By Kieran Yap 1/4/26
Above: Fiorina Iaria for Melbourne Victory. Photo: Passion Creations
Bulleen climb to second, Essendon honour a league legend and Iaria scores four in the first ever Melbourne Derby.
Friday night’s game saw Spring Hills host South Melbourne, with the home side looking to respond after a 4-2 loss to Bulleen Lions in Round Six. South’s game was postponed last weekend, but they were also coming off a Round Five defeat to Box Hill and named a strong lineup even in the absence of Francesca Iermano. Meisha Westland wore the armband in her place for the visitors.
An Aleks Sinclair goal was all that separated the teams. When you are this good, you get all the luck sometimes, and Sinclair always knows exactly where the goals are. A speculative, but technically excellent flick over her head from 18 yards out somehow evade Geo Candy to score one of the more unusual goals of the round, but definitely the most memorable.
Avondale FC scored five goals against Bentleigh Greens to bounce back from defeat to Essendon in the previous round.
Hannah Wilkinson continued her outstanding form since her return to the pitch with a 15th minute goal, and Elise Kellond-Knight added another with a 36th minute Olimpico.
Rachel Stirton was spared hope for Bentleigh with a goal on the stroke of half time, but Avondale went up another gear after the break. Sloane Young’s brace and a goal to star defender Isabella Accardo put the result to rest.
Accardo is so often a player who starts attacks from deep for Avondale and took her chance to get on the scoresheet with a close range finish at the back post from a corner.
Alamein FC and Heidelberg United played out an entertaining, tight contest at Dorothy Laver Reserve. The score does not really reflect the attacking intent of either team, with both sides testing the goalkeepers throughout.
Miranda Templeman was called into action for Alamein, making a series of close range saves and showing some quick feet to get out of trouble. Samantha Curwood-Wanger was menacing for Heidelberg, while Zoe Houghton was creative and threating for the home side.
It has been nearly impossible to score past Alamein this season, and Heidelberg became only the second side to do so.
Curwood-Wagner’s deft pass put Hayley Geurts into just enough space to slide the ball beyond Templeman and open the scoring.
Heidelberg extended their lead through Nali Plant. A beautiful left foot curler from the edge of the area mad it 2-0 in the 49th minute to give the visitors a deserved lead.
Summer Laskey pulled one back for the hosts, and ensured a tense finish, but Heidelberg ended the game ahead for an impressive win on the road.
Keilor Park and Essendon Royals took part in an attacking match that ended 3-2 to the visitors.
Isabella Sewards gave the Royals an eight minute lead through a leaping header after a rapid start from both teams.
Ava Groba’s cross was turned in by Hunter Gergovic for an unfortunate but pretty unavoidable own goal soon after.
It was a match where both teams played aggressively in possession, but neither could really dominate momentum. Emilia Ingles pulled one back for the hosts but Kelli McGroarty’s well taken finish restored the two-goal cushion in the second half.
Runa Komidori’s incredible long-range effort brought the game back to 3-2, but Keilor Park were unable to find a crucial third in what was still their most impressive performance of the season, even if the score did not end in the favour.
Fiorina Iaria’s four goals were the talk of the round, and her right boot was a significant difference between the sides in the first NPLW Melbourne Derby.
Victory and City have had had slightly contrasting starts to life in this league, but City welcomed their cross-town rivals after a 1-0 win in Round Six.
Even without Poppy O’Keeffe in midfield after she received a Young Matildas Asian Cup call up, Victory were able to exert their influence on this game. Iaria took only five minutes to open the scoring before Jasmine Millar doubled the lead for the visitors.
Ellie Kirby responded for the home side to make it 2-1 at the break, but Iaria went on a tear in the second half, with three goals in less than 10 minutes, showing all the skills and power that have long made her a talent to watch.
Bulleen Lions continued their winning run with a convincing performance to beat Preston Lions 3-0 at home. It was another convincing performance by the home variant of Lions, with Bulleen making it five wins in a row, with only one goal conceded in that time.
