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A Chat With Australia’s Top Women’s Football Journalists – How Good?!

Ben Gilby spoke to four of Australia’s leading women’s football journalists who also present The Far Post Podcast. Sam Lewis (Guardian Australia), Anna Harrington (AAP Newswire), Angela Christian-Wilkes (Beyond 90 AU) and Marissa Lordanic (Beyond 90 AU) talk to him about their show and how they view the domestic and international game in Australia right now.

We opened the chat by discussing how the podcast came about. “The four of us came together as part of a larger group of friends who all went to the Women’s World Cup together in France 2019. But we’re all lifelong football fans. We’ve all covered the game as volunteers and for media organisations. We’ve written hundreds of articles between us for print and online, covered major tournaments, commentated matches, appeared on radio and TV and other podcasts to talk about and analyse the women’s game.”

“The podcast began in the middle of Melbourne’s lockdown as a little bit of a joke. Thankfully a few people encouraged us to actually pursue it. We had a few zoom meetings about how we wanted to approach things and have been recording almost weekly since September 2020.”

“At its heart it’s a football podcast. We’re a bunch of friends who also happen to be fans of the game. We love talking about the action on the pitch, having a laugh at the lighter moments, and trying to add nuance and analysis to matters on and off the field. There’s an absolute abundance of podcasts on football, especially men’s football, but fewer on women’s football and even fewer still with an Australian focus. It’s the kind of podcast we’d all like to listen to so we went ahead and made it.”

Despite football having to compete with Aussie Rules, Rugby League and Cricket, the Matildas and their stars are loved and have a pretty high profile in Australia. I wondered how the Far Post crew could explain this profile: “Support from the public is always a little dependent on being successful and since the 2015 Women’s World Cup when the Matildas became the first senior Australian team to win a knockout game at the tournament, people have taken notice of them. The team has played good football and has always been filled with incredible players, but women’s sport globally was starting to have a moment and Australia and football were no different. The team was so good you couldn’t ignore them and once the public got to know them and fell in love with them it’s continued to grow.”

Whilst it’s great that so many Matildas are now playing for top clubs around the world, I wondered what their feeling was on the positives and negatives are of the situation on domestic Australian women’s club football.

“We’ve kind of gone through the full gamut of emotions with the Matildas exodus,” the Far Post group said. “There was so much worry and anxiety about how the W-League would fare in those early stages from all of us. And for the most part it was valid. The general belief was how can we attract fans when all those big names that the general public will recognise aren’t there? What is the standard of football going to be like without the very best Australian players?”

“But as we got closer to the season and now in the season proper I think the community as a whole has realised this is overall a good thing. There are so many more opportunities for young players who had perhaps previously only been making substitute appearances or fighting for a place. Now they not only have the opportunity to shine but the responsibility to make the big plays and be the game changers for their teams and so far they’re absolutely delivering in spades.”

“It’s a shame that we arguably never fully utilised the star power of the likes of Sam Kerr and Caitlin Foord and Steph Catley but we’re beginning to see the emergence of new stars. If we continue to give them the strongest possible platform here in Australia – a professional league with a full home and away season – they will continue to showcase their talent. The football has still been good and exciting even if it isn’t filled with the names and faces so many people are instantly familiar with.”

This season’s W-League campaign has produced some hugely enjoyable football and things are quite open at the top and bottom of the table. The focus for the W-League now is to keep attention high for supporters and the general media with home World Cup ahead. The Far Post’s views on what needs to be done to achieve this is exceptionally important.

“The league itself has been doing a great job first and foremost with making sure we have a season to enjoy! The permutations with Covid and borders has meant it’s been a real logistical nightmare. But the league and the players and the clubs and everyone else involved have been adaptable to their immense credit.”

“There has been some great content produced highlighting the players to watch and the storylines that are emerging from the season. Broadcasting has been a bit of an issue and it’s a topic we’ve covered extensively on the podcast. It’s pretty much universally acknowledged that growing the game involves people being able to watch it and that hasn’t always been the case this season. A functioning, high quality broadcast should be the minimum standard now in the W-League.”

“How the game is broadcast is massively important. Making it accessible has been achieved thanks to every game being available to stream and the one game a week on free to air. There needs to be more coverage generally but engaging with the media that is currently out there shows the people in charge that there is an appetite for more of this kind of coverage. This means not only reading and sharing the work of the major sports media companies but engaging with the passionate and dedicated fan-made media too.”

**Above:** Captured during the recording of an episode – Top left: Sam Lewis (The Guardian Australia), Top right: Anna Harrington (AAP Newswire), Bottom Left: Angela Christian-Wilkes (Beyond ’90 AU) and Bottom Right: Marissa Lordanic (Beyond ’90 AU).

In terms of where the W-League goes next, one of the priorities has to be a full home and away season, given the inherent unfairness of the current schedule. “People have wanted a full home and away season forever. You ask anyone associated with the game about how to improve the W-League and one of the first things they will mention is extending the season,” the Far Post gang told me.

“The league has improved in so many ways – minimum remuneration and medical standards have been brought in, the league is more visible that it has ever been thanks to streaming services. The next logical steps in that continued growth is a full home and away season and a fully professional league. Covid has thrown a spanner in the works in so many ways, including financially, but a full home and away season should be a priority for the new independent leagues.”

One of the major plus points of this year’s W-League campaign is the emergence of some fantastic talent. Whereas the likes of Kyra Cooney-Cross, Jamilla Rankin and Jada Whyman-Mathyssen has caught the eye of Impetus so far, I wondered who the stand out players for The Far Post group are:

“There are so many good players with so many interesting stories to look out for. Kyra Cooney-Cross at Melbourne Victory has grown into this super dynamic midfielder since she debuted at the age of fifteen (and she’s still in her teens!). There’s players jumping up from the NPLW competitions (elite state leagues) across the country like Catherine Zimmerman and Mariel Hecher. Teagan Micah is a Matilda but has spent most of her career in the US college system so we’re being treated to her spectacular efforts in goal. Emily Condon and Dylan Holmes are doing good things at Adelaide United. Lily Alfeld has been awesome for Perth Glory. Tara Andrews and Michelle Heyman are by no means new to the W-League but their golden boot battle is going to be fascinating. Is it too late to say all of them?”

At the other end of the spectrum are vastly experienced players who are absolutely smashing it at the moment – led by Michelle Heyman and Lisa De Vanna. “How good! They are just two of the amazing stories in the W-League this season. Michelle is looking to chase down Sam Kerr’s all-time W-League goal scoring record and Lisa is showing us all just how excellent she is and has always been.”

The next three years is potentially really exciting for the Matildas with the Olympics, Asia Cup and World Cup. I asked the Far Post gang what they felt would success in this period realistically look like.

“It’s a huge three years and when you add in the 2024 Olympics in Paris it’s even bigger! We can’t look too far ahead and we also need to take into account how Covid has changed the entire landscape and factor that into the definition of success.”

“We still don’t have a full complement of countries qualified for the Tokyo Olympics. The Matildas last played a competitive match in March 2020, the USWNT have played three games in that time with another three lined up for February. European teams were taking part in Euro qualifiers throughout 2020.”

Without looking too far ahead, bettering the 2016 Olympics result will be a priority for this year. Similarly going one better in the Asian Cup in 2022 will also be super important. After winning the 2010 edition, the Matildas have lost the last two Asian Cup finals to Japan 1-0 so reclaiming that trophy – and maybe even getting one over Japan – would be great.”

