Canberra United 3-1 Adelaide United
By Ryan Miller-Woods 14/1/24
Above: Michelle Heyman is congratulated by teammates after bringing up a century of goals. PHOTO: Canberra United.
Canberra United achieved their second win of the season against Adelaide United at Leichhardt Oval with a 3-1 victory that moved them off the bottom of the ladder as Michelle Heyman made history as she became the first player in the A-League Women to score 100 goals.
Heyman almost scored in the fourth minute as Vesna Milivojevic provided a through ball for Nicki Flannery to cross. Adelaide’s Ella Tonkin’s first touch accidentally laid it off to Heyman whose shot at goal was blocked by Annalee Grove.
Adelaide came close to scoring twelve minutes later from a corner as the ball was whipped at the back post that found Tonkin who passed it to Alana Jancevski. Her shot was prevented via a great save by Chloe Lincoln. Despite there being chances for both sides throughout the first half neither team broke the deadlock but it still felt like someone was going to score.
Adelaide’s second half got off to an amazing start as Mariah Lee intercepted the ball and passed to Hannah Blake. Blake returned the ball for Lee in the box who crossed for Isabel Hodgson to give Adelaide the lead.
Adelaide’s joy only lasted four minutes before Heyman intercepted a ball to put her 1 on 1 with Annalee Grove. Her shot went into the bottom right corner for Canberra to equalise.
Most importantly for Heyman made it her 100th goal in the A-League Women. What an achievement by one of the country’s best players to have ever played in the league.
Eighty-six seconds later, Heyman scored again thanks to a great combination by Tegan Bertolissio and Milivojevic . as
Heyman’s header from the centre of the box went over Grove and into the bottom left corner for Canberra’s second goal of the match. It was her seventh goal of the season and her 101st in the A-League Women.
Thirteen minutes later, Canberra scored their third and final goal. Bertolissio provided a brilliant through ball to Milivojevic who went past Adelaide’s Zoe Tolland and put herself in the most ideal position from outside the box.
She timed her shot beautifully as the ball went past A. Grove and into the top left corner. It was Milivojevic’s ninth goal of the A-League Women’s season.
Milivojevic has been outstanding so far this season and this goal showed her spatial awareness with the ball and technique to time everything just right set her up perfectly to score.
In the 73rd minute, an Adelaide pass from the back was given away to Milivojevic who floated her cross into the box for Heyman. Her her header came very close to delivering a hat-trick as the ball just went wide of the goal to Adelaide’s relief.
No further goals were scored but come the final whistle Canberra secured a very important win for their season that put them a point ahead of Adelaide on the ladder and up to 11th. Hopefully for Canberra, given they are on a four-game undefeated streak, it is a sign of things to come.
Teams: Canberra United (4-4-1-1): Lincoln, Clark, S. Grove, Jackson, Clough, Murray, Stanic-Floody, Heyman, Christopherson, Milivojevic, Flannery. Substitutes: Majstorovic, Rojas, Nathan, Whittall, Bertolissio.
Scorers: Heyman 50’, 51’, Milivojevic 64’.
Adelaide United (4-2-3-1): A.Grove, E. Hodgson, I. Hodgson, Tonkin, Waldus, Morgan, Blake, Sasaki, Tolland, Jancevski, Lee. Substitutes: Jenkins, Condon, Taylor, Holtz, Bowler.
Scorers: I. Hodgson 46’.
Referee: Rebecca Durcau.
Attendance: 1,883.
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