Match of the Round
Newcastle Olympic 0-6 Broadmeadow Magic
Broadmeadow Magic coach Jason Konjarski said his side knew only a win would do against Newcastle Olympic on Sunday afternoon and was delighted with the performance that secured a commanding 6-0 victory at Darling Street Oval.
Knowing three points would lift them back into the top four, Magic made the perfect start as Wimberley Wright opened the scoring inside the opening four minutes.
Wright burst through the middle alongside Olympic defender Georgia Calculli before calmly finishing into the top-left corner.
Broadmeadow doubled their advantage in the 22nd minute when Madalyn Campbell delivered a ball into the penalty area and Jessica Wallace met it with a volley into the back of the net.
Olympic searched for an immediate response through Amelie Hingston, but her long-range effort sailed over the crossbar.
The hosts continued to push forward and almost found a breakthrough in the 31st minute when Maddy Howard's free-kick was punched clear by goalkeeper Malli Blanch. The ball fell to Jemma House, whose follow-up effort flew over the crossbar.
The sides traded chances for the remainder of the half, but Magic's clinical start saw them take a 2-0 lead into the break.
Olympic began the second half brightly as House slipped a pass into the path of an unmarked Howard, but Blanch denied her effort.
Despite Olympic enjoying more possession after the restart, Broadmeadow extended their lead when Izzy Threlfo brought down Lillie Young inside the penalty area. Adriana Konjarski stepped up and calmly converted from the spot.
Konjarski grabbed her second in the 73rd minute after reacting quickest to a deflected Wright shot and firing a half-volley into the net.
Moments later, Olympic goalkeeper Isabella Aquilina was shown a straight red card following the goal, reducing the home side to 10 players for the remainder of the contest.
Magic added a fifth in the 89th minute when Ava Bjorkman-Tracy chased down an Ava Lidden through ball, rounded Olympic’s Jess Evans and slotted home.
Bjorkman-Tracy completed the scoring two minutes into stoppage time, driving into the penalty area, beating her defenders and finishing to seal a dominant 6-0 victory.
"A win was the only result that we could take out of today and the girls just matched that," Konjarski said.
"The girls were already up for it because it was our captain's, Megan Janikowski's, birthday today. To get a resounding performance and a dominant victory on Meg's birthday, capped off with a clean sheet and plenty of goals, was really pleasing.
"From back to front it was a great performance. It was exactly what we were looking to do.
"To beat Olympic in all three games this season in the derby was massive. We didn't let them get close to us once this season, so it was good to get really strong performances against them."
Konjarski was also pleased to see several players contribute on the scoresheet and believes the growing variety of attacking threats will benefit his side in the run home.
"You're seeing these other teams above us and the fact they've got six players that can score for them," he said.
"So having Jess [Wallace] and Wimberley [Wright] scoring goals, and now Ava [Bjorkman-Tracy] adding to that, plus AJ [Adriana Konjarski] coming off the bench and scoring, shows we have different goalscorers. It's a good headache to have.
"That's what we want for the rest of the season."
Newcastle Olympic coach Jacob Jones admitted it was a frustrating afternoon but praised his side's effort.
"It was difficult. It was difficult to watch and a frustrating game for everyone to be a part of," Jones said.
"But I was happy with the work we put in and the effort levels we showed. It was just the little 50-50s that didn't fall our way, so it made it hard."
Jones was disappointed his side could not find a way onto the scoresheet.
"I think today we had more possession. I felt like we had more of the ball, but they probably had better field position and we got caught on the counter a number of times," he said.
"It was frustrating not to score. We had a couple of good chances in both halves, but we're disappointed we couldn't take them."
The victory moved Broadmeadow back into fourth on the table, with Magic looking to strengthen their finals position when they host New Lambton FC at Magic Park on Friday night.
Olympic will look to bounce back when they face Charlestown Azzurri in their round 16 catch-up fixture on Wednesday night.
Charlestown Azzurri 2-8 Adamstown Rosebud JFC
Adamstown Rosebud JFC coach Martin Slade was pleased to see his side maintain their intensity throughout an emphatic 8-2 victory over Charlestown Azzurri at Lisle Carr Oval on Saturday afternoon.