With the next Women’s World Cup being co-hosted in Australia, we ended our discussion by talking about what the legacy for the competition should be in Australian women’s football.

“Every Women’s World Cup has grown from the one before it and the benefits to the host nations are well documented. We as Australians also know that hosting big tournaments is a massive deal and is sure to inspire the next generation of kids.”

“A lasting legacy for this tournament encompasses all levels of football. The Matildas doing well on the pitch would obviously be awesome. In turn, the W-League needs to prioritised and professionalised so it can truly reach its full potential as the place where Matildas are made. Women in this country will hopefully be able to play football professionally right here in their own backyards. Grassroots clubs will hopefully be using the next few years to increase their capacities and upgrade their facilities to ensure the influx of interest post-World Cup can be met”

“Everyone who wants to get involved after witnessing the Women’s World Cup here should be able to whether that is as a player, a coach, or a ref. It will also hopefully inspire more people – especially women – to get involved in governance, the media, and the admin side of the game. Plus fans should be able to enjoy even more quality football after getting to enjoy a month’s worth of the very best football on the planet.”

A new episode of The Far Post Podcast drops every Wednesday and can be found here: The Far Post (buzzsprout.com). They can also be found on Twitter: @TheFarPostPod

Impetus’ coverage of Australian Women’s Football is supported by The Chicken Salt Co. They are offering every Impetus reader 5% off all orders of Chicken Salt from their website. Go to https://www.chickensalt.co.uk/?mate=impetus and place your order – 5% will automatically be taken off of the cost. The coupon code is impetus.

Kyra Cooney-Cross: The Sky Is The Limit

In our latest #MidweekDub feature, we focus on Kyra Cooney-Cross. The Melbourne Victory starlet has just turned nineteen years-old and is firmly established as one of the biggest hopes among the next generation of Australian women footballers. Kieran Yap profiles Melbourne Victory’s youngster who is almost certainly to become a Matilda in the very near future.

Above: Kyra Cooney-Cross has been in outstanding form for Melbourne Victory in the W-League this season. Here, she is in action for them against Brisbane Roar. Photo: @victorywleague

It was her debut season, she was up against the star-studded Melbourne City and was directly facing Alanna Kennedy. The 15-year-old Melbourne Victory attacker gathered the ball, knocked it forward fearlessly and exploded past the Matildas defender, she held off the physical challenge and shot on goal. Unfortunately the strike was saved, but Australia had gotten its first hint of what Kyra Cooney-Cross was capable of.

She signed for Melbourne Victory in 2017, and made sixteen appearances for the club scoring twice before departing to Western Sydney Warriors in search of more game time for the 2019/20 competition.

Above: During her spell for Western Sydney Wanderers last season. Photo: @wsydneywanderers

In her time there she added to her growing highlight reel and developed into a more consistent player.

A brilliant curling shot to score from outside the area and an audacious back heel to set up a Kristen Hamilton goal were just two of the efforts that made her nomination for the W-League Young Footballer of the Year a no-brainer.

Her return to Melbourne Victory has seen her take on more responsibility in the team. In her first stint at the club she was used sparingly and often off the bench but in 2021 she has started every game and been vital to the midfield and attack.

She has gone from being a quick striker or winger to a player who is increasingly dominating games and threatening the opposition off either flank or through the centre. She has become a player that the opposition cannot ignore but has the mobility and work rate to be almost impossible to mark out of the game.

Above: Kyra Cooney-Cross pictured with Rosie Galea whilst playing with Blacktown Spartans in the New South Wales NPLW (state league).
Photo: Women’s National Premier League New South Wales.

Cooney-Cross is a clever, quick and inventive attacker, she can finish chances as well as she can supply them and is dangerous from set pieces, in the 2019/20 season she scored her first goal for WSW with a free kick, an in-swinging curling ball into a dangerous area that caused panic in the box and bounced past the keeper.

Melbourne Victory have surrounded their returning prodigy with talent and experience, she is supported by Lisa De Vanna and Melina Ayres in attack with Annalie Longo, Amy Jackson and defender Angie Beard behind her. The team may not be specifically built around her but she has been given the support to play her natural game and has increasingly become the barometer for her side’s fortunes.

Cooney-Cross has the pace to dribble past players and the ball control to do this in the middle of the pitch making her an unpredictable and entertaining player to watch. Her goal against Newcastle Jets in round seven this season was a perfect encapsulation what makes her special, not so much for the finish which was from an angle and off her non-preferred left foot but for how she had a quick glance up for a better option before scoring. In this piece of play she showed the speed to burn off the challenges, the skill to carry the ball at pace, the vision to assess her options and the class to finish perfectly.

Despite not yet breaking into the senior Matildas side, she has been a fixture for the youth teams, scoring an incredible 14 goals in as many games at Under-17 level and seven times over eight appearances at for the Under-20’s, she was included in a training squad prior to the 2019 World Cup and although she didn’t make the final squad for France, on current form a full international cap surely awaits.

Above: Kyra Cooney-Cross in action for Australia in the Asian U19’s Championship. Photo: Wikipedia.

At her age and with her talent she is simultaneously a star player of the league and one to watch for the future, consistent, inventive and often spectacular Kyra Cooney-Cross could hopefully become the next big thing in Australian Football.

Artwork: Graphics by PW.

International Surrey Women’s Football: Offering Opportunities & Breaking Down Barriers

At the weekend, it was announced that Impetus were sponsoring the coaches polo shirts for the International Surrey Women’s Football (ISWF) team. But what is the ISWF? Ben Gilby chats to Danny Clarke, president of International Surrey Football (ISF) about their women’s representative team which they aim to launch later this year to play against other counties and potentially non FIFA teams. We also discuss what their selection process involves and their aims over the medium term future.

The International Surrey Football women’s team is a newly established entity which was launched in order to try and bring more county representative football to Surrey.

Clarke outlined more about the ISF: “The International Surrey Football women’s team is the second team launched by International Surrey Football (ISF), organisers of the only county representative football team for Surrey. I founded the team as a means of promoting Surrey’s local footballers to a new platform and providing them a means of facing new opportunities away from just club football.”

“Historically men and women’s county football was fairly commonplace in the early 20th century, and the Surrey FA organised many teams to play against other county FAs, but as time went on there had been gradually fewer and fewer teams, under the FAs umbrella, less than a dozen of the FA’s fifty-one county FAs organise county women’s teams, a similar number organise Under 18 and Under 16 county teams, and only a handful organise senior men’s teams, with only the three military FAs, Army, Air Force, Navy as well as the Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man organising teams for every category. This has left a large number of counties without representative football opportunities for players once they leave school (where under 18s and below is organised by the English Schools FA). Especially in Surrey’s case, Kent, Essex, Sussex, Middlesex, and the neighbouring Army FA all organise women’s representative teams, meaning we’re virtually surrounded by potential opposition we’re not yet tapping into.”

“International Surrey Football was created as a means to bridge that gap, with an aim of providing these inter-county football opportunities for players. We don’t get involved in club football activities, and we don’t have any plans to organise our own club competitions or offer a club affiliation that might conflict with the work of the Surrey County FA, it’s not in our interest to work against the Surrey County FA, but instead aim to work with them with the hope of being able to eventually reach an agreement with the Surrey County FA to enter teams into the Southern Counties Competition, for senior county women’s teams and the FA County Youth Cup, for county youth teams. However, we also have other ambitions to compete in non-FIFA (international football outside FIFA’s umbrella) competitions in order to provide even greater competitive opportunities for our senior men and women’s teams.”

