Round 6 Review – NPL Women’s NSW

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The excitement continued into Round 6 of the National Premier Leagues Women’s NSW competition, with an abundance of goals being delivered right across the weekend.

Read on for our full breakdown of Matchweek 6.

 

Match of The Round – Blacktown Spartans 1-4 Sydney University at Blacktown Football Park

Sydney University bounced back in Round 6 of the NPL Women’s NSW Match of the Round, defeating the Blacktown Spartans 4-1 at Blacktown Football Park.

Despite the dominant score line, it perhaps was not a fair reflection on the balance of the game as Uni secured their second win of the season.

In saying that, Uni was the better team for the majority of the game, taking the lead after a Brittany Duggan own goal after 18 minutes, before some individual brilliance from Talia Kapetanelis saw the winger double the advantage.

Christa Oliva for the Spartans back in the game just before half time from the penalty spot but the visitors ran away with it in the second period.

NWS Spirit 1-1 Sydney Olympic at Christie Park

Christie Park was the setting as NWS Spirit and Sydney Olympic played out a 1-1 draw on Saturday afternoon.

Spirit have found it tough going both home and away this season, with victory yet to come for the side which finished 3rd in 2023. In comparison, Olympic have had a strong start to their campaign and will have been prepared for a challenging contest against a Spirit side wanting to kickstart their season.

Spirit would strike first in the 26th minute through Clare Holder after an Olympic defensive clearance inadvertently struck the hand of Tara Baudana in the penalty box. Holder then stepped up from 12 yards and was composed in her finish to give her side a 1-0 lead.

Olympic would have to wait until the second half to find an equaliser, which they were able to conjure through the prolific Demi Koulizakis, who picked up a loose pass out from the back by goalkeeper Mio Nemoto and proceeded to calmly tuck the ball away underneath the onrushing keeper.

The result means that Spirit continue to lead the league in games drawn, with the side needing to pick up the wins soon if they want to be in finals contention come the end of the year.

Manly United 3-0 Football NSW Institute at Cromer Park

A clinical second half performance saw Manly United defeat Football NSW Institute 3-0 at Cromer Park on Sunday.

Manly firmly demonstrated their quality in a Round 5 victory over the Blacktown Spartans and will have entered the matchup against FNSW Institute weary of a side capable of pulling off an upset.

Though the first half saw Manly carve out a few chances of their own, they were ultimately unable to navigate their way around the sturdy FNSW Institute defence.

That would change in the second half when Manly opened the scoring in the 52nd minute through Daisy Arrowsmith, who was in the right place at the right time to get a slight touch on a Leah Burton shot and elude goalkeeper Sofia Fante for a 1-0 lead.

Manly would again cause trouble for Institute via a set piece when a free-kick was placed into the box for the ever-reliable Emily Minett to arrive and launch a pristine header into the bottom right corner of the net. 2-0 to Manly in the 59th minute.

Phoebe Gilbane would put the finishing touch on the result, volleying home from a corner in stoppage time for her first goal of the season.

The match would ultimately finish in Manly’s favour, and would ensure that the Northern Beaches side head into next weekend in 3rd place on the NPL Women’s ladder. In comparison, FNSW Institute will be looking to turn their season around and get some wins on the board in the coming weeks.

APIA Leichhardt 2-2 Northern Tigers at Leichhardt Oval

A gutsy effort from the Northern Tigers saw them successfully turnaround an early 2-0 deficit to draw 2-2 with APIA Leichhardt at Leichhardt Oval on Sunday.

Having turned around their form since the start of the season, 2023 Premiers APIA will have wanted to maintain their positive momentum heading into the clash against a Tigers side buoyed by earning their first win of the season against the Emerging Jets last time out.

APIA would get off to a flying start in the 5th minute when star attacker Ashlie Crofts spotted Imogen Lane open on the right wing and played a perfect ball onto the path of the No. 19, who proceeded to smash the ball past goalkeeper Aimee Hall for 1-0.

A second goal arrived soon after for APIA, this time through Crofts, who showed her quality in behind the Tigers defence as she confidently rounded Hall and tapped the ball in to give her side a 2-0 lead in the 9th minute.

