Match of the Round
New Lambton FC v Maitland FC
Alder Park, Sunday 4pm
New Lambton and Maitland will look to build on confidence-boosting wins as they attempt to strengthen their positions in the race for the finals when they meet in the match of the round on Sunday.
The Golden Eagles return to Alder Park having run out deserved 3-0 winners over Charlestown Azzurri last weekend to kick start their charge for a finals place.
The match saw Newcastle Jets trio Cassidy Davis, Lauren Allan and Tara Andrews make their first appearances of the season for New Lambton, with Davis providing two goals and Allan an assist.
Maitland coach Keelan Hamilton would have been delighted with his side’s effort last week as the Magpies snapped a two-game losing streak to down Newcastle Olympic 1-0, ending Olympic’s unbeaten start to the campaign.
Hamilton had been left frustrated with his side’s inability to pick up deserved results in close games so far this season. Maitland had lost four of their eight matches heading into the win over Olympic, will all four defeats coming by a single goal in games where the Magpies had clear opportunities to either win or draw.
But Maitland showed they had it in them to win the important tight games, with Mercedes McNabb’s stunning solo goal now giving the Magpies victories over competition heavyweights Olympic and Broadmeadow already this season.
“We don’t want to be like anyone else. We just want to be the best possible version of ourselves,” Hamilton said.
“We’d much prefer to be top of the table than fifth. [But] I think the reality for us at the minute is we’ve been beaten by the odd goal in all four losses.
“We’ve definitely been in every fixture. But we have to get better at the finer details of matches to make sure we convert those narrow losses into draws or victories.
“That’s easy to say and I’m sure most teams would say that. Unfortunately so far this season there have been times where we’ve made mistakes in our box or at the top of our area that we need to correct.
“And I still think we could play with a little bit more confidence and assertiveness sometimes. Instead of letting games drift a bit we need to really take control of games more.”
Maitland remained fifth after their victory over Olympic but are just one point outside the top four. A win over New Lambton would extend the Magpies’ advantage over the Golden Eagles to eight points with the race for finals places looking to be a tight one between six teams.
Hamilton also has the best kind of selection headache. With Newcastle Jets star Sophie Stapleford returning to the side last week, captain and central defender Tahlia Gossner is available again following a serious ankle injury, while attacker Bronte Peel is also in the mix after returning from the US last week.
There was some bad news for Maitland though with midfielder Ainsley Childs suffering a potentially serious knee injury at training last week, with the Magpies still awaiting confirmation of her return to play timeframe.
Keely Gawthrop remains a fortnight away from returning after the experienced midfielder suffered a knee injury against Adamstown.
Newcastle Olympic v Mid Coast FC
Darling Street Oval, Sunday 4pm
Newcastle Olympic will look to bounce back from their first defeat of the campaign when they host Mid Coast on Sunday.
Middies arrive at Darling Street looking to erase the memory of their 15-0 demolition at the hands of a rampant Broadmeadow Magic last weekend.
But Olympic were also left licking their wounds last time out as they suffered a first loss of the season going down 1-0 to Maitland, with Olympic slipping from the top of the table to second in the process.
There was one positive for Newcastle Olympic coach Neil Owens with the debut of Claire Coelho, with Olympic adding the Newcastle Jets goalkeeper to what was already the most miserly defence in the competition following her A-League Women commitments.
“We lost [former goalkeeper] Jayla [Murphy]. She was going to move up in June or July but now she’s got a permanent job in Canberra she’s decided to stay,” Owens said.
“That kind of threw a spanner in the works. Sienna [Williams] was our other young keeper and she went to the Jets (Academy) as well so we lost two goalkeepers in the one week.
“In the meantime we’ve picked up Claire and Grace [Kingett] from the Jets [Academy] as well.
“What I’ve noticed in this league which is easy to see is if you’ve got a good keeper you’re in the game. It’s an area and one of those positions where the league probably needs to get better.
“Obviously it’s getting better and better but it’s a pretty important role and to pick up someone like Claire at this time of year after the first round when you’re already in a strong position it’s like Christmas has come early because she’s a very good keeper.”
Broadmeadow Magic v Adamstown Rosebud JFC
Magic Park, Sunday 4pm
Adamstown Rosebud will be out to make a statement and prove they belong in the top four when they travel to Magic Park to face leaders Broadmeadow on Sunday.
Rosebud are fourth after three wins in a row. But while much of the talk around the league has been whether or not New Lambton can reduce the deficit to the top four and claim a finals place by the end of the season with the arrival of their Newcastle Jets trio, Adamstown have been quietly going about their business.
Rosebud also have star power of their own, with Jets pair Josie Morley and Leia Puxty hitting the ground running for Adamstown.
Ryan Campbell’s side will face a huge challenge against Broadmeadow though, with Magic fresh off inflicting a 15-0 thrashing on Mid Coast last week to storm to the top of the table.
Lucy Jerram scored five goals for Magic while Adriana Konjarski and Kiarra Lewis scored four each in the victory, with Adamstown needing to be solid defensively to keep out the most potent attack in the competition.
Warners Bay FC v Charlestown Azzurri
John Street Oval, Sunday 4pm
Charlestown will be out to bounce back when they take on struggling Warners Bay at John Street on Sunday.
Azzurri were beaten 3-0 by New Lambton last weekend, with the defeat seeing third-placed Charlestown slip to four points behind leaders Broadmeadow.
Warners Bay went down 7-0 to Adamstown last weekend to suffer their ninth defeat in as many matches in their so far disastrous premiership and championship defences.
The Panthers have now conceded a massive 104 goals and went down 15-0 to Azzurri when the sides met in round three.