In terms of which levels of the women’s football pyramid system the ISF would be looking at in terms of potential players, Danny Clarke is keeping their options open: “We don’t restrict players based on level from signing up to be selected, although the manager will get a final say to decide which players are actually selected for each game. Players of any level are welcome to make themselves available for selection by signing up on our website, we’ve had interest from players from AFC Wimbledon, Woking, Whyteleafe, Dorking Wanderers, Millwall, Alton Town, Molesey, the University of Surrey and more.”

In terms of how widely known within Surrey the ISF are, it is very much early days, but awareness is growing: “By this stage most teams in Surrey are at least aware of us and what we’re doing,” Danny said.

Above: Impetus are proud to be able to sponsor the coaching staff’s polo shirts for the International Surrey Women’s Football Team. Graphic via ISF.

“Some teams we have closer relations with than others and we aim to make ourselves as a benefit, not a hindrance, to club football. We encourage players to prioritise club football where necessary and try to limit how often, if at all, we play during the season. We then actively try to promote clubs to a new audience through our growing social media, going to games, sponsoring matches where possible, and working with clubs when organising our games making ourselves a potential new revenue source for teams that host our home games, especially important given the financial situation many teams have found themselves in this past year.”

I asked Danny whether the ISF Women’s team would potentially be limiting itself to fellow county representative sides. His reply suggests that the county could be looking at opposition from near and far: “Surrey’s opposition will likely fall into one of three categories, clubs, our trial game is expected to be against a club side, this is a good starting point for the team as it means we’ll have plenty of potential opportunity in this category without having to travel as far as we would against teams of the other two categories, it can also help us promote our existence to more teams, players and even fans. Another category would be County FAs, our hope is to eventually be playing regularly against other County FAs. Some of the nearest full fixture opposition for us would be county teams, with the Army FA, Essex, Kent, Sussex, and Middlesex all on Surrey’s border, as well as the island teams of Jersey, Guernsey, and the Isle of Man, all theoretically within reach due to existing flight routes from Gatwick and Heathrow. Finally, the third category and perhaps our highest profile opposition, is non-FIFA teams. These are international teams outside FIFA and could be members of the World Unity Football Alliance like us or members of CONIFA (Confederation of Independent Football Associations), although teams that are members of these organisations are more likely to be based overseas currently, with no member of either organisation currently running a women’s team in the UK, we hope the formation of the Surrey women’s team might encourage teams to expand with multiple teams having senior men’s teams based in the UK.”

The coronavirus outbreak has pushed back the first potential game for the Surrey women’s side as Clarke reveals: “At the start of 2020 we partnered with our main sponsors Merrist Wood College, based near Guildford, with the hope of running our first trial game in May 2020, but due to COVID-19, this has been repeatedly pushed back. However, encouraging signs are pointing that an early 2021 trial game is very likely as long as we get the green light of Surrey and Greater London being moved out of Tier 4 into Tier 3 or below. The trial game would see the team play its first game behind closed doors against a club side opposition, we’ll then be aiming to play a game in front of fans in the early summer 2021, details to be confirmed. Our men’s team however which launched in 2018 has played 4 games between 2018 and 2019 against Barawa, the Army FA, and twice against the Chagos Islands.”

The ISF has a coaching staff already in place to start the women’s player selection process, with Danny Clarke identifying them: “The coaching staff is lead by our Director of Women’s Football, John O’Brien, who helped to appoint manager Stephen Statterly and assistant manager Leah Ambridge are responsible for the team. John has a UEFA B license, Futsal Level 2 Goalkeeper Level 2. He has worked with Aldershot Town Youth academy, Arsenal in the Community and spent time coaching in Italy, plus the Berkshire and Buckinghamshire FA Girls Development Centre, Berkshire and Buckinghamshire FA Disability Talent Identification Centre and was Maidenhead United Lead Community Coach and Reading Women’s Reserves Assistant Manager.”

“Stephen has fifteen years of coaching including a UEFA B license. He was Aldershot Town’s Youth Academy coach for three years and was an adult disability coach for three years including two years as the lead disability coach for Berkshire and Buckinghamshire. In addition, he has coached at grassroots level for women’s, men’s and youth football, and 3 years coaching with Bracknell Town youth.”

Above: The International Surrey Women’s Football team shirt. Photo: Ben Gilby.

“Leah has nineteen years of coaching experience, including working with two professional clubs, Watford and QPR boys academy. She managed Hampton and Richmond Borough Ladies for three seasons and has coached at grassroots level for fifteen years and is UEFA B qualified, with work for the FA as a safeguarding tutor.”

In terms of the potential selection and scouting process for women to play for the ISF women’s side, Clarke said: “We operate eligibility criteria similar to what players may expect from international football. Players will need to fall into one of three categories to be eligible for selection, either they were born in Surrey, this can include areas that are considered historical Surrey because they were part of the county of Surrey before 1889 when the county of London was first created using areas of Surrey, Kent, Essex, and Middlesex. Some examples of these historic areas include Southwark, Croydon, Wimbledon, Wandsworth, Lambeth, Clapham, and many more areas which are now part of Greater London. Players with parents or grandparents from these same areas of Surrey are also eligible, and finally, players who may not have been born in Surrey, but now live in Surrey and represented any Surrey-based club at a youth level for at least one season are also eligible.”

Post coronavirus, I asked Danny what the ISF women’s team schedule would look like. “A full schedule for us would ideally aim to include up to six friendlies, likely spread across the season with some games after the season has finished and followed by a tournament. Typically training would be focused on preparing for tournaments rather than individual friendlies, however, this will be lead more by the players and coaches rather than by the admin side of ISF.”

“There are currently no non-FIFA women’s tournaments, but one of our main ambitions is to participate in a non-FIFA tournament, perhaps even establishing our own to fill the void if other organisations aren’t able to do so, but we’re not aiming to overcrowd a player’s schedule, or that of club football by scheduling a large number of games. We may also look at more ambitious targets including overseas tours involving multiple games as many non-FIFA women’s teams are currently based overseas and not in the UK, but this is something that would need to be looked into before we actively pursued it as we don’t currently have the budget to offer such a great opportunity.”

In terms of the immediate future, I wondered what Danny’s aims were for the ISF women’s team in 2021: “Our main plans in 2021 are to get the team finally together and hit the ground running with some early fixture opportunities with our trial game and our first full debut in front of fans. This would be our minimum target, covering two games, but if we could build on this with additional games we would, but aren’t yet actively arranging any more than these initial games at the moment.”

In terms of the slightly longer term future, “Our primary focus once the team is up and running will be influenced by what the players want us to do,” said Danny.

Above: Putting pride into the shirt – the Surrey International Women’s Football team shirt. Photo: Ben Gilby.

“We doubt we’ll be able to convince the Surrey FA to allow us to participate in the Southern Counties Competition any time soon, but we’d like to see more women’s teams like ours take to the pitch, both expansions of existing men’s teams like Yorkshire, Kernow (Cornwall), or others, and even other independent county teams like us and even look at creating a new regional federation of county teams specifically to help our women’s team to play more games and participate in more localised tournaments, but we’d also like to take the team overseas and play some of the other existing women’s teams not based in the UK like Karen, Darfur, and Matabeleland, based in the US and Africa, but this would be more heavily reliant on sponsors and funding compared to more localised options.”

Danny was delighted to be able to announce the sponsorship deal that sees Impetus branded polo shirts for the International Surrey Women’s Football team’s coaches. He said: “The support of Impetus as part of this sponsorship will help to enhance the work of the Surrey women’s coaching staff with polos that will help them to stand out clearly when working with players and clubs across Surrey. The logo will be seen across Surrey’s website, in our match programmes from our first full home debut and at games, training and more.”

