As Football NSW celebrated the beginning of NAIDOC Week, the National Premier Leagues NSW competition delivered yet another spectacular showcase of goals and big results.
Read on for a full breakdown of the weekend that was.
Match of the Round – APIA Leichardt 3-0 NWS Spirit at Lambert Park
Click here to view the report.
Football NSW Institute 0-2 Manly United at Valentine Sports Park
Football NSW Institute went down 2-nil to Manly United at Valentine Sports Park on Sunday evening.
After two massive results from both sides last week – Manly having broken their 12-game winless run, and FNSW Institute defeating Sydney Olympic away – these two were expected to play out a tense match for an important three points.
From the outset of the match, Manly forward Sienna Dale and mid-season signing Daisy Arrowsmith were displaying an effective on-field combination.
And following a driving run through midfield by Phoebe Gilbane, the two were able to cap off their great start to the match when Dale played a superb ball through the lines to Arrowsmith for the striker to tuck the ball beneath Institute goalkeeper Tahlia Franco.
A wicked in-swinging corner delivery from Gema Simon in the 26th minute was more than enough for an onrushing Ruby Jackson to volley home at the back post and give her side a buffer, the match concluding 2-0 in favour a Manly team that will savour back-to-back wins for the first time in a long while.
The result was pivotal for an 11th place Manly side looking to steer well away from the relegation zone, particularly as it closes the gap between them and Institute, who are sitting just above them.
Blacktown Spartans 1-6 Macarthur Rams at Blacktown Football Park
The Blacktown Spartans proved to be no match for a seemingly unstoppable Macarthur Rams side on Sunday evening, with the South-West Sydney side coming away 6-1 winners in a massive result.
The match shaped up as being significant for a Spartans outfit anxious to steer themselves away from the relegation zone, however, coming up against a rampant Macarthur side was likely not on their wish list come this point in the season.
An industrious tackle and exquisite through ball from Melissa Caceres in the Macarthur midfield would pave the way for the Rams’ opener, Kelli Brown the goal scorer with a sweet finish past Spartans goalkeeper Anna Norton.
The Spartans equalised soon after in the 29th minute when Alana Murphy bested her defender on the right wing to find Donelle Moore for the layoff to Carleigh Frilles for an awe-inspiring chipped finish that soared over the Rams keeper and into the far-left corner. A well-worked goal for 1-1.
The Rams were not keen on letting the Spartans enjoy their leveller however, and were quick to retake the lead in the 32nd minute when India Breier sent in a pinpoint cross to Miku Sunaga, who put her body on the line to head the ball in at the near post. 1-2 to Macarthur.
For Macarthur’s 3rd of the day, Maya Lobo showed her composure to unleash a determined strike from just outside the box that bypassed an outstretched Norton.
The second half saw the Rams maintain their ambition going forward, with goal no. 4 of the day sparked by an excellent interchange of one-touch passing between Caceres and Brown that eventually found its way to Breier for a lethal strike into the top right corner of the net. 4-1 to the Rams.
Bethany Gordon did excellently to conjure up Macarthur’s 5th goal of the day – a long-range strike crafted via some lovely ingenuity on the ball – before Brown secured her brace in added time with a nice touch to get past her defender and an even better finish to follow it up. 6-1 the final score.
Bankstown City Lions 0-0 Illawarra Stingrays at Jensen Park
The points were shared between the Bankstown City Lions and the Illawarra Stingrays on Sunday evening, with 0-0 the final result at Jensen Park.
Both teams came into the match determined to continue their strong momentum of late, with Bankstown surprising league leaders APIA Leichardt last week and Illawarra putting the Emerging Jets to the sword in an 8-1 triumph last time out.
The match came to life in the 35th minute with some dramatic end-to-end action. The Lions had the first chance when Bankstown star Rasamee Phonsongkham somehow weaved her way through a crowded Stingrays defence and setup Olivia Price for a powerful strike that was prevented by the crossbar. Tiana Jaber then followed-up with a header seemingly destined for the back of the net until it was heroically collected by the assuredness of Stingrays goalkeeper Aimee Hall.
Illawarra, spotting their chance to catch the Lions on the counter, immediately made their way up the field with Sasha Grove driving toward the opposition defence and firing a low finish straight into the feet of a Lions defender.
Phonsongkham would come close to giving her side the lead in the second half when her focused run was met by an equally decisive ball from Katie Bowler, only to see Hall come to the rescue again in snuffing out the attempt.
The game would ultimately finish 0-0, with neither side able to get on the scoresheet in spite of some excellent attacking sequences.
