Although a designated catchup round, only two ACT NPL (Capital Football) games were able to be played due to the state of grass pitches. We travelled to the Melrose Synthetic ground to witness West Canberra Wanderers up against Gungahlin United.
The other Round 9 catchup game available to view is Canberra Croatia vs Canberra United Academy.
For an alternate review of the round, check out Jeremy Magan’s article for Capital Football.
Match of the Round: West Canberra Wanderers vs Gungahlin United (Bar TV)
No doubt on a high after their unexpected triumph over Canberra Olympic last round, the West Canberra Wanderers must have entered this game with some confidence, perhaps even when Michelle Heyman turned up to take her place on the Gunners bench.
The emergence of Alyse Jensen in the attacking line has helped Wanderers coach Rey Castro with the question of where to best play captain Sarah Whitfield, equally gifted at either end of the field. Now he has the luxury of playing Whitfield as a defensive holding midfielder where she can help her defence while keeping an eye out for opportunities to get forward. Despite the recent loss of the influential Nikita Perry to Canberra Croatia (see last round’s wrap for how she is going) before the closing of the transfer window on 30 June, it is clear that this Jensen-as-forward Whitfield-as-6 arrangement is suiting the team.
The visitors were without the services of Erika Pennyfield but it is so good to at last see Karen Thompson (née Clarke) at the centre of defence for the Gunners. Thompson’s availability and experience have also opened up possibilities for coach Andrew Woodman, with captain Maddie Perceval in a rare wide midfield role. Over the last year, we have seen Perceval eager to contribute to the attack from the defence; this change allows her to express herself more freely in an attacking sense.
The striking thing about the Gunners’ bench (pardon the pun) was the sheer depth of attacking quality waiting to enter the game. Heyman, Ella-Rose Brown and Jade Brown all warmed the bench, with the latter due to return overseas soon.
Darby Whiteley got the scoring going for the Gunners in what was to be a significant game for her, as her pace off the mark and movement terrorised the home defence. The 9th minute saw a wall pass with Stella De Marco send Whiteley downfield and, unopposed in the Wanderers box, she wrong-footed keeper Samantha Briggs and tucked the ball into the net.
Four minutes later and it was Whiteley again, racing onto Nat De Marco’s perfect through ball, outpacing her defender, then finishing beautifully with her left foot in the right side of Briggs’ net.
It wasn’t long, however, before the home side hit back and revived their spirits. Starting debutant Sonja Tomanovits showed on several occasions a talent for harrying the Gunners’ defence. On this occasion in the 17th minute, she managed to dispossess Michelle Weinecke – not normally an easy thing to do – which gave Jensen just enough room to round Rachael Corbett and give keeper Emily Kelly no chance in the bottom left corner of the goal. The opening 17 minutes had borne witness to a three-goal flurry.
The balance of the half saw no further goals but was largely characterised by great-to-watch Gunners passing moves in tight spaces (a Gungahlin United NPLW trademark), Perceval driving towards the Wanderers box with the ball at her feet, and Jensen’s industry at the other end as she tirelessly alternated between a wider attacking role, and a slightly deeper false nine style role.
The halftime break saw coach Woodman double down on his team’s attacking intentions, bringing Heyman on for defender Ayla Robertson and shifting Perceval into a back three. Suddenly the Wanderers’ defence also had an attacker adept at harrying defenders to contend with. It didn’t take long for Heyman to make her presence felt, with her team moving into a 3-1 lead after three second-half minutes. Feeding a lovely central through ball for Ginger Oliver to run onto, Oliver placed her shot onto the right post, but Whiteley was there to tuck away the rebound and complete her hat-trick.
Not satisfied with an assist, Heyman was to score two goals of her own to wrap the game up with a 5-1 scoreline. The Gunners dominated the second half as further attacking substitutions rolled into the game (Jade and Ella-Rose Brown). Opportunities for Whitfield to get forward dried up, as did service to Jensen with the exception of the energiser bunny-like powers of Josie Dubbert from right back.
The first Heyman goal arrived on the hour, putting her foot powerfully through the ball unopposed from outside the area and giving Briggs no time to react. The second came 21 minutes later, a somewhat curious little goal having won the ball, then squeezing a looping left-footed deflected shot into the net in the act of being tackled.
This Gungahlin United side has an imposing look to it when the full squad is available. Add the wonder that is Michelle Heyman into a side containing the controlled calm and leadership of Thompson at the back, with Kelly in imperious form in goal and one of the best midfield short-passing games in the league – one that college import Michelle Weinecke has also bought into now – and you get a sense of what the Gunners are truly capable of.
It was the Wanderers today who felt the brunt of that strength, despite the in-form Jensen and a willing team attitude. Kudos goes to keeper Briggs for several good saves and for responding well as a keeper-sweeper knowledgeable on the characteristics of her fast home surface.
Both clubs celebrated some feel-good firsts after the game:
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>>> Full match timeline and team line-ups can be found here <<<
Final score:
West Canberra Wanderers 1 (Alyse Jensen 17′)
Gungahlin United 5 (Darby Whitely 9′ 13′ 48′, Michelle Heyman 60′ 81′)
Around The Grounds:
Canberra Croatia 1-0 Canberra United Academy
Canberra Olympic vs Belconnen United – postponed
Tuggeranong United vs ANU – abandoned
Ladder:
Next Round:
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