NPLW WA Round 11 Review

Round 11 of the NPLW WA competition has finally given us an indication of both the possible champions and the makeup of the top four. MUM FC and Perth SC are locked in a battle for the title, while Hyundai NTC, Redbacks, Fremantle and Balcatta are all striving for the remaining two spots in the top four, with just one point separating those four teams.

The round opened on Friday evening at Murdoch University. Hosts MUM FC were aiming to open a temporary three point gap on Perth and also hoping to boost their already formidable goal difference against bottom of the ladder visitors Subiaco.

MUM flew out of the blocks straight away, basically camping inside the Subiaco half from the first minute and not really leaving there for the rest of the game. They opened their account in the seventh minute thanks to Stacey Learmont, whose header from a corner was too powerful for young Analeisha Pickering to do anything more than parry into the net.

The home team then laid siege to the visitors’ goal, and wave upon wave of attacks crashed into the Subiaco defence. To their credit, Subiaco held firm and Pickering made some fine saves, but the second goal had to come at some stage. It finally arrived in the 33rd minute when Ellie Lamonte was the beneficiary of a fine “eye of the needle” pass by Thalia Organ which put her into space in the Subiaco penalty area. The league’s second-highest scorer needed no further invitation, tucking the ball into the corner of the net for her eighth goal of the campaign.

The three points were now safely in the bag for the ladder leaders and the only question remaining was just how many MUM would score. Their third was scored just two minutes after the restart. A cross from Learmont evaded the keeper and young Charli Wainwright was on hand to tuck the ball away, much to the delight of her teammates who celebrated her goal with great enthusiasm.

The league’s leading scorer, Katarina Jukic, was still to score in the game, but she rectified that in the 57th minute when she converted a penalty with great aplomb after she was brought down in the box by substitute Marissa Pidgeon.

MUM’s fifth and Jukic’s second came in the 74th minute when she went on a mazy run inside the box. Her shot seemed to be well covered by Pickering in the Subiaco goal, but the keeper misjudged the pace somewhat and it squirmed over the line. Pickering then made amends with a fine save in the 78th minute to deny Jukic her hattrick, conceding a corner in the process. Unfortunately, an own goal by Pidgeon from the resultant kick undid all her good work and MUM had their sixth goal. The home team continued to press for as many goals as possible. Only one more was forthcoming, Jukic finally grabbing her hattrick in the 89th minute with a move that she started and finished.

The 7-0 win propelled MUM three points clear of Perth and boosted their goal difference to a massive +26, which could well be a title-winning number.

On a delightfully warm spring Saturday afternoon, third-placed Fremantle City travelled to Curtin University, hoping to put pressure on the teams one point below them by opening up a gap before they played on Sunday. Fremantle were also hoping to get the double over their hosts, having beaten them 5-0 in round two.

Curtin was coming off a slightly controversial loss in Round 10. Their game was abandoned at half time and the 1-0 score in Balcatta’s favour at that point was enough for Balcatta to be given the three points. The University team had also given NTC a tough game and drawn with Redbacks. Fremantle could ill afford to take them lightly, and indeed the first 15 minutes clearly demonstrated that a repeat of the round two result was highly unlikely.

Curtin was the first to come close the breaking the deadlock when Fremantle keeper Dayle Schroeder mis-controlled a back pass and Curtin’s Abena Selormey nearly capitalised on the keeper’s error.

Much of the first half was spent in the middle third of the pitch, but in the space of two minutes Curtin goalkeeper Rochelle Hondema was twice called into action to keep her side in the game. In the 41st minute she had to save smartly at the feet of Aaliyah Jorquera, and then 60 seconds later had to gather a cross as Fremantle started to up the tempo.

The visitors continued to attack after the interval, and Hondema again needed to be alert on 47 minutes when Tash Rigby tried to float one in from the edge of the box. The keeper was able to parry the ball up and then cleared it at the second attempt. At this point, a gambling person would have laid good odds that Fremantle would score first, but in the 53rd minute a corner by Curtin served as a reminder that they were still very much in the game. Schroeder failed to collect the ball and as it pinged around the box it was cleared off the line, then struck against the bar before Selormey slammed in what she thought was the opening goal. Unfortunately for Curtin referee Stewart Beattie had spotted an infringement during the chaos and awarded a free-kick to Fremantle.

Curtin then had a free-kick of their own deep into Fremantle territory on 55 minutes. Nina Boorman’s delivery was met by Selormey and this time the goal stood, with Selormey immediately surrounded by her delighted teammates.

Despite Fremantle increasing the pressure on the home team, the goal had given Curtin renewed resolve and they were able to keep the visitors scoreless to record their first-ever win in the NPLW WA. Needless to say, their celebrations were long and loud!

Fremantle now knew that results on Sunday could potentially push them out of the top four, and with just three games remaining in the home-and-away season dropped points now have the potential of being very costly.

