After a week’s break for State Cup games, the league returned on the weekend. After the round five fixtures, the competition has a new leader, the top four teams are the same as those that finished in the top four in 2022, there is one team undefeated and one team without a win.
MUM FC 10 – 0 Curtin University
The round kicked off on Friday evening with MUM FC hosting Curtin University. The visitors were able to hold the hosts out until the 19th minute, but once the first goal went in from Vanessa Miller it was an uphill task for the team with the worst defensive record in the league. Miller grabbed her second in the 23rd but Curtin then suggested they may stage a comeback when Kiana Sumitani struck the post from long range. This was the end of their resistance though and in the 28th minute, Jessica Johnson rounded the keeper and stroked the ball into an empty net. Miller then completed her hattrick in the 35th minute to give the home side a 4-0 lead at the break.
Four became five almost immediately after the break when Sam Mather scored in the 46th minute. MUM then really put Curtin to the sword scoring three goals in six minutes between the 54th and 60th minutes to make it 8-0. Skipper Charli Wainwright, Mathers, and Clara Hoarau were the goalscorers.
Two more goals from Johnson and Wainwright in the last 10 minutes ended Curtin’s misery at 10-0.
For MUM this was a welcome return to winning ways after their six-goal mauling from Perth SC in the previous round, and they now sit just one point outside of the top four. A tough game awaits them at Grindleford Reserve next week when they take on Balcatta Etna in round six.
Curtin at least had a couple of shots on goal, but they showed once again they have an enormous amount of work to do to be competitive in the league. The situation is looking increasingly bleak for them, and with their U21 side forfeiting a game on the weekend for the second time this season there appears to be little in their squad depth to assist them. Things get no easier for them next week when they travel to Perth SC and face the leagues leading scorers.
Perth RedStar FC 3 – 0 Balcatta Etna FC
A sun-drenched RedStar Arena greeted both sides on Sunday for a game in which both sides desperately needed the three points. For RedStar a win was vital to keep in touch with the top two, whilst Balcatta were keen to get only their second win of the season.
As local neighbours and long-time opponents in the women’s game, this fixture has always been a hard-fought affair and Sunday’s game was no different, with the first half being a bit of an arm wrestle.
RedStar nearly broke the deadlock in the 15th minute when Renee Leota had an attempt cleared off the line, whilst Balcatta’s Kim McCartney went close in the 25th minute when her effort was well saved by Maya Deiderichsen in the RedStar goal.
In the second half the home team stepped things up a gear and they got their just rewards in the 55th minute through Japanese import Reina Kagami who struck a right-footed curling shot into the top corner to make it 1-0.
Four minutes later the home side doubled their lead when second-half substitute Queyn Doan was the first to react to an Olivia Wood header that bounced back off the bar. Doan turned the ball back into the six-yard box and Leota stabbed it home.
Kagami then made sure of the points with another sweet strike, this time with her left foot, to make it 3-0 in the 89th minute.
RedStar coach Carlos Vega-Mena spoke after the game about his side’s performance.
“We knew it was going to be a tough game with Balcatta looking for the win, but the girls were determined to get the three points. They played some great combinations and scored three quality goals to get the points.
“Very happy with their performance, especially in the second half.”
Tim Cash, the Balcatta coach, had this to say
“We competed in many moments and should have scored goals. As the game progressed, Redstar got stronger, and we conceded twice. We had a chance to get back into the game, but we missed and Redstar added another.”
Fremantle City 1 – 0 Subiaco AFC
There was just one point separating these two teams going into this Round Five clash, so it was unlikely to be a free-scoring affair, especially given that the sides had only scored five goals between them outside of their games against Curtin.
The game followed the form book with neither side able to score in the first half, although Fremantle could count themselves unlucky not to go into the break in the lead as they had the lion’s share of the game.
The home side made the vital breakthrough in the 54th minute when Jamie-Lee Gale profited from an excellent through ball by Kat Jukic to poke the ball past the Subiaco keeper and make it 1-0.
Subiaco very nearly got the equaliser late in the game when Fremantle goalkeeper Dayle Schroeder was forced into a double save to deny Marianna Tabain from a free kick and then Frankie Murrya from the follow-up.
Subiaco coach Greg Farrell spoke about the game afterwards
“We were under the pump for long periods of the first half. We didn’t get the ball into feet up front and didn’t finish the chances we created.
“We only made a few defensive mistakes, but one was punished and that was enough.”
The win propels Fremantle back into the top four and they are now unbeaten in their last three. They have a very tough game next up though as they face off against league leaders Hyundai NTC.