This story looks like having some exciting twists and turns to follow in 2021, and it is one we will be following closely on Impetus.

The View From France

Jean-Pierre Thiesset rounds up all the action from the fifteenth week of action in D1 Arkema, French women’s football’s top flight.

Paris St. Germain won 4-0 at home against Issy. PSG are still league leaders, one point ahead of Lyon. Goals from Luana (12), Kadidiatou Diani (85, 87), and Marie-Antoinette Katoto (89). Issy was able to keep up the suspense during most of the game even if PSG dominated the game, but PSG scored three goals in four minutes at the end.

Olympique Lyonnais won away from home 2-0 against Soyaux. Goals for Lyon from Saki Kumagai (27) and Dzsenifer Marozsan (87 penalty); the penalty was won by Sakina Karchaoui who came on as a substitute in the 58^th minute. Once again it was not really an easy game for Lyon, who dominated, but found it hard to score despite creating numerous chances. Soyaux came very close to scoring after 64 minutes on a counterattack.

Bordeaux won at home against Dijon 6-0. Bordeaux largely dominated the game and shut down Dijon by scoring quickly 2 goals (6 and 7). Goal from Maëlle Garbino (6, 7 and 25), Khadija Shaw (62 and 72), and Claire Lavogez (80). With this win, Bordeaux secures its third place being now eight points ahead of Montpellier and with a game in hand.

**Above:** Mary Fowler – 18 years-old, four Matildas caps and a first goal in D1 Arkema for Montpellier. **Photo:** The Guardian.

Montpellier at home against Dijon was not able to do better than a draw 1-1. Goals for Dijon by Shnia Demetrice Gordan (45) and for Montpellier by 18 year-old Matilda’s starlet Mary Fowler (66). By losing two points at home Montpellier allows Bordeaux to be now 8 points ahead of them. I guess that the third place is definitely lost for Montpellier even if there are still seven games to play.

The surprise of this round comes from Reims who won away from home against Fleury (2-1) ending a run of three straight defeats. Goals for Fleury by Cecilie Sandvej (24) and for Reims by Melissa Gomes (44) and Kessya Busy (58).

Paris FC and Guingamp were not able to score and finished 0-0. The D1 ARKEMA table now looks like this:

Points Shared Does Neither Side Any Favours

Canberra United 1–1 Melbourne Victory

By Kieran Yap.

Only two points separated the sides as Canberra United in fifth visited fourth placed Melbourne Victory in hopes of leapfrogging them on the ladder and a win for either team would be a massive boost to their finals hopes.

Victory began the game on the front foot, the attack of De Vanna, Zimmerman and Ayres looking mobile and lively from the kick-off. Canberra had an early shot on goal by Grace Maher but it was Victory who took the lead before 10 minutes.

Angie Beard, who has been consistently dangerous and versatile down the left flank this season, received the ball out wide, one-on-one with young defender Jessika Nash. She dropped her shoulder and lifted the ball, skipping past the challenge and into space. Beard looked up and hit the ball high towards goal, it somehow bounced off the underside of the crossbar and over the line for a spectacular opener by the Victory captain. Whether she intended to score directly or was aiming for a teammate makes very little difference, it was great wing-play and a deadly ball in. The only player more shocked than Beard was Keely Richards in goal who seemed to assume the ball was going over the bar before it somehow dipped under.

**Above:** Angie Beard celebrates her goal for Melbourne Victory. **Photo:** @victorywleague

Victory continued their dominance, Lisa De Vanna tried hooking a shot on her left foot that Richards was equal to and Amy Jackson in her record breaking sixty-seventh Victory game and wearing the armband for the day hit an effort over the bar.

De Vanna again was a threat when she raced behind the defenders but Kendall Fletcher did very well to block the shot and Kyra Cooney-Cross tried her luck with an optimistic long distance strike that had Richards back peddling frantically but flew wide.

The home side was dominant in general play and Canberra looked unable to enjoy any meaningful possession of the ball, but their defence withstood Victory’s best efforts. Claudia Bunge saw her header flash wide and a Lisa De Vanna goal seemed certain when she shaped to round Keely Richards until the goalkeeper calmly took the ball off her with a perfect tackle 20 yards from goal.

While Victory struggled to convert their chances, Canberra took theirs, seconds before the half time whistle Michelle Heyman played the ball to Bianca Galic who only needed one touch to put Nickoletta Flannery into space behind the defence. The speedster struck it sweetly, low and into the bottom corner without breaking stride, a perfectly taken goal to level the scores.

The second half was a more even contest, both teams went in search of a winner Amy Jackson created an early chance for De Vanna who was denied by Richards again with a strong near post save from close range.

Flannery played with confidence, her pace was a constant menace to the Victory defenders and after running at a back peddling Bunge and Morrison she shot from the edge of the box but Garton was untroubled. Heyman tried from a similar position, her shot was hit with more power but missed the target.

**Above:** Melbourne Victory’s Tiffany Eliadis (2) tussels with Canberra United’s Michelle Heyman. **Photo:** @victorywleague

Victory were still enjoying space down the flanks and their best chances were coming from crosses, Polly Doran’s cross from the right looked destined for Annalie Longo at the goal mouth but Kendall Fletcher was able to intercept the ball. Canberra continued to test Garton from long range with a Galic missile just fizzing over the bar and Laura Hughes bouncing a shot just wide.

As the game edged towards the 90^th minute Longo had the chance to win it after she twisted into a shooting position close to goal, Richards put out a glove to provide a strong instinctive save and the ball bounced across the face where Lisa De Vanna lurked. She charged at the ball to tap into an empty net but Jessika Nash reacted quickest to clear off the line and ensure a valuable point on the road for Canberra United.

Melbourne Victory have a short wait to get those three points, they host Western Sydney Warriors on Thursday night and they will be hoping Catherine Zimmerman is fit after going off in the first half of this game.

Canberra defended well and although they were undone early by a freak of a goal they fought their way back into the contest against an in form side. Next week they face the fearsome attack of Brisbane Roar, their season is still very much alive but they will need to be at their best for the final few matches.

Teams: MELBOURNE VICTORY: Garton, Doran, Beard, Bunge, Morrison, Jackson, Barbieri, Cooney-Cross, Zimmerman, De Vanna, Ayres. Substitutes: Maizels (GK), Longo, Markovski, Privitelli, Eliadis.

Scorers: Beard 9.

CANBERRA UNITED: Richards, Nash, Ilijoski, Keir, Fletcher, Galic, Flannery, Maher, Hughes, Koulizakis, Heyman. Substitutes: James (GK), Goldstein, Grove, Satchell, Taylor-Young.

Scorers: Flannery 45+2.

Referee: Kelly Jones.

Attendance: 562.

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts	GD
Sydney FC	9	8	0	1	24	8	24	+16
Brisbane Roar	9	5	4	0	21	6	19	+15
Adelaide United	8	5	1	3	15	13	16	+3
Melbourne Victory	8	4	2	2	16	12	14	+4
Canberra United	8	3	3	2	13	13	12	=
Western Sydney Wanderers	9	3	1	5	8	17	10	-9
Newcastle Jets	8	1	1	6	10	16	4	-6
Melbourne City	8	1	1	6	7	18	4	-11
Perth Glory	6	0	1	4	4	15	1	-11

Top four sides qualify for the finals at the end of the regular season.

