Match of the Round
Maitland FC v Charlestown Azzurri
Cooks Square Park, Sunday 4pm
Maitland FC coach Joe Wright hopes his side has learnt their lessons ahead of their top-of-the-table clash with Charlestown Azzurri at Cooks Square Park on Sunday afternoon.
There are only three points that separate league leaders Maitland on 29 points and Azzurri on 26 points, which turns up the stakes for this weekend’s fixture.
The Magpies remain unbeaten in the NPL Women’s NNSW competition in 11 matches but will come face to face with the one opponent who has beaten them in 2025.
The Blues dealt Maitland their first loss of the season in the Women’s League Cup final with a 3-2 win.
Wright said that his side learnt a lot from their loss to Azzurri but was well and truly up for the fight on Sunday.
“For us we are going back to the focus on ourselves and what we do well as well as the areas that we can control,” Wright said.
“I think it is important to learn lessons from the past. It is not just that we have moved on and forgotten about it. But we have moved on from the mistakes.
“I don’t think we are any more fired up than normal. Our group of girls are competitive and it doesn’t matter the competition or circumstances they want to win.
“I think football is a funny game, you can have a good performance and not get the points and on the flip side not play that well but pick up points.
“I think this weekend is about being the best versions of ourselves and playing our brand of football, putting on a good performance with the main objective of picking up points.
“Charlestown are a good side. It is always good to put on a good performance and try to get a result against them.
“In the context of the table at the moment, it is an important fixture and it would be nice to come away with the points.”
Maitland midfielder Josie Morley has made a miraculous return after she ruptured her ACL in round four and has been a standout.
Wright said that they are thrilled to have Morley back out on the pitch but that they are taking things week by week with how she will feature in each match.
“Josie [Morley] is an interesting one. She has been training well with no concerns with her injury so far but we are being super cautious to make sure that we are speaking with her and her physio regularly. It is a collaborative effort that’s for sure,” Wright said.
“We want Josie on the pitch as much as possible but also need to look after her welfare.”
Former A-League star Paige Kingston-Hogg has also returned to the Hunter from her international travels.
Maitland’s coach said that he expected that Kingston-Hogg would not be ready to return on the weekend but the rest of his squad would be available for selection.
The Blues could be without three of their star players this weekend as Gema Simon is away and Melina Ayres (hip) and Madi Gallegos (illness) are in doubt.
Sunday will be Charlestown’s third game in a week after they won their two rescheduled fixtures against Broadmeadow Magic (6-0) and Newcastle Olympic (5-0).
Coach Heath Whyte said he was happy with his side’s progress and was confident that they could continue their momentum to get three points this weekend.
“We have had a good lead-up. The girls played well against Magic and then played even better against Olympic,”
“It was nice to come out with a couple of clean performances.
“You always have to look at the past to guide you in terms of strategy but you have to anticipate that good teams with a good coach will change things and we will change things if two tight teams want to get the edge over each other.
“We will use the League Cup match as a better guide that is more closely correlated with where we want to be.
“It should be a nice open game on a big pitch. They have speed out wide and we do too. I am hoping for a nice tight game.
“Momentum is the key for me to be honest. I rarely look at the table until the pointy end of the season.
“My belief is that if you are doing everything well and more right than wrong things will fall into place.
“You have to be on your game and momentum is the key if we aim to get three points in the back pocket which would be nice.”
Kirstyn Pearce made her return to the pitch in their rescheduled fixture on Wednesday night as she battles a neck injury but Whyte could not confirm if she would be available for selection for further matches.
New Lambton FC v Newcastle Olympic
Alder Park, Sunday 4pm
New Lambton FC coach Aaron Stedman says that his side must maintain their momentum this weekend when they face Newcastle Olympic at Alder Park on Sunday afternoon.
The Golden Eagles are flying high as they sit third on the table and enter the contest off the back of three straight wins.
The last time these two sides met in the competition, Olympic were victorious with a 5-1 win.
But with New Lambton’s run of form and influx of new signings, Stedman believed they could continue their roll this weekend.
“We are feeling good. We had a good session at training and talked about refocusing on where we want to be,” Stedman said.
“This is the last stretch of important games. This match-up is a good one. Both teams are in the semi-final hunt.
“I think that is it really important and if you can maintain consistency. This is something that we have been talking about. We can’t think that we are where we need to be or that we are going okay and then inconsistency creeps in.
“It is about maintaining that momentum no matter what.
“The goal was to make the semi-finals but now it would be better to make the top two or three and not settle for fourth.
“We have this string of games that are important as we play the top teams.
“We have talked about the semi-finals but we are taking one game at a time and hope to walk away with some points.”
New Lambton will be without defender Danah Chapman who has a hamstring strain.
Olympic have not won a match in over a month and enter the clash after back-to-back defeats to Maitland FC (4-0) and Charlestown Azzurri (5-0).
One of their biggest hurdles this season has been to hit the back of the net as they have been held scoreless in their last three matches.
Coach Craig Atkins will be after a much-improved performance from his side in the hope of climbing back into third on the table.
Adamstown Rosebud JFC v Lake Macquarie City FC
Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility, Friday 8pm
Two sides determined to return to winning ways will go head-to-head when Adamstown Rosebud JFC welcomes Lake Macquarie City FC at Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility on Friday night.
Adamstown sits fifth and Lakes sits sixth on the table with only three points between them.
The Buds will enter the contest off the back of two strong results after a 2-0 win over Broadmeadow Magic and a 0-0 draw with Charlestown Azzurri.
Coach Martin Slade will hope that his side can take confidence from their results and secure their third win of the season.
They sit eight points outside of the top four but will look to do everything they can to close the gap and hold onto hopes of making the finals.
The last time these sides went head-to-head, Adamstown came from behind to secure a 2-1 win.
The Roosters will come into the clash after some mixed results with two draws and two losses in their last four games and have won once in 11 matches. They have not lacked performance but have struggled to pick up points to match it.
Jets attacker Milan Hammond has made a strong impact on the squad but her A-League teammate Lara Gooch is still yet to make her debut for Lakes after recovering from injury.
Coach Gabrielle Blanch will hope that her side can bounce back and snatch their second win of the campaign.
Broadmeadow Magic - Bye
