The winter rains finally came during Round 8 which finished with the leaders stretching their advantage at the top of the table to five points as they continued their 100% start to the season with a thumping win against Subiaco. Perth SC could only manage a draw against Fremantle and had Georgia Cassidy sent off during the game. Balcatta Etna recorded another big win to close the gap to just one point between them and Perth SC in second place, whilst Hyundai NTC ended a four-game losing streak with a convincing win against UWA Nedlands.
HYUNDAI NTC 4 – 1 UWA NEDLANDS
The round kicked off on Saturday afternoon at the Sam Kerr Centre with the Hyundai NTC hosting UWA Nedlands. Both teams were licking their wounds after losing 7-1 in their previous games, so there was bound to be a little caginess about the opening exchanges, but an unanswered three-goal second half for the home team gave them the three points and strengthened their hold on fourth spot.
NTC welcomed their Junior Matilda goalkeeper, Jessica Skinner, back into their first team whilst UWA Nedlands had new signing Andrea Preiato in their lineup following her departure from Fremantle City.
The home team opened the scoring in the 29th minute with a goal that was the antithesis of their carefully crafted possession-based football playing philosophy. A long ball from the back was not dealt with by the UWA Nedlands defence allowing Theodora Mouithys to burst clear of the cover before rounding Morgan Springer in the UWA goal and rolling the ball into the empty net to make it 1-0.
In their first season at the NPLW level, UWA has shown that they are a side prepared to roll up its sleeves and dig deep, and they did this to craft a well-worked equaliser in the 32nd minute. New signing Preiato was at the heart of it as her clever back heel released Chloe Rodrigo and her curling shot went over Skinner’s head to make it 1-1 at the break.
NTC pressed hard for a second goal from the start of the second period and got their just rewards in the 53rd minute when Nelli Johnson was allowed too much space outside the box and she let fly to make it 2-1.
UWA continued to work hard and make life difficult for their opponents but their resistance was broken in the 70th minute. Lacey Heys collected a throw-in deep inside the UWA half and lofted a ball towards the penalty area. Springer misjudged the flight of the ball and Cate Mcauliffe was on hand to volley the ball home to make it 3-1.
UWA were still not finished and Melina Franklin had two chances to grab a goal for her team in the last 15 minutes. First, in the 74th minute, she was released into space after UWA won the ball in midfield, but her shot drifted just wide of the post, then in the 89th minute she found space between the two centre-backs inside the 6-yard box but her shot was again wide of the mark. They had another chance in the 92nd minute when Skinner was called into action to push a shot from Alexandra Lyons out for a corner.
NTC scored the game’s final goal in the 94th minute when Mia Britton applied the finishing touch to a fine team goal to make the score 4-1.
NTC coach Ben Anderton will be relieved to have a win after four successive defeats but 4-1 didn’t truly reflect the game as UWA Nedlands created several chances, and how UWA players managed to find so much space in the penalty box will be a concern for him.
The UWA coach Lawrence Lewis will take some comfort from his team’s tenacity and work rate, but there is still much work to be done in the defensive third as they now have the worst defensive record in the league.
There are no league fixtures next week as it’s the State Cup Quarter Finals, and both teams face tough tests with UWA Nedlands hosting Balcatta Etna and the Hyundai NTC travelling to Fremantle.
FREMANTLE CITY 1 – 1 PERTH SC
The game of the round was one of the best of the season and had plenty of drama including a red card and a missed penalty. It also had seven contracted A-league players taking part which is by far the largest for one game this season and may be the highest for any game in the NPLW era.
Melbourne City’s Tijan McKenna started for Perth alongside fellow Young Matilda and Perth Glory player Georgia Cassidy. Also starting for Perth SC was Perth Glory’s third-choice keeper Lily Bailey. Fremantle lined up with Perth Glorys Abbey Green and Clara Hoarau in their starting XI.
Fremantle had the first significant chance of the game in the 14th minute when Sophie Meaden was released by a fine through ball by Abbey Green, but her shot struck the near post with Lily Bailey beaten.
They had an even better chance in the 25th minute when they were awarded a penalty kick after Sophia Papalia was adjudged to have fouled Anna Powell. Their captain, Annabelle Leek, took the kick but it went over the bar and the score remained at 0-0.
