Ashburton United proved too strong for Senior NTC, running out 8-1 winners on a rain-swept afternoon at State Football Centre.
Melina Ayres bagged four for herself, Georgia Cloepfil scored a brace, and Laura Spiranovic and Jesse Kotsikas both added singles in a rout for the visitors.
Joey Cartwright did manage a consolation goal for the development side, but they were simply unable to respond to Ashburton’s pressure when it mattered.
Cloepfil got Ashburton off to a good start, slotting a finish past Celia Kelsall after a mistake from Olivia Ellis in possession.
Six minutes later, Cloepfil turned provider, sending in a lovely deep cross which was met by the head of Spiranovic, and the striker finished it off on the second attempt after the first was blocked.
The NTC were struggling to adapt to Ashburton’s pressure, and it told when Ayres notched her first of the afternoon.
Kelsall’s clearance from a back pass was cut out by the Ashburton winger, and she duly made the keeper pay.
The visitors were overwhelming the development side, and could’ve extended the lead when Kotsikas initially hit the crossbar, then saw another shot well saved by Kelsall, all in the space of a couple of minutes.
When the NTC managed to get forward, they found themselves isolated, and a Melissa Taranto long shot that sailed over the bar summed up their first half.
With five minutes until the break, Ayres broke the offside trap following a Spiranovic through ball, and slotted it easily into the bottom corner.
A change of approach aided NTC after the break, with the side beginning to frustrate Ashburton.
But NTC couldn’t capitalise on their breaks, with Whitney Knight seeing a shot saved in the 64th minute, while Ashleigh Leferve couldn’t direct her free header on target from the resulting corner.
Cartwright also spurned a golden opportunity to reduce the deficit, but couldn’t find the target after Adriana Taranto had played her in.
Kotsikas made NTC pay for their close calls, and danced around a couple of defenders on the edge of the area before slotting a fifth into the back of the net.
NTC reacted well to conceding that strike, with Cartwright pouncing on a poor back pass from Holly Richardson to make it 5-1.
It became a frantic last ten minutes, and Ashburton turned the screws in even more when first Cloepfil tapped in a rebound after Kotsikas has struck the crossbar, then Ayres’ powerful shot was fumbled into the the back of the net by Kelsall.
Ayres capped off her four-goal haul a minute before the end, rolling an eighth past Kelsall, capping off a good outing for Ashburton.
Senior NTC 1 (Cartwright 83’) defeated by Ashburton United 8 (Cloepfil 12’, 85’, Spiranovic 18’, Ayres 24’, 40’, 88’, 89’, Kotsikas 82’) at State Football Centre. [HT 4:0]
Senior NTC Squad: 30. Celia KELSALL [GK], 13. Annabel MARTIN, 3. Natasha DAKIC, 31. Coby McINERNEY, 4. Olivia ELLIS, 8. Melissa TARANTO, 6. Adriana TARANTO, 25. Melindaj BARBIERI, 11. Whitney KNIGHT, 7. Emiy HARBIS, 33. Ashleigh LEFERVE, 17. Hayley RICHMOND, 2. Jaimee WILLIAMS, 14. Edith FORDYCE-CROKER, 9. Joey CARTWRIGHT
Ashburton United Squad: 1. Melissa MAIZELS, 2. Maria PATRIKIS, 15. Emma CHECKER, 14. Christine PFEIFFER, 3. Holly RICHARDSON, 20. Alyssia BLEWONSKI, 11. Fede FRWE, 7. Jesse KOTSIKAS, 18. Georgia CLOEPFIL, 21. Laura SPIRANOVIC, 9. Melina AYRES, 4. Brittany THOMAS, 10. Julia SKOWRONSKA, 19. Olivia EDWARDS, 16. Rachel JARVIS, 8. Ashley BROWN