Rain reduced most of the Saturday’s games to muddy affairs as Bundoora’s found themselves another game in arrears after their visit to Cairnlea was postponed. South Melbourne continued their winning run at Ashburton Park, while Sandringham didn’t find it too difficult against Preston.
Heidelberg had ‘Lethal’ Leigh Gray to thank as her late goal saw them scrape past Altona and Box Hill beat a depleted EAP at home, before Bulleen and Casey fought out an entertaining 3-3 draw on Monday night.
Without further ado, we give you the best performers from the weekend that was.
Some weeks you feel like doing something differently. This might be one of them.
Trawling through a week’s worth of results and picking out the crème de la crème after any given round is a tedious affair, especially when quite a few players have put their hands up for selection or worse, not many at all.
You start by selecting a goalkeeper. A safe pair of hands that proved an ironclad last line of defence on the weekend or a dominant performance against the odds that impressed anyone who was watching. We had a bit of both this round as two goalkeepers stood out. Reigning goalkeeper of the Year Cassandra Dimovski was at it once again, her lightning reflexes and powerful leaps on display once again as she shut out Ashburton. Her clean sheet count this year has been staggering and while her defence plays a part, you’ve got to admit she’s among the strongest goalkeepers in Victoria.
Our second choice custodian this week is also someone whose name has come up quite a bit recently. Christine Fonua‘s availability for Altona is a huge boon to the team every week, and she showed her worth once again with a stellar effort against Heidelberg. The goalkeeper was a massive presence in front of goal, throwing herself in front of everything that came her way and keeping winless Altona in it till a late goal decided the contest.
In defence, it’s been a breakout season for Heidelberg’s Stefanie Galjar. While she had already broken into the first team last season, it’s only been this year where we’ve seen a series of composed and assured appearances from the young full back. This weekend was no exception as her teammates saluted yet another best-on-ground performance.
At left back we have Emma Gunn, as the Sandringham defender seemed to find plenty of time and space on the flank on Sunday. Overlapping time and again, Gunn harried the Preston defenders and linked up well with the left winger. She even scored a fabulous goal that fell afoul to a late offside flag as a swashbuckling run up the wing and along the byline ended with a thumping finish into goal. This nomination will perhaps serve as a little bit of a consolation.
The central defensive pairing will always be a keenly contested one and Jessica Humble takes the first spot this week. Box Hill can always count on their rock in defence and Friday night against EAP was no different. Humble read the play well and made important tackles as her team chalked up yet another three points to keep in the hunt for a Finals spot.
Joining her in front of Dimovski is interception machine Sarah Sumner. The South Melbourne defender is having a heck of a season and could do no wrong as she caught the eye against Ashburton. Besides holding her ground in defence, Sumner was excellent in terms of setting up play from the back, her intuitive lay offs and raking long balls giving her team a platform on which to drive upfield.
That leaves Ashburton’s Kristin Stensholt an unlucky omission this week. Despite being on the wrong end of a 4-0 scoreline, the central defender hardly put a foot wrong. Strong in the tackle and covering for her teammates, Stensholt is the brick wall at the back for Ashburton every weekend.
Moving into midfield, we’ve opted for two central midfielders with two wingers out wide this week. Casey’s Alexandra Gummer was an obvious choice once again as she struck to begin her team’s comeback against Bulleen on Monday evening. Her tenacity is a huge plus to the Comets and although she might have gotten a little carried away when conceding a foul that led to one of Bulleen’s goals, she was still instrumental in hauling her team back into the game.
Pairing up with her in Round 13 is Cindy Lay, with the EAP midfielder impressing in the loss to Box Hill. Despite being unable to get on the score sheet, Lay displayed some nifty footwork and looked threatening every time she drove through the middle of the park. Despite her relatively young age, the Melbourne Victory listed player has to lead by example in an even younger team, and this was a night in which she didn’t disappoint.
There’s definitely no leaving out Lay’s Victory teammate Tiffany Eliadis this week either, as the South Melbourne winger turned in a sparkling display against Ashburton. She might be blowing hot and cold all season, but the heater was definitely dialed up to maximum on Sunday as she scored two goals and assisted another. Eliadis seemed to be in the right spaces at the right times and was the key piece of the puzzle for South’s attack.
That leaves one last slot for a midfielder/winger in this Team of the Week lineup and that spot was keenly contested by two Sandringham players. While both of them scored a brace each, the winner has to be Nicola Prins as the Sandringham winger put Preston to the sword at B.T. Connor. Her first goal came in only the seventh minute as she waltzed through the opposition defence to score, before netting a glorious second on the run off an Emma Runnalls cross in the 82nd minute.
Teammate Stephanie Tanti was sore to miss out though, as she was at the centre of most of her team’s attacking play on the day. Sandringham can always count on Tanti to turn on the style and two goals was a more than commendable effort from her on the day. Tanti’s running between the lines can cause major headaches for any team, and will be an important factor if they make it far once again this season.
Also finding a place on the bench this time round is Bulleen’s Tessa Sernio. The midfielder played an understated defensive role for most of her game, sitting in front of her back four and working hard to keep Casey out. It’s harder than it sounds giving the type of options Ian Williamson’s team have in attack and Sernio was a large part of what kept them at bay initially.
The striker slots are but two and they had worthy nominees this week. Ruby Foottit put up an early marker at Wembley Park on Friday night, opening the scoring after half an hour and adding a second midway through the second half. Despite the increased competition for the forward spots at Box Hill, Foottit has been showing that she’s not about to give up her spot without a fight and this performance will have gone some way to convincing her coach that she deserves a starting place.
Also having something to prove during her Round 13 match up was Bulleen’s Federica Frew. With a new coach in place, last season’s State League Div 1 champions almost gained a shock win over the Comets, but had to settle for a share of the spoils in the end. What got them there in the first place was a virtuoso performance from the young Frew who’d been pushed back up forward after a stint in midfield earlier this season. The first came via a jaw dropping free kick, but that than paled in comparison to the next two strikes. This is a player on form, we’ll be watching carefully come the next round.
That leaves Brittany Dudley-Smith as the last player out this week. Despite failing to get on the scoresheet for Casey Comets, the striker proved a real handful for her markers with some weaving attacking runs and will be determined to make up for it next up against the defending champions Box Hill.
Team of the Week XI: Dimovski (South Melbourne); Galjar (Heidelberg), Sumner (South Melbourne), Humble (Box Hill), Gunn (Sandringham); Eliadis (South Melbourne), Lay (EAP), Gummer (Casey), Prins (Sandringham); Foottit (Box Hill), Frew (Bulleen)
Substitutes: Fonua (Altona), Stensholt (Ashburton), Sernio (Bulleen), Tanti (Sandringham), Dudley-Smith (Casey)
Many thanks to all those who contributed to this week’s edition of the Team of the Week, including reporters Thomas Baldock and Tomasz Ng as well as numerous match and club officials and players.