Caitlin Friend’s side began the match in attacking fashion, resulting in a series of corners that resulted in an Emily Bunnell header to make it 1-0. The home fans were gruntled with the deserved lead but had to wait until the second half to score again.
Another corner kick was the catalyst, and Olivia Bomford’s delivery caused chaos for The Preston defence. It will go down as an own goal, but there was very little chance to clear it without a Bulleen player getting a touch.
Another week, another Maja Markovski goal. She was held to just the one by Preston, but continues her run of scoring in every one of the last five games. A low finish from the edge of the area put the game to rest.
After a shaky start to the season, Bulleen have clearly clicked into gear. The new signing have adapted well and the squad is starting to look deep as players from the bench are able to impact games. This win sends them to second on the table, but still behind Booroondara who have a game in hand.
The final game of the round was a top of the tablet clash between the two benchmark sides so of the first two months.
An Emma Vane inspired Boroondara Eagles defeated Box Hill United in a close encounter, that further establishes them as the team to beat, but did nothing to dim belief in Box Hill’s hopes.
Box Hill took the lead in this game. Maho Murakami scored from a penalty in just the eight minute to put the Eagles in an unfamiliar position.
Geneveive Fontes equalised from Zoe Bennett’s corner before half time, leaving Sarah Brunner’s 67th minute winner as the only thing separating the two sides.
Vane’s precision through-ball dissected the Box Hill defence and Brunner was suddenly in space. She made no mistake with the finish, powerful and high into the net.
Round Seven ended with Boroondara still on top, but with Bulleen chasing them down. Avondale are still searching for consistency, but the return of Kellond-Knight from an Asian Cup broadcast break gives them an edge over most midfields.
In Appreciation of… Fiorina Iaria.
It is impossible to talk about this round without talking about Melbourne Victory winger Fiorina Iaria. The 19 year old, Shepparton native is one of the brightest young talents in Victorian football, and has been since emerging from Calder United in 2023.
Iaria’s first touch is impeccable, and she has rare acceleration combined with close control that can make her a nightmare for most defenders.
As with many young player, decision making is something that is constantly improving. When she plays on instinct, she can be nearly unstoppable, but what we saw on the weekend, was a player ready to go to the next level.
Iaria is already on the books of Melbourne Victory’s A-League Women squad, but is learning her trade with consistent competitive minutes in the NPLW. She is no secret to fans of this league, but be that as it may, we have not seen a performance like this before.
Iaria scored four goals in a four goal win over Melbourne City. But it was the manner of scoring that made it special.
Leyla Hussein’s pass put her in space for the opener. But she was well covered and the 18-yard box was defended. Her opponent did not do much wrong, but Iaria cut inside and curled a perfectly placed effort into the far corner. It was Caitlin Foord-eqsue.
For her second, she shaped to finish in a similar fashion. A high delivery to the top corner of the far post looked likely, but she snuck it in low at the near one with real quality and an element of surprise.
The hatrick arrived through a clever run behind the defence and a perfectly timed pass from Jasmine Millar. The finish equalled the buildup. This time it was high and across goal with power.
She insisted in a post game interview that the fourth goal was an accident. But when the football gods are smiling down on you, there are no accidents. We can take her word for it that it an attempted cross, but it still found the back of the net from an unlikely angle.
Those last three goals all occurred between the 56th and 62nd minute. That is serious game breaking impact.
It should be noted that despite the scoreline, City were not played off the park, they very rarely are even though they have only one win so far. As usual, they moved the ball well, and played a proactive, possession based game, but Victory were more clinical, and Jasmine Millar showed real composure and persistence to score their second of the match.
Iaria’s six minute burst of goals decided the match, and although she is unlikely to achieve that regularly, it should provide a significant confidence boost if any was needed.
It was frightening finishing from a promising player, and we are still some years away from finding out what she might be truly capable of.
But for now, this was a performance to celebrate. A stellar display.
Follow Impetus on social media:
@ImpetusFootball on Threads, Instagram and TikTok
impetusfootball.org 