NPLW
Game abandoned
NPLW Reserves
ANUWFC 3 - West Canberra Wanderers 1
State League 1
Game abandoned
First half report: With the field more reminiscent of a water polo pool, the game was called off at half time by the ref. Much to our players disappointment, as they had already embraced efforts to try to change their kit colour from white to brown.
During our first half we conceded a goal early on when South Canberra took advantage of the ball stopping in a puddle mid-pass. After their goal, we wrestled control back and not long after Char released Lena down the wing who put in a brilliant cross that Ash C struck on the volley and rocketed into the back of the net! Ibrahimović himself would be jealous of such a goal.
The halftime whistle blew and the ref called the game off. At this stage we're unsure when and where the second half will be played, but as long as Ash's incredible goal counts I'll be one happy coach.
Reports state the coach, unable to contain his excitement at the goal, attempted to knee slide and faceplanted the mud. The coach profusely denies these allegations, and challenges anyone suggesting otherwise to provide proof of such incident.
State League 2
ANUWFC 2 - South Canberra FC 0
Dominant performance from ANU. Both halves were controlled well by the Carrots and possession of the football was used wisely for most of the game.
The players' performance was even more impressive given the weather, playing on Willows, and against good opponents.
The win came via first class goals from Ally H - drops a defender and bottom left corner finish with left foot, and Ash T - mad strike from outside the box into top right hand corner with right foot.
State League 3
ANUWFC 0 - Weston Molonglo 2
Against a more established team, the game was an even contest irrespective of the result.
We had a strong second half after being 2 down a halftime, with good passages of play down the right and left sides, however the bounce of the ball did not favour us in the key areas in front of goal.
Ladies Kudos to your team spirit and hard work. Caiti played her first game for the season and had a solid performance on the left side of defence. The player of the match was Georgia Moffitt.
State League 4 Runaways
ANUWFC 1 - Lanyon United FC 4
State League 4 Strollers
ANUWFC 6 - Yass FC 1
La Niña is a messy bitch, who seems hellbent on inflicting the worst conditions possible on our poor Strollers. Where other games were called off or rescheduled, the team made the trek to Yass for another wet and muddy outing.
The pitch was heavy, the rain was relentless, and the subs were few and far between at kick off. In typical fashion, the first 20-ish minutes for the Strollers was warm-up adjacent, with some frantic passes and longer than needed through balls. Once they settled though, the team were quick to the ball and tough in tackles.
Identifying weaknesses on the wings, the team sent ball after ball up the sides, playing some delightful crosses into the box and chipping over Yass’ defensive line.
Pressure was put on Yass’ three key players through the mids, and the defence repeatedly stopped dangerous through balls.
As the rain intensified, so did the pressure, with the Strollers receiving late tackles, reckless swipes, elbows in backs, and taps on the ankles. Yass threw everything they had at the team, but the defensive line was its usual impenetrable wall, with only a few balls making it into CC’s hands.
An unlucky scramble in the goalmouth after a corner saw the Strollers concede their first goal of the season, but at 6-1 up at the end of the match, it won’t be enough to threaten their impressive goal difference.
The Strollers - always the picture of team spirit and community mindedness - shared the love again when it came to scoring, with 5 players bagging goals.
Several players had impressive games, and particular stand outs for the cold and boggy match included CC, Lauren S, Jacqui, Zan, Lara, Steph, Meaghan, Merissa, Sarah, Kate, Dhigs, Lauren D, Holly, and Clare.
BY THE NUMBERS
Score: ANUWFC 6 - Yass 1
Injuries acquired: several
Level of excitement about a bye next week and additional recovery time: 11/10
State League 5 Scooters
ANUWFC 3 - Gungahlin United FC 2
The story of us Scooters: As A$AP Rocky once said: “It rains, it pours, it rains, it pours” and on Sunday boy did it pour. The Scooters rolled into matchday 5 with a full matchday squad, which ultimately helped play a part in the Scooters victory over SL5 newcomers, Gungahlin United.
The Scooters admittedly started a bit slower than the opposition as Gungahlin took the initiative to press high early and place us under pressure from the start. Despite the early pressure, we looked composed playing out from Elise in goal, using our centerbacks Tash and Emily T who brought the ball forward and distributed the ball well out from the back. On the left side, Claire and Gini had a few good combinations to start the game but Gungahlin kept tight with their marking. Charlotte also came on at left back and showed a lot of composure in her touches and found time and space to drive forward.
Our midfielders Liv, Penny and Saf initially found it tricky in the conditions to orchestrate the tempo for us and the presence of a sweeper in the Gungahlin backline meant our throughballs were not finding their targets which meant we struggled to find up front early on.
