WNPL Matchday 17 is scheduled to start on Friday night at Kambah, but all eyes will be on the clash at O’Connor Enclosed on Sunday for the fixture between the teams second and third on the table.
Reigning champions Canberra Croatia travel south on Friday to play Tuggeranong United. Zoran Glavinic’s players will arrive at Kambah as favourites, after beating the Tuggies twice comfortably this season (5-0, 8-0). The best attack in the league seems even more dangerous these days, with Brittany Palombi hitting peak form late in the season once again. The left-footed forward has scored seven times in the past three rounds.
Tuggeranong United is at the other end of the table, only four points above the Wagga City Wanderers. Paulo Romero’s team was given an extra week off after their game was rained out Sunday. The Tuggies know what to expect against the league leaders but have consistently shown their spirit and combativity when facing them. Scoring goals has been the hard part for Lara Mustaine and her teammates. They will hope to find the back of Canberra Croatia’s net for the first time of the season on Sunday.
The duel of the weekend will take place at O’Connor Enclosed between Canberra Olympic and Belconnen United. Much has been said about the match-up between the two, especially since the likes of Michaela Thornton and Nicole Jalocha successfully moved to a darker shade of blue. The inclement weather forced Olympic to rest last weekend, so they will undoubtedly be ready for Sunday.
The Blue Devils are yet to get a win against either of the top two this season. Scott Conlon’s team has gone from strength to strength this season, and a win this weekend would bring them only three points behind Olympic. Four or the seven goals scored between these two teams this season (3-2, 1-1) happened in the last 15 minutes, so expect an entertaining clash, from start to finish.
The third final battle of the Wanderers of the season is on at Gissing Oval on Sunday afternoon. West Canberra travels down to the Riverina to face Wagga City. Rey Castro’s players finally got their first win in a while at Melrose and will start this weekend’s game as favourites. Their ticket to the finals not yet guaranteed, West Canberra can’t afford a negative result down south. Hattie Cram, Ginger Oliver and co need to show up and perform as they did against the Academy, to get even closer to post-season.
The Wanderers of the Riverina have improved this season, and their results against West Canberra is the best example of it. After losing 2-0 in game three, they were able to draw 0-0 on round ten. Hopefully they manage to up their latest result once more and to finally score a goal against the 4th seeded team. On a series of four losses in a row, Robert Tuksar will try to finish the season well, starting with this weekend.
The duel for the right to challenge West Canberra is played on Sunday afternoon at Hawker. Canberra United Academy hosts Gungahlin United and the winner will get closer to the Wanderers on the table. The Academy is without their captain and star goalkeeper, for the best reason: Chloe Lincoln is about to represent Australia at the U-20 FIFA Women’s World Cup. The rest of the team was close to get a result last weekend, losing the eight-goal thriller to West Canberra eventually.
The Gunners know the importance of Sunday’s game. With a game in hand, they are, as it stands, nine points behind West Canberra. Anything else than a win could mean the end of semi-finals’ hopes. Andrew Woodman has seen his team improve in recent weeks, as the 5-1 win over the Wanderers showed. Four goals were scored in each of the two encounters between Gunners and Academy in 2022, the WNPL weekend should finish on a thrilling encounter.
FIXTURES
ROUND 17
Friday 12 August
Tuggeranong United v Canberra Croatia (Kambah 2, 19:45)
Sunday 14 August
Canberra Olympic v Belconnen United (O’Connor Enclosed, 14:30)
Wagga City Wanderers v West Canberra Wanderers (Gissing Oval, 14:30)
Canberra United Academy v Gungahlin United (Hawker Football Centre, 17:10)
TABLE
P | W | D | L | GD | PTS | ||
1 | Canberra Croatia | 16 | 14 | 2 | 0 | +72 | 44 |
2 | Canberra Olympic | 15 | 11 | 4 | 0 | +54 | 37 |
3 | Belconnen United | 15 | 10 | 1 | 4 | +34 | 31 |
4 | West Canberra Wanderers | 16 | 7 | 3 | 6 | -13 | 24 |
5 | Gungahlin United | 15 | 4 | 3 | 8 | -11 | 15 |
6 | Canberra United Academy | 16 | 4 | 2 | 10 | -16 | 14 |
7 | Tuggeranong United | 15 | 2 | 2 | 11 | -39 | 8 |
8 | Wagga City Wanderers | 16 | 1 | 1 | 14 | -84 | 4 |
Words: Jeremy Magan