The top four took no prisoners against the bottom four in Round 18 of the Women’s National Premier League as the race for the title hots up entering the final straight of what has been a rollercoaster of a campaign. Only four points separate first from fourth with matches running out for all involved.
Belconnen United hold the destiny of the silverware in their own hands and threw down the gauntlet to the rest as they blitzed West Canberra Wanderers at McKellar Park, sweeping aside their visitors and winning 7-0.
Against her former squad, Hattie Cram extended her form of recent weeks with two goals, the first after 135 seconds played, like a fox in the box with a precise shot inside the area. Her second goal came twenty minutes later, with a finish from up close after Talia Backhouse had served her on a platter.
The third goal of the game eight minutes before the break was a masterpiece from Pearl Tein, a missile in the top right corner from 25 meters away. Backhouse rounded things up with an opportunistic effort in the top left corner a minute before going to the locker room. The Wanderers managed to stop the bleeding in the second half, until the last ten minutes when the flood gates opened again.
Bessie Riethmuller took advantage of a ball released by Sam Briggs in her box to make it 5-0 at the 81st minute. Reilly Yuen added her contribution three minutes later from up close, and just like in the first half, the last word came to the captain Backhouse, who aptly glanced a shot from the edge of the box past Briggs.
Their main suitor, Canberra Olympic, was facing on Sunday ANU WFC, and earn three points at the end of a much tighter encounter. The goalless first half was a credit to the solid ANU defence, bending under the relentless attacks of their visitors without breaking.
Apart from a goal denied to Olivia Gurney for offside, Claire Joseph and her defence always found a way to put a foot, a hand, a body on the line to keep the net untouched.
Olympic came back from the break with the same intent and were reward early, when Gurney, onside this time, was found in the box, dribbled around Joseph to finish in the empty net.
The forward struck again three minutes after the hour mark from the edge of the box with a swerved effort from the edge of the box, offering her team three precious points to remain in reach of the leading Blue Devils.
Canberra Croatia is credited with the win of the weekend against Tuggeranong United, with nine goals tallied up by the reigning premier with none conceded. Braces for Brittany Palombi, Tatum Mazis and Isabella Barac, and a Jamie Berkeley goal had the visitors up by seven goals at the break.
The captain struck first after five minutes and scored her second with a volley from up close at the 14th minute. Mazis displayed her talent with a powerful shot after 8 minutes, and a poacher’s goal at the 26th. Berkeley scored the fifth goal a minute later at the end of a cross from Palombi, before Barac’s double from close range within three minutes of the break.
The last two goals were scored at the tail end of the game, allowing Mazis and Palombi to complete their hat-tricks. Mazis cut at the near post to volley in a cross from point blank range, before a shot/cross from her captain found the top right corner of Wiggan’s nets. The Deakin side remained fourth on the table despite the large score, two points behind the Gunners they face next week.
Gungahlin United had a challenge on their plate with the visit of Canberra United Academy at Gungahlin Enclosed Oval but relied of their Liberty A-League Canberra United player to make the difference and get the result they needed winning 5-1.
As well as scoring a hat-trick, Michelle Heyman got herself two assists to be involved in every goal her team scored on Sunday. A cut back pass from the Matilda allowed Sharon Chao to send a precise right-footed effort in the top left corner at the 18th minute.
Heyman’s first goal of the day came six minutes later with authority and too much power from up close for Eliza Evans to be able to do anything. Heyman found Ella Brown alone in the box five minutes later for the third goal of the game, before an answer from the Academy and Perri Nash past the half hour mark made it 4-1.
The referee gave the Gunners a rare indirect free kick in the box two minutes before the break, Stella De Marco allowing Heyman to cut through the crowd with a flat ball. The last goal of the game was scored 25 minutes before the final whistle and showcased the striker’s pace and precision.