In the 31st minute, Georgia Cassidy caught her Glory teammate, Clara Hoarau, with a trailing arm to the face which required treatment for the Fremantle player and led to a yellow card for the Perth midfielder. Just eleven minutes later she picked up another yellow card when she again appeared to make contact with her arm to the face of a Fremantle player. Janice Kiama was the Fremantle player this time and the referee was quick to issue the second yellow and Cassidy was sent off for the third time in her NPLW career.
At halftime both teams made substitutions, resulting in no less than six A-League players on the field simultaneously, with Bailey, McKenna and Stajcic for Perth whilst Fremantle had Green, Hoarau and Lala.
Having already used two substitutes in the first half and down to 10 players, Danielle Brogan had made a big gamble bringing on two more subs at the beginning of the half, but with Ella Lincoln in the team there is always a chance of a goal and in the 55th minute she struck. Using clever movement, Lincoln found space in the box and was picked out by Wainwright. The Perth striker made no mistake with her shot to score her ninth of the season and make the score 0-1.
The lead lasted until the 70th minute when Fremantle equalised. Green showed strength with the ball at her feet to get into the Perth penalty area and her run attracted the attention of two defenders. They couldn’t clear the ball cleanly and it fell to Meaden who made amends for her first-half miss by firing past Bailey for her first goal of the season to make it 1-1.
Perth nearly regained the lead in the 76th minute when McKenna fired from long-range. The Fremantle keeper, Dayle Schroeder, could only parry the ball out but she was up quickly to deny Lincoln who had pounced on the loose ball.
The game ended 1-1, which was a result that did neither team any favours. Perth SC fell five points behind the league leaders, whilst Fremantle are the same number of points behind fourth-placed NTC.
Playing with 10 players for the whole second half and coming away with a point will feel satisfying for Perth, but the pace being set by RedStar means that any slip-up makes overhauling them so much harder.
Fremantle will feel they have dropped points in this game and should have been ahead in the first half. They didn’t make the player advantage count in the 2nd half which will be concerning for coach Faye Chambers.
Both teams play in the Cup next week with Fremantle hosting NTC and Perth travelling to Subiaco.
BALCATTA ETNA 4 – 1 MUM FC
After a big win last week, Balcatta were probably thinking of getting a similar result against the bottom team to boost their goal difference and stay in touch with Perth and Perth RedStar. They should have been wary of their opponents though, who had pushed Fremantle in the previous rounds 2-1 loss.
Any sense of complacency from the home team would have been well and truly shattered in the 7th minute when the visitors took the lead. Emily Dewar’s corner from the right was headed onto the bar by Emma Ylias only for the rebound to hit her head again and fly into the net. Sometimes you get lucky!
Despite welcoming Tia Stonehill back from Perth Glory, the home team struggled to break down a disciplined and well-organised MUM FC defence and had to wait until the 38th minute for an equaliser. Stonehill was dribbling her way towards goal when she was brought down in the box, and Abbey Meakins made no mistake from the penalty spot to make it 1-1.
The home team took the lead four minutes later through Lucy Jerram. A clever ball from Meakins released the pacy winger, and her left-footed finish gave Manon Gebauer no chance in the MUM FC goal to make it 2-1 at the break. This was Jerrams 10th goal of the campaign.
Balcatta then wrapped the points up with the goal of the game in the 59th minute when Meakins fired home a ferocious free-kick home from long range to make it 3-1.
She wasn’t finished scoring yet and notched up her second hat trick in two games in the 62nd minute when she applied a neat finish to a cross from Jerram to finish the scoring at 4-1. This was her 11th of the season and she now leads the race for the Golden Boot ahead of Jerram (10) and Perth RedStar’s Reina Kagami (10).
With Perth dropping points against Fremantle, Balcatta’s win means they are just a point behind the Azzurri, and with Stonehill now back they have one of the quickest forward lines in the league as she joins Jerram and Prinsloo. The challenge for coach Pete Rakic will be to get his side to play to their strengths whilst not forsaking his possession-based approach to the game.
MUM FC had another solid performance and continues to grow and develop under coach Steve Atkins. He will probably admit that his current squad is not yet ready to challenge the top three teams, but he will hope that improvement continues so his team can take points off teams immediately above them.
