The West Canberra Wanderers are in danger of relegation, heading into the second half of the Women’s National Premier League (NPLW) season, after a loss to Canberra United Academy (CUA) last week.
A disappointing 3-0 loss on Sunday means Wanderers missed an opportunity to go level on points with ANU WFC and gain points on Tuggeranong United, while CUA moved seven points clear of the bottom three.
Wanderers coach, Reinaldo Portillo-Castro discussed how crucial games against lower placed teams are, after a disappointing result.
“I think our season will depend on the direct games between the bottom three,” Castro said.
Wanderers should feel unlucky with the loss. Goalkeeper, Emily Pearce, kept Wanderers in the game with early saves. But a brilliant free-kick from Jaya Bowman put the Academy ahead in the 35th minute.
Wanderers looked hungry for a goal; Nikita Perry particularly would have liked to mark her final Wanderers game with a strike but couldn’t find a way through. Canberra United capitalised on lapses in defence, scoring two goals to finish the contest.
This stopped Wanderers from going unbeaten in three games. After beating Tuggeranong 2-0, Lauren Hall capitalised from the spot to win Wanderers a point against ANU WFC. Whilst the loss will be the freshest in Wanderers’ minds, Castro will be happy with the last three weeks, after picking up their only four points of the season.
Four points take them above Tuggeranong and as Wanderers’ main competitors in the relegation battle, Castro will be glad they have another game at home against their South-Canberran competitors.
Castro believes that his team will stay up, not just by beating Tuggeranong in Round 15, nor ANU in Rounds 12 and 19, but by challenging every team they face.
“The way I see it is you’re not entitled to the wins. You need to have a good game, follow the game plan, and make the most of it when the momentum is going your way,” Castro said.
“Same with Deakin and Olympic, if they take the pedal off, I’m sure any of the teams will go and beat them. Because they’re not entitled for the win either.”
ANU WFC picked up a point against league heavyweights, Belconnen United, in Round seven. This result struck belief throughout the bottom four, particularly with Wanderers. A team full of potential, Castro doesn’t pinpoint any weak area on the field but insists his young team needs time.
“We haven’t seen the best out of this group yet. The girls still have so much to give,” Castro admitted. “We just need time and trust in ourselves.”
Wanderers have also struggled in the Men’s NPL this year, sitting last without a point. Wanderers is a club that prides themselves on development of players into the NPL. Catering to the inner-south of Canberra, Wanderers have a big pool of players to pull from, but this also means their NPL sides have a lot to fight for. Castro sees how a double-relegation season could hurt the club.
“Our younger players deserve opportunities not only through programs at CUA, but also in performance-based programs like ours,” Castro said. “Last year we had the majority of our juniors finish in the top four. This year if we don’t stay in NPLW I think some of these players could leave.”
Wanderers continue their fight for survival at 12:45 this Sunday at Melrose Synthetic where they face title-contenders, Belconnen where they’ll hope to pull off a shock like ANU WFC did.
Words: Henry Ricketts