The first of the Sunday games was at Kingsway Olympic, where Northern Redbacks entertained the Hyundai NTC on probably the best natural surface in the league.

The game got off to a cracking start, and it was NTC who were on the front foot with Tijan McKenna and her sister Leticia both going close inside the first 15 minutes. The home team’s defence was being well marshalled by Kim Carroll though, and with Morgan Aquino back to full match fitness it looked as though Redbacks had weathered the initial storm. However in the 21st minute referee Adrien Liechti judged that Cheyenne Wise-Jarvis had handled the ball in the box, much to the bemusement of the home team and their supporters. Despite the protests, the decision stood and Leticia McKenna put the spot kick just out of the reach of Perth Glory teammate Aquino to put her team 1-0 up.

Going behind seemed to jolt Redbacks, and from the restart a surging run by Melanie Doeglas after being put through by Renee Leota forced the NTC to concede their first corner of the game. The game now started to swing back and forth with NTC breaking quickly on the counter, and both Monique Prinsloo and Judy Connolly forced Aquino to make saves. Redbacks then hit NTC with a counter of their own in the 40th minute when Doeglas again found space, but her shot lacked power and Miranda Templeman was able to gather the effort with ease. The home team nearly scored an equaliser just before half time when their leading scorer Sarah Carroll was put into space by Shawn Billam. The striker’s first time shot beat Templeman but bounced back off the inside of the post before being hacked clear for a corner.

The second half continued in the same vein, with both sides acutely aware that three points would be crucial at this stage in the season. On 49 minutes Hana Lowry forced the save of the game as Aquino pushed the ball away for a corner.

In the 69th minute Redbacks finally managed to claw their way back into the game when a clever pass from Emma McMurdo released Wise-Jarvis, who had been pushed into an attacking role by this point. Her perfectly timed run got her to the ball just ahead of the onrushing Templeman, who she rounded and then rolled the ball into the net. 1-1 and game on!

Redbacks were desperate for the win but had to be wary of NTC’s threat on the counter. The last 20 minutes saw the game ebb and flow as both teams sought the vital second goal, and NTC nearly grabbed the winner in stoppage time when yet another fine save from Aquino denied Leticia McKenna. There was still time for one more twist in the tale when a 93rd minute corner was headed over the line by Isabella Wallhead, however her joy was short-lived as referee Liechti had spotted a foul on Aquino and the goal was disallowed.

The draw was probably not what either team wanted, but the shared points meant they both jumped over Fremantle and back into the top four.

The final game of the round was the Italian derby between second placed Perth and fifth placed Balcatta. A win for Perth would put them back on equal points with MUM at the top of the table, whilst a win for their visitors would see them jump into third, so there was plenty at stake.

Perth started the strongest and completely dominated the opening half hour. In the 12th minute Liana Cook struck the bar from a corner, and Balcatta keeper Gabby Dal Busco was forced to save an Abbey Meakins free kick on 20 minutes. The visitors were wilting under the pressure being applied by Perth, and they conceded three corners in rapid succession. The third finally yielded a goal for the Azzurri when their leading scorer Cook headed home.

With the best defence in the league, Perth knows how to defend a lead and the onus was now on Balcatta to try and score against a team that had kept three consecutive clean sheets. Balcatta didn’t mount a meaningful attack until after the half hour mark, but then Perth keeper Rebecca Bennett was called into action in the 35th minute when she made a scrambling save from Giorgia Alford, and again a couple of minutes later as she pushed a Caitlin Doeglas shot over the bar.

Balcatta coach Lisa Tana was probably not happy with her players at half time and they certainly came out in the second period looking like they had a point to prove. Within two minutes of the restart Ashleigh Panaia tested Bennett with a sharp shot, however the Perth stopper was up to the task.

On the hour there was an almighty scare for Perth as a back pass from Jenna Onions was underhit. Panaia was on to it in a flash, but Bennett was alert to the danger and managed to get boot on ball before Panaia, saving her defender’s blushes. Another back pass in the 71st minute caused another scare for the Perth defence as the ball bounced up off the uneven turf and forced Bennett to head clear. Panaia was again on hand to cause mischief, but Bennett was able to get the ball away before any real damage was done. Perth was then able to see the rest of the game out relatively safely to earn their fifth straight win and propel themselves back to the top of the ladder.

The margins for error are now getting smaller and smaller with just three games remaining. Whilst MUM and Perth seem assured of the top two spots the order they will finish in remains uncertain. Beneath them, the scramble for the next two spots will no doubt produce more twists and turns before the end of the season.

LADDER

Round 12 Fixtures (16th, 18th & 20th Sept)

Fremantle City vs Subiaco AFC (16th Sept)
MUM FC vs Northern Redbacks (18th Sept)
Perth SC vs Curtin University (20th Sept)
Balcatta FC vs Hyundai NTC (20th Sept)