Newcastle Jets 2-3 Melbourne City
By Emma Burke (19/11/23).
Above: Melbourne City players swarm Daniela Galic after her opening goal. Photo: Melbourne City
What should have been an exciting win for Melbourne City with a last-gasp goal in extra time, ended in despair as the game-winning scorer Holly McNamara was stretchered off the pitch with what looked to be a knee injury.
By half-time Newcastle Jets lead the visiting Melbourne City 2-1, despite City opening the scoring early through Daniela Galic. Galic collected the scraps of a blocked attempt at goal by Kaitlin Torpey, and ploughed home an impressive volley.
Newcastle were able to level the score only minutes later through hometown hero Emily van Egmond, who made her first of four appearances on her guest contract for the team.
Van Egmond set the play up initially releasing Laura Gooch down the left side of the pitch and the cross from Gooch came back to her in what was really a very extended one-two play. City keeper Lysianne Proulx had already come off her line to cut off the cross, but the ball was just out of reach, leaving van Egmond to chip the ball into goal with ease.
The Jets extended their lead, through the same two players, only this time, van Egmond played a long ball over the top of City’s defence that Gooch was able to collect on the run and then outpaced Melbourne’s captain Rebekah Stott, a feat that not many manage, and lured Proulx out of the six-yard-box to then shoot low at the far post and score.
Tensions had been rising throughout the game, and it all came to a head after a strong challenge from Jets’ Libby Copus-Brown on McNamara. Rhianna Pollicina ended up swooping into the situation, shoving Copus-Brown and players from both teams crowded around the two and McNamara, who was still on the ground.
Both Copus-Brown and Pollicina were awarded yellow cards for the altercation, and it looked as though the referee had managed to calm both sides down with the sanctions.
It appeared that Newcastle were going to deliver City their first loss of the season, however, Holly McNamara is inevitable, and she tied up the scoreline for the second time.
A corner delivered by Pollicina initially found the head of Hannah Wilkinson, but she was unable to connect well with the ball and it spilled out of the box. Galic was able to recycle the ball back in with a cross of her own, and this time targeted McNamara, whose head was this time able to direct the ball into the net.
The inevitability of McNamara continued, and Newcastle were unable to hold on to the draw. Emina Ekic played a pass around the Newcastle defensive line, and McNamara was perfectly timed to run onto the ball and beat out her defender. The shot she took was as last minute as they come, which did hit the back of the next, but didn’t prevent her from being slightly collected by Newcastle keeper, Isobel Nino.
McNamara landed heavily on her right knee and looked to be in serious pain from the collision. She was unable to stand and was eventually stretchered off the pitch. She had also just been announced as a squad member for the Matildas final fixtures of 2023, two games in Canada, her first selection since returning to form after rupturing her ACL in February 2022.
City were able to close out the game and take all three points, but it was likely not the way they wanted to.
Teams: NEWCASTLE JETS (4-3-3): Nino, Cicco, Karipidis, Prior, Baumann (53’ Wilson), van Egmond, Hoban (73’ Barbieri), Davis, Copus-Brown, Gooch (82’ Dundas), Allan (83’ Milan Hammond)
Scorers: van Egmond 14’, Gooch 32’.
MELBOURNE CITY (4-4-2): Proulx, Grosso, Stott, Otto (66’ Thomas-Chinnama), Torpey, Ekic, Hughes (66’ L.McKenna), Pollicina, Galic (83’ Davidson), Wilkinson, McNamara (90+6’ T.McKenna)
Scorers: Galic 8’, McNamara 78’, 90+2’.
Referee: Asaka Koizumi
Attendance: 3,207
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