2022 NSW NPL Women’s Wrap – Round 14

It was another rainy Sunday in Sydney, but we’ll never allow wet weather to dampen our enthusiasm for the NSW NPL competition! In this week’s featured game, league leaders Sydney University travelled to Valentine Sports Park for a meeting with Football NSW Institute.

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Football NSW Institute v Sydney University

At Valentine Sports Park, Sydney Uni maintained their top-of-the-table status with a 1-0 victory over Institute. A Holly Caspers first half strike was enough to separate the two sides in what was a keenly fought contest.

Uni midfielder Sarah Morgan was heavily involved in the opening stages, hitting the crossbar with a 35 yard free kick in the third minute. There was another close call five minutes later when Morgan whipped a set piece into the penalty area – Caspers rose highest, but Maya Fernandez was perfectly placed to clear her header off the goal line. Morgan continued to be Uni’s creative force, and on 19 minutes her chipped through ball sent Rola Badawiya racing towards goal, only for the shot to go wide.

Sydney Uni then thought they had opened the scoring midway through the first half, following a brilliant passing move which started with their goalkeeper Courtney Newbon. Hannah Jones released Caspers and the speedster slotted the ball past Tahlia Franco, however the goal was ruled out for offside. The Students were firmly on top at this stage, and Caspers was denied by the crossbar two minutes later after good hold up play from Badawiya.

The breakthrough finally came in the 28th minute. Badawiya showed great vision to pick out Emma Ilijoski’s overlapping run, and when her shot was parried by Franco, Caspers was in the right place to score from point blank range – her seventh goal of the season.

To this point, Institute had barely threatened the Sydney Uni goal. However, on the half hour Mary Stanic-Floody’s neat touch found Sienna Saveska in space on the edge of the area, with her shot flying over the bar.

Uni would finish the opening period in the ascendancy though, as Caspers continued to trouble the Institute backline with her pace. In first half stoppage time, a swift counter attack saw Caspers play a dangerous cross into the middle, but the ball was just out of Badawiya’s reach.

The Caspers-Badawiya strike partnership has been a real feature of Sydney Uni’s play in 2022. Those two combined again early in the second half and Tahlia Franco had to be alert, making a fine one on one save to deny Caspers.

To their credit, Institute then had a period of dominance. On 51 minutes, Saveska displayed excellent technique to flick the ball over a defender and force a save from Newbon. Four minutes after that effort, Daniella Naeimi cleverly picked out Amy Chessari in space on the edge of the area, with Hannah Jones well positioned to block her shot.

From about the hour mark of the game, there was a 15 minute stretch where both teams made multiple subs. This may have affected the passing rhythm of both teams as neither goalkeeper was seriously troubled in this period. However, the game would liven up in the final quarter of an hour.

On 78 minutes, Caspers nearly made it 2-0 after receiving Gabrielle Peak’s pass and using a trademark burst of acceleration to beat a defender, but her shot rebounded off the post. Uni would have appreciated the buffer of a second goal as the closing stages were dominated by Institute, and the league leaders would need to use all of their defensive acumen to see the game out.

In the 84th minute, good link up play from Chessari and Saveska created a chance for Stanic-Floody, however she couldn’t get enough power on her shot to trouble Newbon. Two minutes later, Chessari collected Stanic-Floody’s cross and fired towards goal, with Annabel Martin’s well-timed lunge deflecting the shot wide.

Institute sub Anika Stajcic was the next player to set up an opportunity, and she somehow found Saveska in amongst a crowd of defenders on 89 minutes, but strength in numbers for Sydney Uni meant Saveska could do little other than an improvised backheel which was no problem for Newbon.

Then with almost the last play of the game, Institute created their best chance. Maya Lobo’s free kick fell for Saveska, and Newbon came up big to make the save, ensuring that Sydney Uni would take the three points.

This result, combined with a defeat for Northern Tigers at the hands of local rivals NWS Spirit, means that Sydney University now have a five point lead at the top of the table.

In the other games, Macarthur Rams defeated Emerging Jets, while Blacktown Spartans and APIA Leichhardt earned draws after late equalisers.

Football NSW Institute 0
Sydney University 1 (Caspers 28’)

Football NSW Institute: Tahlia Franco, Ella Abdul-Massih, Erin Gordon (Gemma Ferris 46’), Libby Morris, Megan Mifsud (Amalia Plummer 62’), Maya Fernandez (Shay Hollman 62’), Amy Chessari (c), Isabella Chidiac (Maya Lobo 71’), Mary Stanic-Floody, Sienna Saveska, Daniella Naeimi (Anika Stajcic 80’)

Unused substitutes: Aimee Hall

Sydney University: Courtney Newbon, Gabrielle Peak, Clare Hunt (Ashley Irwin 69’), Taren King (c), Annabel Martin, Brianna Oliverio (Tara Baudana 76’), Hannah Jones, Sarah Morgan, Emma Ilijoski, Holly Caspers (Maxine Peak 86’), Rola Badawiya

Unused substitutes: Nadine Knight, Ashley Dribbus
Yellow card: Sarah Morgan 52’

Around the Grounds
Illawarra Stingrays 1-1 APIA Leichhardt
Macarthur Rams 4-2 Emerging Jets
Manly United 1-1 Blacktown Spartans
Northern Tigers 0-3 NWS Spirit
postponed: Sydney Olympic v Bankstown City

Table

Read more of our NSW NPL coverage here.