Record Equalling Adelaide Edge Jets

Newcastle Jets 1–2 Adelaide United

By Ben Gilby

**Above:** Adelaide United celebrate taking the lead at the Number Two Sportsground **Photo:** @AUFCWomen

Adelaide United took a step closer to Finals Football with an important victory at the Number Two Sportsground.

Newcastle Jets boss Ash Wilson made several changes from their last game with Hannah Brewer and Lauren Allan coming back into the team along with Chloe O’Brien and Panagiota Petratos who were promoted from the bench. Adelaide United welcomed back Chelsie Dawber who was missing last week due to illness and there was also a return for Sian Fryer-McLaren in goal.

Newcastle Jets began looking to make up for a disappointing performance at home to Melbourne Victory last weekend. Yet it was Adelaide who began on the front foot with Mallory Weber being stopped from getting a shot away eventually by Tessa Tamplin who tidied up well.

**Above:** Tessa Tamplin driving forward for the Jets against Adelaide United. **Photo:** @NewcastleJetsFC

Newcastle replied when Allan played an inch perfect ball through to Tara Andrews who got a shot away which went narrowly wide of the right hand post.

The opening exchanges were hugely enjoyable with both teams on the attack. Weber almost put the visitors ahead when her turn and shot on the left of the box cannoned back off the post. Less than two minutes later they had better luck with a stunning goal. The returning Chelsie Dawber was found by Maria Jose Rojas and beat Gema Simon by curling a superb effort into the top right hand corner.

Yet the see-saw nature of the start was perfectly evidenced straight from the resulting kick-off as a long ball found Simon who pounced on some confusion by Dylan Holmes to curl a cross-shot into the net.

The “you score, we score” spell of three minutes continued when Holmes’ ball in wasn’t effectively dealt with by Tara King which allowed Emily Condon to smash the ball into the net.

Rojas then created some trickery along the left hand side which allowed Holmes to get an effort away.

With just over half an hour played, Charlotte Grant fouled Andrews on the right just outside of the box. Simon’s free kick found the head of Andrews but it was well wide. Sunny Franco had an effort shortly afterwards which was comfortably dealt with.

**Above:** Sunny Franco – another promising performance for Jets. **Photo:** @NewcastleJetsFC

With three minutes of the half left, Simon’s free-kick found Andrews again and, with Matilda McNamara allowing her more space than you would expect, the header was poorly directed wide.

The half-time whistle brought to an end a hugely entertaining opening forty-five minutes with both sides looking strong and creative.

There were several tasty tangles at the start of the second half, first Sunny Franco threw Charlotte Grant to the floor and then Hannah Brewer put a tackle in on Maruschka Waldus which saw the Adelaide player go down on her collar bone. Both Adelaide players were fine to continue.

With this fiery opening to the second half behind us, matters calmed down. Newcastle had more of the ball from an attacking perspective over the first ten minutes. Their build up play was slick and easy on the eye, but never quite led to anything which bothered Sian Fryer McLaren in the Adelaide United goal.

Adelaide broke with just over twenty minutes left with Chelsie Dawber getting another dangerous shot away which Claire Coelho pushed out for a corner. The flag kick came in and Coelho saved her side again by tipping Waldus’ header onto the bar.

**Above:** Maruschka Waldus wins a header for Adelaide United. **Photo:** @AUFCWomen

Petratos came so close to levelling for the Jets with a quarter of an hour to go when she took advantage of acres of space to let fly from outside the box with her effort narrowly clearing the crossbar.

Just afterwards, Andrews put in a teasing cross but Franco couldn’t quite direct her diving header on.

Frustratingly for Ash Wilson’s side, it was the story of much of their season – looking excellent coming forward at times but never quite able to make the most of their opportunities.

The second half eventually fizzled out with Adelaide United taking the points simply because they were more able to take the chances that came their way. For only the second time in their history, they have won five matches in a W-League season. Despite a really tough run of fixtures over the closing weeks of the season, it might just be enough to clinch a first ever spot in the finals.

Teams: NEWCASTLE JETS: Coelho, Tamplin, Simon, King, Brewer, O’Brien, Franco, Davis, Petratos, Allan, Andrews. Substitutes: Simonsen (GK), Bass, Chronis, Harding, House.

Scorer: Simon 13.

ADELAIDE UNITED: Fryer-McLaren, I.Hodgson, Grant, McNamara, Waldus, Holmes, Dawber, Hogg, Weber, Rojas, Condon. Substitutes: Grove (GK), E.Hodgson, Campagnale, Kirkby, Mullan.

Scorers: Dawber 12, Condon 15.

Referee: Lara Lee.

Attendance: 652.

Red Hot Sky Blues Show Perth How To Finish

Perth Glory 2–6 Sydney FC

By Ben Gilby

**Above:** Cortnee Vine – another outstanding performance for Sydney FC. **Photo:** Tom McCarthy.

Sydney FC ran out comfortable winners at Dorrien Gardens in a game which saw them come out on top thanks to scoring some outstanding goals and taking advantage of some worrying defence from the hosts.

Perth named unchanged starting eleven with just two changes on the bench, with Kat Jukic returning after missing the two away games last week due to work commitments and Jamie-Lee Gale coming in for Patricia Charalambous.

For Sydney, Ellie Brush returned with Rachel Lowe stepping up from the bench. Charleeze Rule dropped to the bench and Teresa Polias was out of the squad.

The visitors, stung by their thrashing by Brisbane Roar started on the front foot and earned a corner within thirty seconds and a second before two minutes were played.

With Glory clearing these dangerous set pieces, they tried to maximise their possession by playing close passing triangles in midfield and waiting for the right moment to release the final pass. Sydney hustled quickly and Cortnee Vine intercepted, broke away and won her side’s third corner with five minutes on the clock. A high ball in was hacked clear.

**Above:** Perth Glory keeper Lily Alfeld makes an early save whilst team-mate Sarah Carroll and Sydney FC’s Remi Siemsen look on. **Photo:** Tom McCarthy.

Taylor Ray then looked to off load just outside the box, but was brought down by a rumbustious challenge from Taneesha Baker on her eighteenth birthday, just outside the ‘D’ centrally. The free-kick was far from successful and allowed Caitlin Doeglas to break down the right and play in Baker but the Sydney defence held out.

The visitors had clearly done their homework on Perth’s build up patterns and there were regularly two Sky Blue shirts snapping at the heels of the Glory player in possession. The pressure forced errors in the early exchanges which merely added to Sydney’s stranglehold on the game.

Perth’s first effort came ten minutes in and an excellent turn and shot near the penalty spot from Doeglas was well held by Jada Mathyssen-Whyman.

Vine was having a field day down the right and a cross field pass began a move which ended with Princess Ibini’s weak effort being saved by Lily Alfeld.

**Above:** Perth Glory’s Tash Rigby tries to hold off Cortnee Vine, **Photo:** Tom McCarthy.

Vine created more danger down the right on the twenty minute mark and earned the Harbour City side a free kick which Taylor Ray swung in. Vine’s looping header was caught under the bar by Alfeld.

Perth responded instantly with a promising link-up between the two teenagers Hana Lowry and Taneesha Baker. It resulted with Baker’s effort skewed into the side netting. Four minutes later the home side saw an effort from Marianna Tabain fly over the bar.

The Purples had now settled into the game and were seeing far more possession but since the disastrous season-ending injury to Gemma Craine during their second match of the campaign, Perth are struggling for shots on target and genuine sharpness in and around the box. Something the Glory are not lacking is desire – and a prime example of this came when their Kiwi defender Liz Anton managed to win a tackle despite being prone on the ground with the Sydney attacker towering above her.