The pressure and intensity of Gungahlin paid off for them as an innocent enough through ball in behind our backline was cleared back into goal, giving Gungahlin the lead 18 minutes in. (Fun fact: Did you know a referee can call a foul on a player who shouts “Mine” if the ball is near an opposition player?) The Scooters quickly settled down and started finding their wheels and confidence after adjusting to the conditions.
Cheered on by a marquee packed like a can of sardines, led single-handedly by Co-captain Catie (happy?), the Scooters started to threaten. Zoe from right back consistently played great balls down the channel for Rose, who would start to dribble and take on multiple Gungahlin players, leaving them in her dust. Whether it was in their nature or the field conditions which made it suitable, Gungahlin placed quite a few mean crunching slide tackles, with one in particular upending Emily B.
Sometimes in football, as in life, you have carefully made plans, tactics and strategies, other times you throw things at a wall and see what sticks. A switch of flanks from left to right wing for Gini made sparks fly as she blazed down our right flank after being put through by Tash. With Emily B, Beth and Sarah making surging supportive runs into the box, Gini had the confidence to place the ball exquisitely at the far bottom corner, drawing us level at 43 minutes. It was a simple but effective pattern of play and it almost worked again immediately with another through ball to Gini, who hit the crossbar the second time around.
Halftime 1-1, the Scooters were confident, we had a gameplan and we had the subs to make sure we could stay fresh throughout the game. Almost straight from kickoff, Gini had another run down the right wing but this time Rose managed to find the net for her 4th goal of the season at the 47’ minute mark. Having identified Gungahlin's key player, we made a switch to individually mark her out of the game, with the job falling specifically on Liv and then Sarah who both did spectacular at limiting her impact. Despite our best efforts, their #6 did manage to equalize at the 52nd minute, but was subsequently kept quiet by our midfield and defense. Despite being pegged back, the Scooters were not Haunted by the last occasion we were in a similar scenario in round 2. Instead we kept our composure and pushed forward. At the 61’ minute mark, another Tash corner found Sarah’s chin who poked us into the lead despite the futile Gungahlin calls for an imaginary handball. 3-2, ~30 minutes remaining, rain absolutely pelting South Oval, hold on to the edge of your seats.
The ethos of the Scooters is to always try and score because generally, if you score more than your opponent, you tend to win the game i think. So the Scooters kept pushing forward, but we definitely picked our moments to push bodies forward. It was often particularly the discipline of Penny in midfield who helped make sure we did not overcommit. Furthermore, Kirsten, firstly at centreback and then at right back, had the composure and experience to time and time again not only deal with counterattacks and through balls, but had a horrendous section of the field to deal with where balls would just get dead stuck if played on the ground. That section in front of our goal definitely led to head in hands moments, but Elise, Emily T, Kirsten and Zoe definitely saved us on more than one occasion when a ball would suddenly just stop and lay right in front of the goal box. As we utilised the full capabilities of our bench, we looked more and more to hit Gungahlin on the counter and our wingers Rose, Emily B and Gini did amazing jobs securing the ball on transitions and finding space to carry the ball towards the opposition goal, both threatening the opposition but also buying us time to form our shape. Beth played a crucial role in keeping our lead as she harried and hustled the opposition as well as held the ball up well, playing Rose through on more than one occasion.
With the clock running out, Gini was moved to sweep behind our backline and the Scooters fought tooth and nail for every yard of space, blocking so many shots and clearing smartly as legs started to tire. We saw out the win for our second win on the trot! Scoot scoot!
State League 5 Suban
Game abandoned
State League 6
ANUWFC Hungry Kartapillars 0 vs ANUWFC Sharkies 3
The Sharkies vs the Kartapillars was a match of high quality.
Both teams rocked up early, warmed up, and embraced the cold. With everyone ready to give it their best, the light hail only managed to momentarily delay the players from kicking the ball around.
The Sharkies lined up in their 4-3-3 and the Kartapillars in their 4-4-2. From the blow of the whistle, the Sharkies were relentless with their attacking football, trying to pry open the Kartapillars apart.
From the first minute to the very last, each player put in a performance to make both coaches extremely proud.
The Kartapillars did a phenomenal job following tactics and trusting one another. It was an absolute joy to watch from the sidelines as I could see a great team in the making.
The Sharkies deservedly beat the Kartapillars 3-0. Unfortunately, despite the extremely clean game, both teams lost two incredible players due to serious injuries. I really hope both Krisitine and Grace have a speedy recovery.
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