The Tigers would respond in empathic fashion in the 23rd minute when Jessie Wharepouri floated a pinpoint free-kick into the box which was met by a determined Nicola Dominikovich, who placed an unstoppable header into the back of the net past Sophie Magus in the APIA goal.

Olivia Cartwright would prove to be the hero for the Tigers, after a dead ball was fired in (from a similar position to the Tigers’ first goal) and headed on for a deflection that landed at the feet of Cartwright, who proceeded to deliver a dramatic late equaliser for her side with an assured finish. 2-2 the final score at Leichhardt Oval.

Bulls FC Academy 3-0 Gladesville Ravens at Northbridge Oval

Bulls FC Academy got their season back on track with a triumphant 3-0 win over the Gladesville Ravens at Northbridge Oval.

The Bulls began the season in red-hot form but notched just two points in their last three fixtures leading into Round 6. In comparison, the Ravens have gone from strength-to-strength and are looking determined under new coach Guillermo Rubio.

Daniella Naeimi got the scoring underway for the Bulls after assuredly taking on a superb through ball from Alice Thompson and besting Ravens goalkeeper Romina Parraguirre with some lovely footwork to eventually fire the ball into an empty net. 1-0 to the Bulls in the 10th minute.

A Thompson through ball to an open player on the wing again proved to be the catalyst for the Bulls, this time setting up Isabella Coco-Di Sipio who cut in on her left and struck a wonderful finish into the top left corner of the net. 2-0 to the home team.

The Bulls would add a third in the 63rd minute after Tamires Souza won the ball in midfield and played through star striker Amber Luchtmeijer for a curved finish that curled around the retreating Parraguirre, the goal ensuring the three points for the Bulls.

Emerging Jets 0-7 Macarthur Rams at Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility

The Emerging Jets were unable to stop a rampant Macarthur Rams side on Sunday evening, with the league leaders securing a 7-0 win at Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility.

Though on paper this matchup pitted two sides on opposite sides of the table against one another, the Jets will have seen it as a chance to turn their home ground into a fortress. The Rams however, will have been focused on improving after being kept scoreless in a 0-0 draw against NWS Spirit last round.

The Rams were relentless from the get go, and would open the scoring in the 1st minute through Bronte Trew who spotted Lily-Rose Dunbar outside of the box and calmly slotted the ball away from range.

Barely forty seconds later the Rams would notch their second through some tidy build-up that resulted in Miku Sunaga putting away a tidy finish in the box. 2-0 to the Rams in the 2nd minute.

To round out a dominant opening stanza, Trew would complete her hattrick with a low finish from just outside the box and a confident strike one-on-one with Dunbar in the 10th and 14th minute respectively. Both goals were brilliantly assisted by Sunaga.

The Jets would stave off the Rams for some time until late in the second half when substitute Lara Dipple pressured a Jets defender to win the ball back with her first touch and put away a quality half-volleyed finish with her second in the 82nd minute. 5-0 to the Rams.

A sixth goal for the Rams was scored by Libby Morris, who was first to a free-kick which rattled the crossbar and bounced back for the Rams No. 4 to head home.

The final goal of the day would be scored by Sunaga, who showed quick feet to take the ball past a Jets defender and slide the ball across Dunbar for 7-0.

UNSW 0-1 Illawarra Stingrays at The Village Green

The Illawarra Stingrays proved themselves to be unfazed by the vocal home support at the The Village Green as they earned a 1-0 win over UNSW on Sunday evening.

With the fixture originally meant to take place at Macedonia Park, predicted heavy rain forced a reshuffle to The Village Green.

The adjustment no doubt meant that UNSW will have savoured the chance to take on a strong Stingrays side at home, however the away side will not have wanted to go home second best after having the contest moved.

The first half saw the Stingrays looking to move the ball swiftly and with precision as they worked their way toward the UNSW goal, whereas the home side looked to quick counterattacks. Impressively, both sides were intent on pressing up high and putting their opposition on the back foot.

The Stingrays did well to unlock the UNSW defence for their goal, with some quality play down the left wing leading to Siobhan Edwards driving the ball into the box and cutting a pass cross for Sakura Nojima to tap the ball into an open net for 1-0.

Despite crafting a flurry of chances of their own, UNSW were unable to find an equaliser as the Stingrays took the three points back to Macedonia Park.

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By Matthew Badrov