There were plenty of closely-fought matches in Round 7 of the National Premier Leagues Women’s NSW, with an upset draw for the Macarthur Rams leaving them just a solitary point ahead of Sydney Olympic heading into Round 8.
Have a read of our full breakdown of all the action down below.
Match Of The Round – NWS Spirit 2-1 Bulls FC Academy at Christie Park
NWS Spirit recorded their first victory of 2024 after a hard fought 2-1 win over Bulls FC Academy in the Round 7 NPL Women’s NSW Match of the Round.
It took until almost the hour mark before the deadlock was broken and it was broken in some style as Savannah Murray blasted home a screamer.
The Bulls responded and had an equaliser through Daniella Naeimi with about 20 minutes remaining.
With the match heading toward a draw, substitute Sienna Hawkins had other ideas, finding the winner for Tony Candy’s side with 10 minutes to go.
Click here to read the full match report!
Northern Tigers 2-2 Macarthur Rams at North Turramurra Recreation Area
The Northern Tigers fought valiantly to hold the 1st place Macarthur Rams to a 2-2 draw on Sunday evening, with all the action unfolding at North Turramurra Recreational Area.
Having secured a well-earned draw against APIA Leichhardt in Round 6, the Tigers returned home to North Turramurra with a solid platform to build from against the league-leading Rams.
Macarthur opened the scoring in the 37th minute after Chrystal Duggan’s deflected shot from just outside the box found its way to Miku Sunaga, with the dynamic attacker displaying plenty of composure in taking on the ball and finishing it into the bottom left corner.
The Rams then doubled their lead in the 44th minute when Bronte Trew coolly dispatched a penalty into the bottom corner.
Barely a minute later, the Tigers would earn themselves a penalty after Olivia Cartwright was taken down just inside the box. Captain Lily McMahon then stepped up to confidently place the ball into the back of the net with ease, giving her side a way back in to the match as a result.
In a moment that sent the home crowd wild, Nicola Dominikovich would equalise for her side in the 64th minute, ensuring that the points were to be shared at the end of the ninety minutes.
Football NSW Institute 0-1 Gladesville Ravens at Valentine Sports Park
Valentine Sports Park played host as a plucky Football NSW Institute side went down 1-0 to a resilient Gladesville Ravens.
Undoubtedly their performances this season have proven that FNSW Institute possess the talent to put their opposition on the backfoot, and the side will have hoped for a good result against Gladesville. In contrast, the Ravens will have headed to Valentine Sports Park with the expectation of putting their heavy loss to Bulls FC Academy last weekend behind them.
Both FNSW Institute and the Ravens were determined to maintain their respective clean sheets throughout the first half, with neither side allowing space for their opposition to operate in.
The second half began in an ideal fashion for the away side, as Annie Halls won the ball in midfield and laid a pass off to Keisha Allen for a driving run that led to an exquisite through ball being played into the path of Isabella Habuda, who made no mistake in sliding what proved to be the winner into the bottom corner.
The result means that FNSW Institute remain in second-last on the NPL Women’s NSW ladder, whereas the Ravens are back to winning ways and three points closer to the top four.
Blacktown Spartans 0-1 APIA Leichhardt at Blacktown Football Park
The Blacktown Spartans were defeated 1-0 by APIA Leichhardt at Blacktown Football Park on Sunday evening.
Though their results have been inconsistent so far, the Spartans would have been savouring the opportunity to take on an APIA side struggling for form this season. In comparison, APIA will have been well aware of the Spartans’ breadth of options in attack and would have made their defensive effort a top priority in this fixture.
The Spartans refused to give APIA a second to breathe on the ball in the early stages of the match, with the away side finding it tough to keep possession as Blacktown’s players challenged for every contest and second ball.
As the first half carried on, the game began to open up with both sides’ attacks making threatening forays toward goal.
The game was playing out like a fixture that had to be unlocked by one miraculous moment, and luckily for APIA, Gisella Pipino was on hand to deliver a goal in the 25th minute after beating her defender with a tenacious mix of strength and skill and unleashing a thunderous strike that evaded Spartans goalkeeper Anna Norton and flew in just underneath the crossbar.