Subiaco has now fallen to 7th spot on the ladder and only has the win against Curtin to their name. They next face Perth RedStar, a side they have never taken any points from in the NPLW era.
Perth SC 1 – 3 Hyundai NTC
The last game of the round was also the biggest one, with the two remaining unbeaten teams going head-to-head. Perth SC hadn’t conceded a goal in their four previous games but were playing a side that beat them in every game they played against each other last season.
Perth welcomed back Poppie Hooks from her recent trip to the USA with the U19 Australian schoolgirls, and Gemma Craine who was back after a short absence with a hamstring injury.
NTC was without the services of junior Matildas Ischia Brooking and Ruby Cuthbert who were away on international duty.
The first quarter of an hour saw Perth SC shade possession without creating any real clear-cut chances, but in the 17th minute, the NTC struck the first blow. A long clearance from goalkeeper Lily Bailey picked out Mia Britton and she had too much pace for Perth’s Liana Cook and she burst clear of her opponent to send a cross into the box. This was met by Klaudia Houlis at the back post and she made no mistake with her finish to make it 1-0.
Perth were stung by this and increased the intensity of their game. This resulted in an equaliser for them in the 28th minute when a clever ball from Abbey Meakins released Ellie La Monte in the penalty area, and the leagues leading scorer made no mistake with her finish to register her sixth goal of the campaign.
There was then a scare for the Perth defence when a Georgia Cassidy free kick hit the bar in the 42nd minute but fortunately for the Azzurri, no one from the NTC was able to capitalise on the rebound.
Perth hit the woodwork themselves just a minute later when La Monte found a yard of space in the box and her early shot hit the post and bounced away for a corner, from which she flashed another shot just wide of the goal.
The second half developed into a see-saw battle with Perth edging the majority of chances, but the decisive moment in the game came in the 81st minute when Cassidy was adjudged to have been fouled by Cook in the penalty area and a penalty was awarded. As this was Cook’s second yellow she was sent from the pitch and then to make matters worse, Perth SC’s coach Peter Rakic was also given a red for protesting about the penalty kick too vociferously for the referee’s liking.
Cassidy dispatched the kick for her third penalty of the season and Perth SC were now faced with an uphill task to get an equaliser with 10 players, no coach and just 9 minutes of normal time to play.
They pushed players forward to try and even the score, but were hit by a classic counterattack in injury time with Louise Tana wrapping up the game 3-1.
A disappointed Perth SC coach Peter Rakic spoke after the game;
“I’m proud of the girls performance as I do believe that we deserved more out of that match. We had our half chances that we perhaps should have been more clinical on and it felt as though another goal was inevitable, if not, I was quite content with a 1-1 draw.
“We just have to focus our attention moving forward and remain positive, for even in defeat, there’s always room to grow and valuable lessons learned.”
This would have been a tough defeat for Perth and they have now dropped points against their two main rivals for the title, but there is plenty of time left in the season to regroup and with a game against Curtin next week, they should get back to winning ways.
NTC will be flying after this result which maintains their 100% record. Coach Ben Anderton will know there’s a long way to go yet in the season, but he must be delighted with his players so far.
They face another tough test next week when they travel to Fremantle City who will be buoyed with the knowledge that they beat the NTC in the night series 3rd and 4th place playoff a couple of months ago.
Click here for the Round 5 goal highlights.
League Standings after NPLW WA Round 5
| P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Points | ||
| 1 | Hyundai NTC | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 4 | +7 | 12 |
| 2 | Perth SC | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 17 | 3 | +14 | 10 |
| 3 | Perth RedStar | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 2 | +10 | 10 |
| 4 | Fremantle City | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 9 | +1 | 7 |
| 5 | MUM FC | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 12 | 9 | +3 | 6 |
| 6 | Balcatta Etna FC | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 5 | +5 | 4 |
| 7 | Subiaco AFC | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 16 | 10 | +6 | 3 |
| 8 | Curtin University | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 46 | -46 | 0 |
Round 6 Fixtures
Sunday 7th May
FREMANTLE FC vs HYUNDAI NTC – Hilton Park 3:00 pm
BALCATTA ETNA FC vs MUM FC – Grindleford Reserve 3:00 pm
SUBIACO AFC vs PERTH REDSTAR – Rosalie Park 3:00 pm
PERTH SC vs CURTIN UNIVERSITY FC – Dorrien Gardens 4:00 pm
Click here for more NPLW WA coverage.