The State Cup draw has not been kind to MUM FC as they must travel to RedStar Arena to take on the league leaders, whilst Balcatta will be favourites for their game against UWA Nedlands.
SUBIACO AFC 0 – 5 PERTH REDSTAR
The round finished with a convincing win for the leaders as they ran out comfortable winners courtesy of a four-goal first half.
They opened the scoring in the 8th minute when a long ball from Andreia Teixeira was not cut out by the Subiaco defence and allowed Reina Kagami to run clear and lift the ball over Monique Todd to make it 1-0.
The Japanese midfielder doubled the lead with her second goal 10 minutes later. The Subiaco defence was again punished for poor defending as they attempted to play the ball out from the back. An errant pass went straight to Kagami and she played a neat one-two with Renee Leota before hitting a left-footed shot to make it 2-0.
The league leaders then effectively sealed the game in the 35th minute with a third goal courtesy of full-back Quyen Doan. She reacted quickest to Todd’s attempted clearance from a corner and volleyed the ball home to make it 3-0.
A fourth was then added in the 45th minute. Leota cleverly found some space on the right of the penalty area before crossing to the far post where Doeglas applied the finishing touch with a neat volley to score her 8th of the season and make it 4-0.
The rains arrived in the second half and made conditions difficult for both sides and whilst Subiaco displayed a little more attacking threat they never really threatened Gabby Dal Busco in the RedStar goal.
A final flourish to the scoreline was added in the 62nd minute when Kagami spotted the run of her countrywoman Manami Arai and she applied a neat finish to make the final score 5-0.
With Perth dropping points against Fremantle the leaders have extended their lead at the top of the table to 5 points and have now scored four goals or more on 7 occasions this season to give them a goal difference of +34.
For Subiaco coach Greg Farrell this was another disappointing result and he lamented his side’s defending when he spoke after the game;
“Each of the first 4 goals was our fault for various reasons. We wanted to make a statement today and beat RedStar but individual mistakes cost us. The positive is that we’ve come a long way and losses to top teams are bitterly disappointing rather than being accepted as the norm. We still have plenty of work to do at an individual and team level, but there’s still a great spirit and belief within the group that will help build strength.”
Next week’s cup games see RedStar host MUM FC, whilst Subiaco must face another top 3 team when they host Perth.
Performance of the Round
A battling performance by Perth SC with 10 players to earn a point at Fremantle when it would have been more likely for the home team to prevail earns the plaudits this week. It’s also impossible to ignore the efforts of Abbey Meakins with her second hat trick in successive games.
Click here for the Round 8 goal highlights!
League Standings after NPLW WA Round 8
| P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Points | Form | ||
| 1 | Perth RedStar FC | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 40 | 6 | +34 | 24 | WWWWW |
| 2 | Perth SC | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 27 | 7 | +20 | 19 | DWWWW |
| 3 | Balcatta Etna FC | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 31 | 13 | +18 | 18 | WWLWW |
| 4 | Hyundai NTC | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 15 | 23 | -8 | 12 | WLLLL |
| 5 | Fremantle City FC | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 15 | 17 | -2 | 7 | DWLLW |
| 6 | Subiaco AFC | 8 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 12 | 27 | -15 | 7 | LLWLL |
| 7 | UWA Nedlands FC | 8 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 10 | 33 | -23 | 4 | LLWLL |
| 8 | MUM FC | 8 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 31 | -24 | 3 | LLLWL |
Round 9 Fixtures
Friday 7th Jun
FREMANTLE CITY vs BALCATTA ETNA – Hilton Park 8:30 pm
Sunday 9th Jun
MUM FC vs HYUNDAI NTC – Besteam Stadium 3:00 pm
PERTH REDSTAR FC vs PERTH SC – RedStar Arena 3:00 pm
SUBIACO AFC vs UWA NEDLANDS FC – Rosalie Park 3:45 pm
GOLDEN BOOT STANDINGS
11 – Abbey Meakins (Balcatta Etna FC)
10 – Lucy Jerram (Balcatta Etna FC)
10 – Reina Kagami (Perth RedStar FC)
9 – Ella Lincoln (Perth SC)
8 – Caitlin Doeglas (Perth RedStar FC)
