Round 17 of this season’s Women’s Premier League will go down as the one week with two startling results that had fans talking for days after. First up came Altona’s fighting goalless draw at home to Sandringham. The visitors have been more than holding their own against the other top teams, but seems to have trouble grinding results against the bottom sides on occasion. Just as Bulleen gained their first WPL point against Sandringham earlier this year, Altona finally had a result to celebrate this season.
If there were no goals at Kim Reserve, one could have been forgiven for thinking they were never going to stop at Cairnlea Park. South Melbourne turned on the style, plundering a whopping 16 goals without reply as they blew a hapless Cairnlea away. There was even time for substitute goalkeeper Frances Land to make her WPL bow, coming on for Cassandra Dimovski with five minutes to go. Such results will do little to silence critics who think the league is too unbalanced, but at least there was no taking their foot off the pedal from South Melbourne as they have been wont to do at times.
Elsewhere, Casey Comets earned a narrow 2-1 win over EAP, Bundoora notched two wins out of two against Heidelberg and Cairnlea, while Bulleen and Box Hill made short work of Preston and Ashburton respectively.
Without further ado, we give you the best performers from the weekend that was.
Starting Eleven
Brianna Davey: Playing her last game on Australian soil this winter, the Matildas No. 1 made sure she left for Sweden in high spirits as she kept a splendid clean sheet against Heidelberg. It’s a mark of how good a goalkeeper Davey is when she makes it look ever so effortless.
Elise Manassa: Solid and dependable. Two characteristics you look for in a defensive fullback and Manassa was both as she guarded the right flank for Bulleen against Preston. Little got pass her and her distribution was top notch.
Harriet Cordner: The former Ashburton and Bulleen centre back offers qualities that the Casey defence sorely needed, her strength and speed combination proving difficult for the EAP attackers on the day. Wasn’t afraid to get stuck in and give as good as she got in the tackles.
Melissa Missailidis: Two clean sheets in five days owes much to Bundoora’s defensive linchpin, as Missailidis bumped and harried attackers to distraction. Her marking and tackling has always been first rate, and she provides a calmer presence alongside Ebru Hasan.
Olivia Ellis: Bulleen’s wunderkind was at it once again on Monday night as she slot in at left back, bombing down the lines with aplomb and scaring the beejeezus out of any Preston defenders who got in her way. Actually, scratch that. At times, it seemed defenders were melting away whenever she stormed forward, such was her effective penetration on the night.
Tiffany Eliadis: The South Melbourne winger followed up her five goal effort against Preston earlier this season with a lazy seven goals against Cairnlea. Eliadis can be a goal scoring machine when she chooses to turn it on, if she can do it on a regular basis then well the sky’s the limit.
Enza Barilla: Bundoora’s captain is your blood-and-guts player, she’ll give 100% on the pitch and then still have the energy to grin when it’s all over. There was certainly plenty to smile about in Round 17 as she led the line against Heidelberg and Cairnlea, linking up well with Caitlin Friend and company as an attacking outlet. Oh and that bicycle kick effort against Cairnlea on Wednesday night was simply picture perfect.
Morany Chek: She might face a fight for a Melbourne Victory midfield spot against the likes of Jessica Fishlock and Petra Larsson, but in the Women’s Premier League there are few equals. South Melbourne’s midfield general was in supreme form against Cairnlea, winning every ball and distributing them flawlessly. When the South midfield starts ticking just so, you know Chek will be at the heart of it.
Annabelle Gibney: A tidy hattrick and a couple of assists against Cairnlea earn ‘Gibbo’ a spot in this round’s Team of the Week. Gibney’s been stellar since returning to Lakeside Stadium from overseas, keeping the likes of Jessica Au and Aliesha Newman out of the starting lineup.
Laura Spiranovic: Yet another South Melbourne player who notched a treble on the weekend, Spiranovic is still slowly getting her match fitness back following a five week European sojourn. She should be in tip top shape once Finals come around though, so everyone else will need to beware the havoc one of the Women’s Premier League’s top strikers can rain down on them once she gets going.
Seyma Erenli: Box Hill will really miss Erenli when she leaves for America. The forward is a class act on her day and she put Ashburton to the sword with two goals including the opener. A sparkling performance in what has been an excellent season for the striker since she traded Ashburton Park for Wembley Park earlier this season.
Substitutes
Christine Fonua: The Altona goalkeeper was vital in keeping a clean sheet against Sandringham, making several key saves including one off her line.
Tyla Jay Vlajnic: There is no disputing who the best corner kick taker is in the competition, the Bundoora fullback scoring a goal and assisting two others in wins against Heidelberg and Cairnlea.
Michelle Duffy: The midfielder has been consistently solid for Altona in recent weeks, keeping the midfield against Sandringham in the defensive shape it needed to be and just edging out captain Aneta Komijat for a spot on the bench.
Tayla Mure: The pocket rocket has found a new lease of life since leaving South Melbourne for more game time at the Veneto Club as she scored two sublime long range bombs from the left wing against Preston.
Alessandra Loudovaris: One with plenty of promise, the Bulleen forward kicked off proceedings with two goals in the opening nine minutes against Preston.
Team of the Week XI: Davey (Bundoora); Manassa (Bulleen), Cordner (Casey), Missailidis (Bundoora), Ellis (Bulleen); Eliadis (South Melbourne), Barilla (Bundoora), Chek (South Melbourne), Gibney (South Melbourne); Spiranovic (South Melbourne), Erenli (Box Hill)
Substitutes: Fonua (Altona), Vlajnic (Bundoora), Duffy (Altona), Mure (Bulleen), Loudovaris (Bulleen)
Many thanks to all those who contributed to this week’s edition of the Team of the Week, including reporters Tim McGlone, Cheryl Downes, Katie Lambeski and Thomas Baldock as well as numerous match and club officials and players.