Princess Ibini was popping up all over the field and revelling in the freedom she enjoyed whether it be helping her defence down the left hand flank, getting shots away from the centre or joining Vine’s raids along the right.

As the game neared half-time there was absolutely no doubt that Perth would be happy with their progress throughout the opening stanza. They had been under serious pressure but the defence, marshalled expertly by Tash Rigby and with the ever impressive Alfeld between the sticks, had kept a very impressive clean sheet. Once more, although not ahead on the scoreboard, there was plenty for the Western Australian side’s fans to be proud of.

Yet as things have often turned out for Perth this season, there was heartache out of pride. With two minutes remaining in the half, Ellie Brush, just inside from the right hand flank played a pass just outside the box to Remy Siemsen who turned and fired an instant shot past Alfeld to put the visitors ahead at the break.

Within three minutes of the re-start, Sydney again emphasised the importance of having dangerous finishers. Clare Wheeler played a ball out to Mclean on the right flank. She fed Ibini just inside the box. Ibini turned Rigby and fired a rocket into the right hand side of the net.

Siemsen’s alertness was responsible for Sydney’s third with fifty-three minutes on the clock. Once more it was Wheeler with the assist as she played a delightful chip into the box with Siemsen getting between Sarah Carroll and Liz Anton to hit a shot which squirmed under Alfeld and over the line. It was a goal that was avoidable from Perth’s perspective and it further underlined the difference between the sides – potential finishing ability.

A minute later, Siemsen was in once more and her shot had to be tipped over by Alfeld.

Sydney were not finished and on the hour mark it was 4-0 and again, it was a goal which was exceptionally disappointing from a Perth Glory perspective. Ally Green crossed in and Wheeler, allowed way too much room, slid in at the near post in score with Alfeld left worryingly exposed by her defence.

The Western Australians creditably got up off the canvas and swung back at Sydney two minutes later. Kat Jukic’s pass through was not dealt with by Taylor Ray and Hana Lowry was able to fire a low shot from the edge of the box for the seventeen year-old’s first of the season.

**Above:** Hana Lowry fires in her first goal for Perth Glory. **Photo:** Tom McCarthy.

Less than a minute later, Perth’s never say die spirit saw them rewarded again. A long throw inside her own half by Deborah-Ann De La Harpe released sub Jamie-Lee Gale down the right and she beat Green expertly before playing in a low cross which was met firmly by Lowry and the Glory were back in it at 4-2. A fantastic response by the young Perth side.

But, with twenty minutes left Sydney extinguished any dramatic hopes that the home side had of completing a famous comeback. Green played a ball down the left to Wheeler who got away from teenage sub Isabella Wallhead with ease, cut across the bye-line and hit a shot into the net.

Immediately afterwards, Alfeld had to be alive to the danger after a quick free kick came in which she had to tip over.

With eight minutes left, Sydney got the ball in the net once more, although celebrations would be quickly cut short. Cortnee Vine beat Rigby and played a high cross into the box from the right and with Alfeld well beaten, the ball come off of Allira Toby’s upper arm and went over the line before being correctly ruled out.

Sydney missed another opportunity to add to their tally when Rigby brought Ibini down in the box and referee Isabella Libri pointed to the spot. Up stepped Wheeler and Alfeld made a fantastic save and Ray’s follow up was also cleared.

To compound matters further, Ellie Brush was on the receiving end of a tough tackle from Wallhead which led to her being led from the pitch with a serious looking knee injury.

Deep into stoppage time, Sydney finally scored their sixth. Ibini cut in from the left, and got past Wallhead, Gale and Carroll to fire in a low effort which looked to have gone in off Carroll to complete the rout.

**Above:** Jamie-Lee Gale attempts to break through late on. **Photo:** Tom McCarthy.

For Sydney, this was the perfect response to their shocking loss to Brisbane Roar and their hopes of finishing the regular season on top of the table are now looking more realistic than ever.

This was unquestionably Perth’s most disappointing performance of the season – but they showed character to keep plugging away. With Gemma Craine’s absence leading to a lack of firepower, at the very least they need to get their solid defensive shape back over the coming weeks as they look for that all important first win of the season.

Teams: PERTH GLORY: Alfeld, Rigby, Carroll, Anton, De La Harpe, Lowry, Steinmetz, Tabain, Doeglas, Moreno, Baker. Substitutes: Bennett (GK), T. McKenna, Gale, Jukic, Wallhead.

Scorers: Lowry 64, 65.

SYDNEY FC: Mathyssen-Whyman, Rule, Mclean, Green, Tobin, Brush, Ray, Wheeler, Lowe, Siemsen, Ibini. Substitutes: Campbell (GK), Hristodouou, Hawkesby, Rule, Toby.

Scorers: Siemsen 44, 53. Ibini 48, 90+5. Wheeler 61, 70.

Referee: Isabella Libri.

Attendance: 510.

Wanderers Sink City

Western Sydney Wanderers 1–0 Melbourne City

Report and EXCLUSIVE PHOTOS from Kris Goman.

**Above:** Western Sydney Wanderers celebrate their second win on the bounce. **Photo:** Kris Goman.

This match is at the Wanderers Centre of Football in Blacktown in Sydney’s west. It’s a gorgeous evening and there’s a decent local crowd of young footballers from Blacktown Spartans here to watch.

This is a must win match for both teams. Either losing team can pretty well write off their finals chances. There’s no guarantee a win will get them there either though.

Wanderers are playing 4-3-3 and City are playing 5-3-2 with a bigger emphasis on defence. Early on, the Wanderers seem to be controlling play and have the bulk of possession and territory. There’s a battle brewing between Sam Johnson in attack for City and Georgia Yeoman-Dale for Wanderers in defence as that seems to be City’s primary way forward.

There’s a few runs into the box for both teams but no shots on goal until about 15 minutes in when Teigan Collister releases Bryleeh Henry onto a ball that beats Jenna McCormick. Her shot goes across the face of goal but if better placed might have delivered. There’s no one there to follow up and that chance goes begging.

The Melbourne attacks are foiled at every opportunity and the Wanderers defence looks very strong. Hollie Palmer gets in front with just the keeper between her and goal but both Caitlin Cooper and Danika Matos are on her in seconds, making her turn around. She passes to Chinatsu Kira but she’s swamped too and City have to reset, not getting a shot away.

Kira gets another clear run into goal but Sarah Willacy and Cooper shut her down too. Things have evened up a bit more and Melbourne are looking more dangerous when Emma Checker sends a long pass out on the right to Johnson. She centres it and Alex Chidiac gets a boot to it and flicks it to goal but Willacy punches it safely out for a corner. That was the closest attempt to date and a great save.

**Above:** Georgia Yeoman-Dale takes on Naomi Thomas-Chinnama. **Photo:** Kris Goman.

The corner is taken short and then crossed. McCormick gets her head to it but can’t direct it to goal and it’s out for a goal kick. Wanderers get a free kick after McCormick takes Sarah Hunter’s feet out from her and Libby Copus-Brown takes it. It’s headed by Henry, then Price volleys it and strikes the crossbar. It bounces back into play but is cleared.

Wanderers start applying a bit more pressure and Collister manages to steal the ball off Tori Tumeth at the top of the box, gets around Checker but her shot is blocked by McCormick in an impressive bit of work both by Collister and McCormick.

Soon after, Russell has the ball on the left and sends a cross just over the head of Hunter, right in front of goal. She just needed to be two inches taller.