Both teams started brightly, trading wayward efforts in the opening five minutes before Adamstown settled into the contest.
The Buds opened the scoring in the eighth minute when Tanya Jones latched onto a long ball from Lainee McFayden, burst through unmarked and calmly slotted her finish into the bottom-right corner.
Adamstown doubled their lead in the 21st minute after Jones unleashed a strike from the edge of the box. Goalkeeper Abbey Maletto could only tip the ball onto the crossbar, with the rebound falling kindly for Sienna Friend, who made no mistake from close range.
Marry Ntsweng made it 3-0 in the 29th minute with a powerful strike from outside the penalty area that found the back of the net.
The Buds added a fourth four minutes later when Georgia Cook's cross found Ntsweng, who tapped home to give the visitors a commanding 4-0 lead at half-time.
Adamstown picked up where they left off after the break, with Jones scoring her second in the 47th minute after lifting a long-range effort over Maletto and into the net.
Friend completed her brace in the 72nd minute after collecting a deflected Sophia Laurie pass during a goalmouth scramble before calmly finishing.
Cook added Adamstown's seventh in the 78th minute with a superb strike from a tight angle that flew into the top-right corner.
Charlestown pulled one back three minutes later when Rachel Perrins won possession from Marney Duval before firing a long-range effort into the top-left corner.
But Adamstown responded immediately as substitute Luna Birch reacted quickest to a goalmouth scramble to restore the seven-goal margin just a minute later.
The home side scored a second consolation goal in stoppage time after Libby Copus-Brown's effort was spilled by goalkeeper Olivia Sneddon. Aoife Redman followed up, with her initial effort striking the crossbar before she converted the rebound.
Despite the late goal, Adamstown completed a dominant 8-2 victory.
"I've said it all year about giving teams oxygen and teams scoring in batches. They go one, two, three and we've had it happen against us this season. So to now do it to somebody else is pleasing," Slade said.
"It was great to see [Adamstown score directly after Charlestown] because it was 7-1, they scored and then we've just gone bang.
"We didn't take our foot off the pedal and just coast through to the end. We carried on playing the way we wanted to, scoring goals and staying on the front foot.
"That was the most pleasing thing in the last 10 or 15 minutes."
The victory briefly lifted Adamstown into fourth on the table before Broadmeadow Magic's win on Sunday saw the Buds slip back to fifth, one point outside the finals places. Adamstown will now have the bye.
Charlestown's defeat dealt another blow to their finals hopes, but Azzurri will look to bounce back when they take on Newcastle Olympic in their round 16 catch-up fixture on Wednesday night.
Lake Macquarie City FC 1-3 Maitland FC
Maitland FC continued their impressive form with a 3-1 victory over Lake Macquarie City FC at Macquarie Field on Sunday afternoon.
The Magpies dominated possession from the opening whistle but were unable to convert their early chances.
Their persistence was rewarded in the 37th minute when a short free-kick routine from Sophie Nenadovic found Elodie Dagg on the left edge of the penalty area. Dagg delivered a cross into the box, where Marion Dunbabin rose highest to head home the opener.
Lake Macquarie City were unable to find a response before half-time as Maitland took a 1-0 lead into the break.
The visitors doubled their advantage in the 51st minute when Georgia Amess played Renee Pountney through on goal. Pountney raced clear alongside Lake Macquarie City's Caitlin McMahon before showing composure inside the box, creating space for herself and calmly finishing past the goalkeeper.
Maitland made it 3-0 in the 72nd minute after an Amess cross picked out Sophie Stapleford in the penalty area, with the attacker calmly tapping the ball into the bottom-left corner.
The Roosters grabbed a late consolation two minutes into stoppage time when Belle Hewitt delivered a ball into the box and Kiera Bainsfair volleyed home.
Despite conceding late, Maitland secured a deserved 3-1 victory to further extend their lead at the top of the table.
The Magpies will look to continue their winning run when they host Newcastle Olympic at Cooks Square Park on Sunday afternoon.
Meanwhile, Lake Macquarie City will travel to Lisle Carr Oval to face Charlestown Azzurri on Sunday.
Bye - New Lambton FC