RESULTS
ROUND 18
Saturday 12 August
Belconnen United 7 (Cram 3’, 23’, Tein 37’, Backhouse 44’, 90+1’, Riethmuller 81’, Yuen 84’) West Canberra Wanderers 0
Sunday 13 August
ANU WFC 0 Canberra Olympic 2 (Gurney 50’, 63’)
Gungahlin United 5 (Chao 18’, Heyman 19’, 44’, 66’, E. Brown 24’) Canberra United Academy 1 (Nash 32’)
Tuggeranong United 0 Canberra Croatia 9 (Palombi 5’, 13’, 83’, Mazis 7’, 26’, 79’, Berkeley 27’, Barac 44’, 45’)
TABLE
| P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | PTS | ||
| 1 | Belconnen United | 17 | 13 | 1 | 3 | 53 | 10 | +43 | 40 |
| 2 | Canberra Olympic | 17 | 12 | 2 | 3 | 39 | 10 | +29 | 38 |
| 3 | Gungahlin United | 19 | 12 | 2 | 5 | 43 | 20 | +23 | 38 |
| 4 | Canberra Croatia | 18 | 11 | 3 | 4 | 49 | 17 | +32 | 36 |
| 5 | Canberra United Academy | 18 | 8 | 2 | 8 | 24 | 36 | -12 | 26 |
| 6 | Tuggeranong United | 17 | 3 | 1 | 13 | 16 | 57 | -41 | 10 |
| 7 | ANU WFC | 18 | 2 | 3 | 13 | 13 | 42 | -29 | 9 |
| 8 | West Canberra Wanderers | 18 | 2 | 2 | 14 | 15 | 60 | -45 | 8 |
TOP SCORERS
18 Brittany PALOMBI (Canberra Croatia)
13 Bessie RIETHMULLER (Belconnen United)
12 Hattie CRAM (Belconnen United)
10 Talia BACKHOUSE (Belconnen United), Tatum MAZIS (Canberra Croatia)
7 Isabella BARAC (Canberra Croatia), Olivia GURNEY (Canberra Olympic), Nicole JALOCHA (Canberra Olympic), Charli MITCHELL (Canberra Croatia), Ginger OLIVER (Gungahlin United), Darby WHITELEY (Gungahlin United)
6 Sharon CHAO (Gungahlin United), Tamara COCHRANE (Canberra United Academy), Michelle HEYMAN (Gungahlin United)
5 Keira BOBBIN (Belconnen United), Michaela THORNTON (Canberra Olympic), Madelyn WHITTALL (Canberra Olympic), Own GOALS
4 Jade BROWN (Gungahlin United), Tia BURRIDGE (Canberra Olympic), Maddison CACHIA (Canberra Olympic), Alyssa DI-CAMPLI (Canberra United Academy), Roxie SWART (ANU WFC), Pearl TEIN (Belconnen United), Samantha WOOD (Tuggeranong United)
3 Ella-Rose BROWN (Gungahlin United), Sofia CHRISTOPHERSON (Canberra United Academy), Rhiannon FENSOM (Canberra Croatia), Alyse JENSEN (West Canberra Wanderers), Erika PENNYFIELD (Gungahlin United), Nikita PERRY (West Canberra Wanderers/Canberra Croatia), Reilly YUEN (Belconnen United)
2 Elke AITOLU (Canberra Olympic), Cara CERUTI (West Canberra Wanderers), Alexandra COOK (Canberra Olympic), Rachael CORBETT (Gungahlin United), Lauren HALL (West Canberra Wanderers), Sheridan MCELLIGOTT (ANU WFC), Riley MCQUEENIE (Canberra United Academy), Peri NASH (Canberra United Academy), Alexandra NEALAND (Canberra United Academy), Rainey NILES (Tuggeranong United), Marija RATHOUSKI (Belconnen United), Madeleine STEINACKER (Belconnen United), Zoe TERRY (Tuggeranong United), Kate WALKER (West Canberra Wanderers), Sarah WHITFIELD (West Canberra Wanderers), Kayla WRIGHT (Gungahlin United)
1 Tehya ASPLAND (Canberra Olympic), Latisha BABIC (Canberra United Academy), Jamie BERKELEY (Canberra Croatia), Sienna BIRNIE (Canberra Croatia), Amy BONGIORNO (Canberra Croatia), Jaya BOWMAN (Canberra United Academy), Sofia CHAVERRA (ANU WFC), Natalie DE MARCO (Gungahlin United), Emma DOUGLAS-OLIVEIRA (ANU WFC), Edith FORDYCE-CROKER (ANU WFC), Charli GREGSON (Tuggeranong United), Isabella HINDMARSH (Belconnen United), Isabella HOPKINS (ANU WFC), Abby HURMAN (Tuggeranong United), Ashlyn LEWIS (Tuggeranong United), Sarah MATTHEWS (Tuggeranong United), Ailish MCDONAGH (ANU WFC), Maya OSMOND (Canberra United Academy), Madeleine PERCEVAL (Gungahlin United), Katrina PERIC (Canberra Olympic), Alina ROBERTS (Belconnen United), Vanessa RYAN (Canberra Olympic), Elisha WILD (Canberra United Academy), Juliet WILLIAMS (ANU WFC), Zoe WILLIAMS (Tuggeranong United), Kayla WRIGHT (Gungahlin United), Jasmine ZABEL (Canberra Olympic)