Wanderers get a free kick ten metres out from the top of the box and right in front. They try a tricky set play where Yeoman-Dale and Copus-Brown line up to take it. Yeoman-Dale wanders away bored, like she’s decided not to take it, and Copus-Brown slips it to her instead of the waiting hoards. It nearly works but Tumeth sprints over and blocks the ball and it goes off Yeoman-Dale for a goal kick.

It’s all the Wanderers now and Melbourne haven’t got into their half for some time. A ball comes over and dips in front of Price in the box on the right. She cuts back on Eckhoff and shoots but Micah has gathered it safely.

McCormick gets a long ball across to Johnson but Yeoman-Dale is all over it and relieves her of possession. In a rare incursion, Palmer gets the ball and takes it down the left, crosses to Leah Davidson in the box but Cooper wrests the ball from her and clears it. Cooper is reminiscent of a slightly smaller, slightly less aggressive but just as effective, Millie Bright. So solid in defence and completely dependable. Also excellent in the air.

**Above:** Melbourne City’s Jenna McCormick battles with Bryleeh Henry (9) **Photo:** Kris Goman.

We’re in the last five minutes of the first half when Johnson steals possession and kicks off a run. She passes to Palmer at halfway who passes onto Kira. She taps back towards Johnson who is running up the right wing now. Willacy comes out of the box and misses the ball and is beaten. The goal is open for Johnson. She stumbles and takes a touch giving the Wanderers time to recover but Willacy is still down behind her. She shoots but Nikola Orgill blocks with her chest, right on the line, and Cooper clears it out of the box. It was a thrilling piece of play and a stunning recovery by the Wanderers. It all ends with a free kick for City. Kira’s kick goes under the wall as they jump to block it but Willacy scoops it up safely.

Just before half time Tumeth gets a yellow for a foul tackle on Russell. The half ends at nil all with Wanderers looking marginally better for most of the half except for the last five minutes but ultimately both defences stood up to all attacks.

The second half starts with a Wanderers free kick taken by Copus-Brown that sails over the crossbar.

A ball is sent down the right for Johnson again and Johnson and Yeoman-Dale shoulder charge with Yeoman-Dale coming off second best and left behind on the ground. This play results in a corner and Melbourne have come out fighting this half. Everyone’s in front of goal and Cooper heads it away. Chidiac sends it back in to McCormick who heads it to goal but there’s not enough on it and Willacy has it wrapped up.

Another City attack soon after sees a ball float across the goal but no one there to do anything with it. Once again Johnson and Yeoman-Dale are batting down the right side and this time Yeoman-Dale wins the ball back.

On the other side of the field, Collister gets a yellow for taking down Kira. Immediately after, the other big battle between Tumeth and Collister has them both going for the ball and crashing into each other with Collister coming off second best and falling heavily and hitting her head on the way down. After some treatment, she’s up and Melbourne get the dropped ball.

At 57 minutes, Wanderers have a fairly haphazard attack on goal with the ball in and out of the box and eventually collected by Micah after a weak cross by Collister.

Melbourne are playing a very high line and catch Russell offside.

**Above:** A prone Georgia Yeoman-Dale after her tussle with Sam Johnson. **Photo:** Kris Goman

A goal kick comes out to Johnson and Yeoman-Dale right in front of the field camera. Yeoman-Dale grabs Johnson’s shirt, pulls her down then falls on top of her in a tumble. Johnson pushes her off and in the struggle, things get violent. Johnson is on top and looks like she’s going to thump Yeoman-Dale who puts her hands up in defence. Johnson gets up and hovers over her and it looks like she kicks her while she’s on the ground. Yeoman-Dale is on the ground on her back with her hands exclaiming her innocence. There’s absolutely no love lost here. Rado Vidosic offers to help her up but she’s not interested. Team mates rush in to pull Johnson away as they have further words. Neither are backing down. Both get yellow cards and neither are happy but they both look a bit smug. City get the free kick which goes straight into the box. Offside is called.

McCormick gets a run down the right closely followed by Copus-Brown. She manages to hold her off and get a cross to Chidiac but her shot is to the right of goal.

Melbourne City are on a roll now and sub Rhali Dobson has her turn bringing the ball down the left. Chidiac tries a back flick with the cross but Yeoman-Dale clears it before Johnson can get to it. An Eckhoff to Dobson run is once again stopped by a Cooper header. The header goes to Hunter who passes to Collister. She brings it right up the right flank, passes it through Checker, on the right corner of the box. Sub Leena Khamis picks it up and shoots to the far post. It hits the post and ricochets into goal at the 71 minute mark. It’s 1-0 after a brilliant transition play by the Wanderers. Collister did all the work there bringing the ball up at least half the field. Khamis’ finish was perfect, to slot it past Micah, with a single touch, and into goal. It looked like City had the upper hand for the last ten minutes and now the Wanderers have turned the tables.

Melbourne City launch another attack from kick-off until Collister gets it again and takes off again. She’s very fast. Probably the fastest on the field. She leaves Tumeth in her dust and Checker comes across and runs interference until Tumeth catches up, tackles her and takes her down. Tumeth is on a yellow and gets spoken to but no red is pulled out.

**Above:** Sarah Hunter (18) and Tori Tumeth contest possession. **Photo:** Kris Goman.

Melbourne City are back on the attack and, after another Johnson v Yeoman-Dale tussle, get a corner. There’s a lot of jostling in front of goal so when the kick comes in, Wanderers get a free kick.

Chinnama gets a yellow in her starting debut game, after a push on Henry. She has been very solid in defence and this didn’t look intentional. The free kick by Copus-Brown goes to the far side and Khamis delivers a rocket header that just misses the left goal post and goes wide.

Melbourne City launch another attack and this time Tumeth takes a long shot straight into Cooper who puts her body on the line yet again. It rebounds off her for a corner. The corner gets cleared by Collister but only to Dobson who shoots. It’s wide but Melbourne certainly aren’t giving up.

Neither is Khamis who has injected some spirit into the Wanderers. Copus-Brown sends a long ball over the city defensive line and both Khamis and Henry break through. Micah comes right out and beats Khamis to the ball and they both take a tumble. The ball lands with Hunter who delivers a lob over Micah who is just recovering. It’s high and it bounces which gives Micah enough time to run back and stop the ball from going into goal.

**Above:** Leena Khamis finds a novel way to get away from Emma Checker. **Photo:** Kris Goman.

It feels manic now as both teams are desperate for the points. It’s back and forth a few times. At 83 minutes, Erica Halloway comes on to replace Henry. This is her first match back after an extended period out of the game due to an ACL injury. There really is nothing better than seeing a player return after an injury like that.

Wanderers get a corner that comes in and goes straight back out to Copus-Brown. The second delivery finds both Khamis and Halloway offside but Micah had the ball anyway.

Shortly after Matos delivers a lovely ball to Khamis, once again, clear in the box. She gets a decent shot off but Micah is able to deflect it out for a corner. That was a definitely goal saver.

With only a minute left in regular time, Chidiac brings the ball down the left with Orgill trying to stop her. Her shot to the near post is gathered by Willacy.

We’ve got four minutes of injury time when Chinnama goes down in front of goal with a cramp as the Wanderers are waiting for a corner. She’s off the field and the corner lands on Khamis’ stomach and it rebounds to Kira who clears it.

**Above:** Tense midfield action. **Photo:** Kris Goman.

Down the other end, it falls to Johnson. Cooper and Yeoman-Dale are there and Cooper wrestles it from her and sends it out for a corner. There’s less than two minutes left so this is Melbourne’s last chance for any points. Cooper then Khamis get their heads to the ball to clear it but there’s a foul called for to the jostling.