Ashlie Crofts then had the chance to extend her side’s lead in the 66th minute, but was denied by Norton’s heroic penalty save.
APIA then would hold on for the remainder of the match and earn the three points to take back to Lambert Park.
Sydney Olympic 2-1 Sydney University at Peter Moore Field
Sydney Olympic showed no signs of slowing down this campaign as they secured a 2-1 win over Sydney University at Peter Moore Field on Sunday evening.
Buoyed by the form of their impressive attack, and in particular the form of Golden Boot leader Demi Koulizakis, Olympic will have been determined to ensure the three points over Sydney Uni at home. However, Sydney Uni’s triumphant win over the Blacktown Spartans last weekend will no doubt have given the side the impetus needed to take on a top team in the form of Olympic.
Sydney Uni kicked-off the scoring on the day after Baylee Broomhead lofted a mammoth goal kick up the pitch that bested the Olympic defence and was embraced by Talia Kapetanellis, who did well to wriggle the ball away in a one-on-one with a Jets defender and finish into the bottom right corner. 1-0 to Sydney Uni in the 15th minute.
Olympic would not take long to respond as Ebony McCue-Shore buried a robust header into the back of the net in the 22nd minute, yet again showing she is an excellent threat at corners for the home side.
Rochelle Borromeo would deliver the winner for Olympic with an emphatic hit from distance that bested Broomhead and deflected past the goalkeeper and in for 2-1.
Emerging Jets 2-2 Illawarra Stingrays at Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility
The Emerging Jets were unlucky not to earn their first win of the season as the Illawarra Stingrays were able to earn a late 2-2 draw on Sunday evening at Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility.
The Jets have faced a challenging season so far, and will have been weary of the in-form Stingrays heading into Round 7. However, the Jets have shown in the past this season that there is certainly an advantage to them playing out at their home ground in Lake Macquarie.
A set piece in the 31st minute would give the Stingrays the opener as Poppie Hooks bravely attacked a free-kick from deep to beat Jets goalkeeper Lily-Rose Dunbar to the ball and head home for 1-0.
The Jets shown plenty of quality playing out from the back in the lead in to the equaliser as midfield maestro Josie Allan unlocked Molly Salvador with a fantastic aerial through ball to the right wing, which the No. 13 proceeded to take in her stride as she charged at the Stingrays defence and hit the goal line before tapping a pass toward Laura Knipe for a triumphant finish into the roof of the net. 1-1 in the 55th minute.
Allan proved to be a handful for the Stingrays defenders and was at the centre of the Jets’ second goal, this time providing an assist to Salvador after a nice turn and run that culminated in the Jets winger tapping the ball in for 2-1.
The Stingrays had Alicia Meuronen to thank in the 94th minute, as the No. 6 demonstrated immense skill and composure to fire a free-kick on the edge of the box over a crowd of Jets defenders and in for a late 2-2 draw.
UNSW 1-2 Manly United at The Village Green
UNSW went down 2-1 to Manly United on Sunday afternoon, with the away side taking the three points away from The Village Green.
UNSW would have known heading into this fixture that the chance to take on Manly at home was a prime opportunity to rediscover the positive form that they started the season with. In comparison, Manly have impressed in 2024 and would have headed to The Village Green with every intention of bringing the three points back to Cromer Park.
The home side began the match in the ascendancy, and would earn a goal for their efforts in the 8th minute through Leia Puxty’s fine finish. 1-0 to UNSW.
Manly would have to wait until the second half to find an equaliser, with their talismanic striker Emily Minett stepping up in the 49th minute to silence the home crowd via an exceptional bit of improvisation and a volleyed finish that sailed into the top left corner and in for 1-1.
Minett again showed her a few minutes later as she stole the ball from a UNSW defender and raced toward goal before smashing the ball into the back of the net to give her side the lead, with 2-1 the final score at the conclusion of the match.
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By Matthew Badrov
