Round 8 of the National Premier League Women was headlined by Belconnen United’s utterly dominant 5-0 victory over Canberra Olympic, on a picture-perfect afternoon at O’Connor Enclosed.
With Olympic needing a win to stay in the race for top spot, the Blue Devils were the side who started on top and deservedly took a 19th minute lead after a superb passing move was capped off with a stunning Anneke Corry finish from the edge of the box.
While it was the only goal of the half, Olympic would have taken a 1-0 scoreline at the break, having sustained an entire 45 minutes of Belconnen pressure and chances on goal.
After the break Frank Cachia’s side looked to be starting brighter, however several individual errors at the back allowed the visitors to enhance their pressure once again, this time capitalising on a misplaced back pass to make it 2-0, as Keira Bobbin finished confidently.
Scott Conlon’s team continued to finish their chances three minutes later, as a Isabella Hindmarsh corner was headed home by Bronte Pyke for her third in two matches, before Alyssa Di-Campli rounded the total to four on 67 minutes with a clinical finish into the roof of the net.
Having rarely created a significant chance throughout the match, at 4-0 the game was done, however Liliana Altamore added to Olympic’s woes with a fifth after 73 minutes, prodding home from close range after Di-Campli’s cross wasn’t dealt with.
The win sees Belconnen stretch their lead at the top to nine points, 12 ahead of the reigning treble-winners Olympic who move out of the finals’ spots to fifth place.
Over at Kambah 2 West Canberra Wanderers got back to winning ways against Tuggeranong United, in a 5-1 Southside Derby victory.
Steve Rohan-Jones’ team hadn’t won any of their last four league matches, however a 16th minute Audrey McLaren opener set them up for a comfortable three points, as the midfielder finished brilliantly after being set up by Audrey Ward.
Eleven minutes later Tamara Cochrane emphasised her case for the golden boot with her 12th of the season, striking a sensational effort from long range into the bottom corner to make it two for the Wanderers.
With things looking good for the away side heading into the break, Tuggeranong grabbed a goal back on the stroke of half time, as Clare Kennedy-Spencer halved the deficit with a well-placed finish, after showing good strength to shake off her marker.
Despite a Tuggeranong fight-back, the second period belonged to the Wanderers, rounding the total to five after a Zoe Halpin penalty on 47 minutes was followed by a wonderful individual effort from Alex Gidis, and a well-placed finish from Perri Nash, goals that eventually contributed to a result that put them back into the top four.
The final match of the round saw Canberra Croatia and Gungahlin United play out an entertaining 3-3 draw at Deakin Stadium, in a match between two sides vying for second spot on the table.
Marcial Munoz’s team took the lead on 26 minutes after Amy Moore’s effort dipped into the penalty area and found the feet of Nat De Marco, who controlled superbly and finished making it 1-0.
It was a first half that belonged to the visitors, bringing a 2-0 lead into half-time as Bonnie Young added another stunning strike to her goal catalogue, after the winger cut inside and fired past Megan Snell from long range.
Croatia responded well in the second period however and brought it back to 2-1 early in the half through Ellie Raymond, after Brittany Palombi had shut down Georgia Ritchie in goal, and left the net open.
Despite Gungahlin’s restoration of the two-goal deficit, as Megan Castle converted against her old club, the quality of Musie Elongo’s squad proved to be too much to contain, as Brittany Palombi struck a stunning freekick into the top corner from long-range, to bring it back to 3-2.
Just like it was when Croatia defeated the Gunners two weeks ago, it was a Jamie Berkeley penalty that got in the way of collecting points, as the midfielder struck a confident effort into the back of the net, to ensure that the spoils were shared, and that Croatia remained ahead of Gungahlin in second place.
