to her opener was filled with plenty of quality, as Demi Koulizakis collected the ball in the box and played keep-up with it before volleying to a fellow Lion for an outstanding cross toward Phonsongkham.
A handball against the Spartans allowed Bankstown to extend their lead in the 40th minute, Olivia Price the goal scorer with an unflinching penalty into the top left-hand corner.
Phonsongkham pulled a moment of magic out of nowhere in the 56th minute when she spotted Spartans goalkeeper Sally James well off her line and opted to have an attempt at goal from far back on the right wing. The result was 3-0 to Bankstown and the sealer on a strong victory.
It’s been tough going for a Spartans who have only managed to score a meagre 8 goals throughout the season. By contrast, Bankstown have picked up in form since the beginning of the season and finish Round 14 in 7th place on the ladder.
Illawarra Stingrays 0 v Northern Tigers 0 at Macedonia Park
A 0-0 draw is all the Illawarra Stingrays and the Northern Tigers could muster in a tight affair at Macedonia Park on Sunday.
With both sides buoyed by excellent results in Round 13, expectations were high for a thriller between two teams wanting to push themselves further up the ladder.
The Tigers defence was industrious throughout the match, with chances in the 28th and 30th minutes prevented by Claudia Cholakian and Te Reremoana Walker’s urgency and commitment to proving the quality of the Tigers’ depth in the face of surmounting injuries.
A few minutes later, Caitlin Doeglas had an excellent opportunity to give her side the lead when she picked up a deflected Stingrays clearance and instantly aimed for the bottom left corner, only to see her shot astonishingly saved by Stingrays goalkeeper Aimee Hall’s quick reflex movement low to the ground.
Stingrays star Michelle Carney nearly crafted a goal for her side in the 61st minute as she held well against the Tigers defenders and put the ball through to an overlapping runner, only to see the resulting cross cleared by the opposition.
In spite of chances falling to both sides neither team could capitalise, concluding the match with the points shared.
Manly United 1-5 Macarthur Rams at Cromer Park
Goals galore between Manly United and Macarthur Rams at Cromer Park saw the away side take the three points back to Macarthur with a 5-1 win.
Manly would open the scoring in this match when Mia Bales stormed into the box on a corner kick and incredibly steered the ball in off the underside of the crossbar via her hip.
Macarthur began their rout of the home side in the 37th minute when Kelli Brown was found by India Breier after a seamless interchange of passes from the Macarthur defence through the midfield. After a great run, Brown eventually bypassed Manly goalkeeper Nicole Simonsen and tucked the ball away for the equaliser.
Goal no. 2 for Macarthur arrived after the away side demonstrated immense patience to evade the staunch Manly defence, as Miku Sunaga slipped the ball through to Brown, who made space for herself after spotting Breier on the far post.
Sanaga then chipped in with a goal crafted out of her own excellent timing as she latched onto the end of a cross and placed the ball with aplomb past Simonsen. 3-1 to the Rams.
Consecutive goals in the 80th and 81st minute put a final stamp on the match for the Rams, substitute Gabrielle Sarkis scoring to make it 4-1 after being put through by Brown in between the lines. Brown then earned her brace off the back of an amazing pass by Alexandra Huynh and dummy by Sarkis, which allowed the Rams star to strike a lethal finish beyond Simonsen from just outside the box.
It was always going to be a tough ask for Manly to hold a rampant Macarthur side at bay, not just because they lead the competition in Goals Scored but because the Rams are one of the current in-form sides in NPL 1 alongside APIA Leichardt and NWS Spirit. Manly are not looking like their usual selves this year, however they have shown that the talent is still there to cultivate effective chances and score goals.
Football NSW Institute v Gladesville Ravens – Postponed