Sydney University 6-1 Emerging Jets at Sydney Uni Football Ground
The Emerging Jets were no match for a resolute Sydney University team looking to push their way up the ladder, with Uni earning a 6-1 win for their efforts.
Goal no. 1 for Sydney Uni would arrive in the 8th minute when Gabrielle Peak spotted the run of Bianca Galic and played a magnificent long ball for the No. 8 to chase down and put her body on the line to tip a header beyond Jets keeper Xanthe Parsons, making it 1-0 in the process.
The Jets would sensationally equalise late in the first half through Claire Adams’ stunning free-kick finding its way over Sophia Varley and in from a tough angle. 1-1 at the break.
Although they ended the first half with a brilliant leveller, the second half saw the Jets immediately struggle, with Sydney Uni’s second of the night arriving off the back of the away side’s failure to clear a cross and Ava Pritchard taking the chance to bury it home. Undoubtedly, this would set the tone for a difficult 45 minutes for the Jets.
Parsons pulled off a mighty save on a Galic penalty in the 64th minute, although there was nothing she could do when Taren King was first to react to the rebound and put the ball away for 3-1.
The Jets again proved to be the masters of their own downfall when a missed clearance allowed Pritchard in on goal to slip a finish into the bottom left corner and give her side a 4-1 lead.
For Sydney Uni’s 5th goal, a delightful chipped ball from Tayla Cvetkovski would be smartly controlled by Jaime Beaufils who the bypassed and held off her defender to earn a deserved goal.
Pritchard successfully notched herself a hattrick in the 84th minute after making a smart run in-between the Jets defenders to guide an excellent cross home through the use of her body.
The result reaffirms Sydney Uni’s efforts to restore some pride in their name after a challenging season, whilst for the Jets, it is another week without victory. It also ensures that Uni matched the 6-1 rout by the Macarthur Rams over the Blacktown Spartans this round, with the two bottom-placed teams suffering tough results in the process.
Gladesville Ravens 0-0 Bulls FC Academy at Christie Park
Christie Park hosted a 0-0 draw between the Gladesville Ravens and Bulls FC Academy on Sunday night.
Having started the season as the competition’s surprise packet, the Ravens have struggled to secure results of late, whereas, by contrast, Bulls FC Academy have proven to be no pushovers this season, with their resilience and fortitude spurring them on in tougher fixtures.
The two sides approached the match in contrasting ways, with the Ravens looking to maintain possession and the Bulls moving the ball with urgency to create effective chances.
And it was the Bulls who nearly took the lead in the 26th minute when the Ravens lost possession deep in their own half, prompting Aideen Keane to latch onto the ball and drive forward for a strike that was well prevented by Romina Parraguirre.
The Bulls would continue to dominate the first half in enemy territory, racking up 8 shots to the Ravens’ 0 shots in the first 45 minutes.
A tense second stanza would then play out, with both teams having chances right until the final whistle. Most notably, Bulls star Tamires Souza nearly found the winner in the 89th minute after some chaos in the box led the ball into her path one-on-one with the keeper, however Parraguirre illustrated exactly why she’s been one of the Ravens’ best this season by standing strong to stifle the volley.
Although the match would conclude 0-0 and both teams would earn deserved clean sheets, you just couldn’t take your eyes off of the action.
Northern Tigers 0-3 Sydney Olympic at North Turramurra Recreational Arena
Sydney Olympic came away with a massive three points after producing a 3-0 win over the Northern Tigers at North Turramurra Recreational Arena.
Coming into the Round 17 clash, the match was shaping up to be intriguing viewing between two teams capable of putting in a strong performance in spite of their shared patchy form of late.
Olympic would prove themselves to be the better of the two sides on the day, with their first goal arriving after a wonderful display of attacking nous by a side that relishes creating chances in the front third as Angelique Hristodoulou briskly moved into space to receive the ball and be able to put Sarah Yatim through on goal. Yatim’s cross then took an unexpected deflection off of Tigers defender Ella Tonkin to then nestle itself into the back of the net via the near post. 1-0 to Olympic.
The Tigers would have been left ruing the football Gods after yet another unwitting deflection extended Olympic’s lead, the initial shot fired in by Georgia Koutzoumis and clipped off of a Tigers defender and over Tigers goalkeeper Jodie Drever.
A ruthless Olympic counterattack in the 67th minute would be enough to see off the game for the away team as Kiara De Domizio finished off an expertly-crafted passing sequence with a clever chip beyond Drever.
The result keeps Olympic in the running for a top three finish and consigns the Tigers to successive losses.