Graphic: Michael Alesich

It’s been a tumultuous few weeks but we were able to breathe a sigh of relief: the W-League is back. That sigh, however, has quickly been surpassed by cheers, gasps and the occasional groan because, well, the W-League is BACK!

Round 1 has packed a punch with 10 goals in three games, and show-stopping performances from young keepers and veteran strikers. Keep reading to find relive the fun, and make sure to tune into our recap on the Beyond 90 podcast. 

Game of the round: Canberra United 4 – 3 Adelaide United

Written by Steffen Moebus

A seven-goal thriller opened the Season 13 accounts for Canberra United and Adelaide United at Viking Park in the nation’s capital. Adelaide fielded a team reminiscent of last season’s, while Canberra debuted five new starters. 

Adelaide settled the better of the two sides and opened the scoring in the 21st minute. Maria Jose Rojas scored against her former side, making the most of a poor pass from the Canberra defence and evading her markers to finish in style. 

Emily Condon found space in left midfield for Adelaide just seven minutes later and threaded a delightful through ball for Isabel Hodgson’s first time side-footed finish, giving the Reds a two-goal half-time lead, with the home team unable to capitalise on their chances and Matilda McNamara outstanding in the Adelaide defence.

A fit, sharp, and composed Michelle Heyman led the green fightback early in the second half, taking full advantage of Demi Koulizakis’ through ball with a cool finish, and then equalising with fifteen minutes to go thanks to a keeper fumble close to goal.

The four minutes of extra time can only be described as bonkers, as first Laura Hughes chipped in off the crossbar from 20 metres out to give the home side the lead, before Heyman provided a delightful finish for her hat-trick off the back of some excellent pressure from fellow striker Hayley Taylor-Young.

Adelaide’s Mallory Weber was to have the last scoring word in the game, however, with a remarkable strike from outside the box finding the top right corner of the Canberra net to complete the goal-fest.  

Brisbane Roar 0 – 0 Melbourne City

Written by Nick Amies

Brisbane Roar huffed and puffed but ultimately failed to put the ball past Melbourne City goalkeeper Teagan Micah at Dolphin Stadium.

City survived an early scare after Tameka Yallop’s volley crashed off the underside of the crossbar from an Emily Gielnik cross.

Yallop and her teammates were adamant that the ball had bounced over the line, but their appeals were ignored.

Brisbane’s attacking trio of Gielnik, Yallop and Mariel Hecher were causing headaches for the opposition, but that early chance would be the closest they would come to opening the deadlock in the first half.

The Roar were denied on multiple occasions by Micah, the goalposts and desperate blocks from Melbourne City defenders.

Rhali Dobson nearly found an opportunity to score a sucker-punch for City on the break but Georgina Worth stood firm.

The assault on the City goal continued in the second half, with Katrina Gorry striking the crossbar with an effort from distance and Micah continuing to deny any further attempts on target.

As the half wore on Jake Goodship looked to his bench, but exchanging Gielnik and Gorry for Rosie Sutton and Sharn Freier did little to spark inspiration in the final third despite their fresh legs.

A sense of déjà vu would have been felt for the home side. Brisbane failed to score past an impressive Melbourne goalkeeper in last year’s season opener at Dolphin Stadium, though on that day Casey Dumont’s Victory travelled home with three points.

Western Sydney Wanderers 0 – 3 Sydney FC

Written by Lani Johnson

We were treated to the highly anticipated Sydney derby in round one this season, with Sydney FC coming out on top after a superb strike from Cortnee Vine and a double from Princess Ibini.

It was a perfect start for Sydney FC, with new signing Vine scoring midway through the first half to put her side in front. Set up by Remy Siemsen, Vine drilled the ball into the back of the net without a second thought, silencing the home fans at BankWest Stadium.

Not to be outdone, star striker Ibini sent the ball into the top right corner in the 60th minute in an unbelievable fashion, doubling Sydney’s lead. But the star striker wasn’t done there – with only minutes left until the final whistle, the youngster found space inside the box and slotted the ball home after some beautiful build up play to make the final score 3-0.

Sydney FC move to the top of the table after collecting the 3 points while the Wanderers sit at the bottom for now. 

Round 2 details

  • Western Sydney Wanderers vs Newcastle Jets at Western Sydney Wanderers Centre of Football – Saturday, 2 January, 7:05pm.
  • Canberra United vs Melbourne City FC at Viking Park – Sunday, 3 January, 4:05pm. 
  • Melbourne Victory vs Brisbane Roar at CB Smith Reserve – Sunday, 3 January, 6.05pm. 

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