Melbourne bring the ball back in a last ditch effort. Everyone goes forward and Tumeth crosses to Cain, who’s just come on. Her shot is wide. There’s a bit more midfield play until the whistle blows and Wanderers get the valuable three points after a massive battle.

Melbourne City are dejected and a few of them sit down to contemplate what could have been. How the mighty have fallen. It’s hard to see how there’s any way back for them now.

Melbourne City really stepped it up in the second half but it was Khamis who made the difference for the Wanderers. She had the most shots on goal despite only coming on in the second half. Her absolute scoring focus was evident and her ability to finish got the Wanderers the points. City had marginally more possession but Wanderers had marginally more territory. Corners were the same with 5 each. Biggest discrepancy was in fouls with City having 23 and Wanderers 8.

This was an exciting match with plenty of drama, some classic battles and a hard fought win. Teigan Collister was the player of the match.

Teams: WESTERN SYDNEY WANDERERS: Willacy, Matos, Yeoman-Dale, Orgill, Cooper, Copus-Brown, Hunter, Price, Henry, Collister, Russell. Substitutes: Newbon (GK), Chauvet, Galea, Halloway, Khamis.

Scorer: Khamis 72.

MELBOURNE CITY: Micah, Checker, McCormick, Thomas-Chinnama, Johnson, Tumeth, Davidson, Palmer, Hoelsbrekken Eckhoff, Kira, Chidiac. Substitutes: Barbieri (GK), Cain, Muldeary, Robinne, Dobson.

Referee: Isabella Blaess.

Attendance: 334.

Olivia Watson – Life In Lockdown

Before Christmas, Impetus and Since ’71 announced joint sponsorship of Olivia Watson, a talented young midfielder with sixth tier Sutton United Women. Ben Gilby recently touched base with Olivia to see how she’s getting on during the difficult times we are facing at present.

**Above:** Olivia Watson in action for Sutton United earlier in the season. **Photo:** Paul Loughlin

“I have been doing well, just trying to keep as busy as possible. I have definitely found this lockdown harder than the previous two,” Olivia admitted.

What was particularly frustrating from a footballing perspective was the fact that just before the latest lockdown, Olivia had just established herself in the Sutton United team and scored her first ever goal for them in an important top of the table clash with Clapham United that ended 1-1.

“It has been very hard and frustrating because I feel that I had just started to show what I was capable of and could bring to the team, when the second lockdown started and then we only played one game in between the second and third lockdown, so it has been hard to get on a good run with the stopping and starting.”

That one game between the second and third lockdown saw Olivia score her first goal for Sutton United. She takes us through the historic strike: “I was playing on the left and the ball had been moved from the left to the right quickly, ending with Gabby Howell having the ball on the right wing. I knew that if I made a run into the box, I would potentially have the chance to have a shot, which in the end I did. Gabby played a brilliant ball across goal and I managed to get my foot on it at the back post, which beat the goalkeeper and ended up in the back of the net. I was very happy and excited that I had finally scored my first goal for the first team because personally I felt that I needed to score to prove that I should be in the squad. I was also glad that it meant we had drawn the game, although I wish we could have scored another to get the win.”

**Above:** Olivia (26) slides in to score her first goal for Sutton United against Clapham United just before lockdown. **Photo:** Paul Loughlin,

“With the current lockdown, I have tried to stay positive rather than being frustrated by not being able to play, and have been focused on staying fit and practicing my skills. Once it is safe to play football again, I am determined to continue my pre lockdown form and continue to develop and improve my game.”

Olivia’s move to Sutton United came after spending a short period away from the game. She feels that the huge potential at the club and their stated desire to move swiftly up the leagues made it an easy decision to sign for the Gander Green Lane based club.

“When I was looking for a new club, after my year out, it was very important for me to find a team that were, professional, fun and striving to achieve promotion up the leagues. This is exactly why I choose to trial for Sutton United Women because they are all of these things! I feel that the football I had previously played at adult level was more for enjoyment and I really wanted to challenge myself and improve. I remember my first training session at the club was very intense, focused and challenging, which I really enjoyed and the clubs’ aims and ambitions where highlighted throughout the session, from there I knew that Sutton United Women was exactly where I wanted to be. In the future, I would love and aim to be playing for Sutton United Women in the FA Women’s National League and progressing to the highest level of women’s football that I can.”

At the present time, the future of the current season is very much up in the air. The Football Association have recently circulated a survey with regards to how best to end the season – pausing it until safe to play again, points-per-game and cancellation. Olivia feels that points-per-game would be completely unfair.

**Above:** Olivia gets a shot in for Sutton United against Clapham United in December. **Photo:** Paul Loughlin.

“Personally, I want the season to be paused until it is safe to play again, with the season being extended into June/July but I think this option appeals to me most because I am eager to play some matches and it would be good to finish what we have started. If this weren’t to happen, I would prefer the season to be cancelled because we have only played four games out of twelve, so points-per-game doesn’t seem fair to me.”

With training and matches suspended, the players and coaches have found creative ways of staying in touch with each other. “We have been taking part in bi-weekly quizzes, which are really fun but competitive. We are split up into teams, which is good as I would be useless on my own! Originally, they were organised and run by Duncan (Muller – head of women’s football at the club) but now each team have a round and decide on the questions. Unfortunately, the team I am in are yet to win but hopefully next time we will!”

As the current lockdown continues, I wondered what Olivia has done to fill the time: “Apart from working, I have been going on a lot of lockdown walks and cooking, as I am trying to eat healthier and try new things. I have also been watching a lot of sport on TV too. I love watching the women’s game on telly, especially as it wasn’t really televised when I was younger, I really enjoy watching it now. I don’t back a team but I do love watching both Manchester United and Chelsea. I have always been into sport and enjoy watching most other sports on the TV, particularly netball and rugby.”

In terms of fitness, I have been making sure I either do two short runs or one long run a week and I try to work out if I can find the motivation but I am not very good at home workouts – I really miss the gym. I have also recently started doing 1:1 football sessions, to keep up my skills and fitness. Once football returns, I aim to get back to match fitness as quickly as possible, solidify my place in the first team and if matches are resumed this season I am determined to add more goals to my one!”

**Above:** Olivia Watson with Ben Gilby to unveil our sponsorship. **Photo:** Paul Loughlin.

International Round-Up

The past week or so has seen a large number of international matches, with the conclusion of the Euro 2022 group qualifiers, the Lionesses‘ return to action after a year and several friendlies. Our team of writers round-up all the action.

Euro 2021 Qualifiers Round-Up by Ben Gilby:

Group A concluded on 23^rd February when Estonia hosted Slovenia in Tallinn. The hosts, who had lost every game and only scored a single goal kept their visitors to just two goals at half-time with Dominika Conc and Mateja Zver on target. However, a four goal haul in nine second half minutes helped the visitors to complete a 9-0 romp. Zver added a second before further goals from Lara Prasnikar (2 including one penalty), Zara Vindisar Ana Milovic, Lara Klopcic ensured the Slovenes finished third in the group.

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts	GD
Netherlands	10	10	0	0	48	3	30	+ 45
Russia	10	8	0	2	23	6	24	+ 17
Slovenia	10	6	0	4	31	12	18	+ 19
Kosovo	10	3	1	6	6	29	10	– 23
Turkey	10	1	2	7	9	28	5	– 19
Estonia	10	0	1	9	1	40	1	– 39