RESULTS
ROUND 8
Sunday 1 June
Canberra Olympic 0 Belconnen United 5 (Corry 19’, Bobbin 51’, Pyke 55’, Di-Campli 68’, Altamore 74’)
Canberra Croatia 3 (Raymond 53’, Palombi 63’, Berkeley 71’ (p)) Gungahlin United 3 (N. De Marco 26’, Young 42’, Castle 61’)
Tuggeranong United 1(Kennedy-Spencer 45’) West Canberra Wanderers 5 (McLaren 16’, Cochrane 27’, Halpin 47’ (p), Gidis 63’, Nash 71’)
TABLE
| P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | PTS | ||
| 1 | Belconnen United | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 53 | 7 | +46 | 24 |
| 2 | Canberra Croatia | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 22 | 10 | +12 | 16 |
| 3 | Gungahlin United | 8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 36 | 11 | +25 | 14 |
| 4 | West Canberra | 8 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 26 | 14 | +12 | 13 |
| 5 | Canberra Olympic | 7 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 18 | 17 | +1 | 12 |
| 6 | Majura FC | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 28 | -21 | 3 |
| 7 | Tuggeranong United | 7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 39 | -33 | 3 |
| 8 | ANU WFC | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 42 | -42 | 0 |
TOP SCORERS
12: Tamara COCHRANE (West Canberra Wanderers)
11: Keira BOBBIN (Belconnen United)
8: Megan CASTLE (Gungahlin United), Alyssa DI-CAMPLI (Belconnen United), Bonnie YOUNG (Gungahlin United)
6: Liliana ALTAMORE (Belconnen United), Jamie BERKELEY (Canberra Croatia), Natalie DE MARCO (Gungahlin United), Ginger OLIVER (Gungahlin United)
5: Anneke CORRY (Belconnen United), HALPIN (West Canberra Wanderers)
4: Sharon CHAO (Gungahlin United), Alexandra GIDIS (West Canberra Wanderers), Carmel LYNCH (Majura FC), Bronte PYKE (Belconnen United)
3: Tia BURRIDGE (Canberra Olympic), Leah CARNEGIE (Canberra Olympic), Alex MARTENS (Belconnen United), Alina ROBERTS (Belconnen United), Own GOALS
2: Acacia ARGENTO (Tuggeranong United), Isabella BARAC (Canberra Croatia), Ella BROWN (Canberra Olympic), Arusha CHEW (Canberra Croatia), Sofia FURLANETTO (Majura FC), Isabella HINDMARSH (Belconnen United), Alyse JENSEN (Canberra Olympic), Ailish MCDONAGH (Belconnen United), Riley MCQUEENIE (Canberra Croatia), Sofia MERKOUREAS (Canberra Croatia), Perri NASH (West Canberra Wanderers), Brittany PALOMBI (Canberra Croatia), Katrina PERIC (Canberra Olympic), Nikita PERRY (Canberra Olympic), Ellie RAYMOND (Canberra Croatia), Michaela THORNTON (Canberra Croatia)
1: Elke AITOLU (Canberra Olympic), Angelina BABIC (Canberra Croatia), Leila BILLINGTON (Belconnen United), Sienna BIRNIE (Canberra Olympic), Madison CACHIA (Canberra Olympic), Lisa CARY (Belconnen United), Stella DE MARCO (Gungahlin United), Elvein IBRAHIM (West Canberra Wanderers), Mollie JONSSON (Tuggeranong United), Claire KENNEDY-SPENCER (Tuggeranong United), Tarah MANTHONGSY (Tuggeranong United), Sofia MARTINIELO (Majura FC), Audrey MCLAREN (West Canberra Wanderers), Jessica MITCHELL (Tuggeranong United), Tatum MAZIS (Canberra Olympic), Eliza-Jane NORRIS (Canberra Croatia), Madeliene PERCEVAL (Gungahlin United), Lauren PRESTON (Belconnen United), Maddison SAWKINS (Belconnen United), Maddie STEINACKER (Belconnen United), Pearl TEIN (Belconnen United), Rachel VAN AALST (Gungahlin United), Darby WHITELEY (Gungahlin United)
TOP ASSISTS
7: Isabella BARAC (Canberra Croatia), Keira BOBBIN (Belconnen United), Anneke CORRY (Belconnen United), Bonnie YOUNG (Gungahlin United)
6: Audrey WARD (West Canberra Wanderers)
5: Isabella HINDMARSH (Belconnen United), Alina ROBERTS (Belconnen United)
4: Natalie DE MARCO (Gungahlin United), Alex MARTENS (Belconnen United), Ginger OLIVER (Gungahlin United),
3: Ella BROWN (Canberra Olympic), Megan CASTLE (Gungahlin United), Stella DE MARCO (Gungahlin United), Zoe HALPIN (West Canberra Wanderers), Perri NASH (West Canberra Wanderers)
2: Arusha CHEW (Canberra Croatia), Tamara COCHRANE (West Canberra Wanderers), Alyssa DI-CAMPLI (Belconnen United), Alexandra GIDIS (West Canberra Wanderers), Chelsea HATELY (Gungahlin United), Tatum MAZIS (Canberra Olympic), Amy MOORE (Gungahlin United), Bronte PYKE (Belconnen United), Abigail RICHARDS (Majura FC), Rachel VAN AALST (Gungahlin United), Darby WHITELEY (Gungahlin United)
1: Elke AITOLU (Canberra Olympic), Esperance ANDERSON (Tuggeranong United), Eliza BAKER (Majura FC), Jamie BERKLEY (Canberra Croatia), Sienna BIRNIE (Canberra Olympic), Tiana BOOTS (Canberra Croatia), Tia BURRIDGE (Canberra Olympic), Olivia BUYTEWEG (Gungahlin United), Madison CACHIA (Canberra Olympic), Lena CHRISTOPHERSON (Tuggeranong United), Lucy D’ARCY (Gungahlin United), Rhiannon DAVIS (Canberra Olympic), Olivia HICKS (West Canberra Wanderers, Alyse JENSEN (Canberra Olympic), Ariana KASHAN (Majura FC), Claire KENNEDY-SPENCER (Tuggeranong United), Jada LAMOND (Gungahlin United), Tarah MANTHONGSY (Tuggeranong United), Olivia MARTINIELLO (Majura FC), Ailish MCDONAGH (Belconnen United), Demi NIKIAS (West Canberra Wanderers), Stephenie NIKIAS (West Canberra Wanderers), Nikita PERRY (Canberra Olympic), Lauren PRESTON (Belconnen United), Madison SAWKINS (Belconnen United), Allegra SENTI (West Canberra Wanderers), Michaela THORNTON (Canberra Croatia), Sonja TOMANOVITS (West Canberra Wanderers)
Words: Sam Watson
