Welcome to the Friday Forecast for Round 5 of the MyState Bank Women’s Super League. South Hobart enters this round atop the table, but with just a single point separating the competition’s top three sides, it remains very tight at the top. We’ve seen this set of fixtures once before, back in the opening round of the season, with a fixture quirk seeing these games played this week before the final set of fresh clashes will take place in Round 6. The opening round produced some highly entertaining matches so hopefully we see more of the same this time around as the sides prepare for the rematches.
Strikers Face Tricky Zebras Road Trip
The round begins on Saturday with what looms as the pick of the action as the Clarence Zebras welcome the Devonport Strikers to Wentworth Park.
The clash between these two sides back in Round 1 was an enthralling game that the Strikers just edged out 2-1, though if not for some quality saves from Hayley Julian the Strikers may not have walked away with all three points. Devonport remains undefeated so far this season and they were largely in cruise control last weekend against Taroona en route to a 7-1 win. With Jazmin White (6 goals) and Maddy Payne (5 goals) leading the way, they have plenty of firepower in attack that could cause some issues for a Zebras defence that looked a little shaky last weekend against the Lions. The pace of Laura Davis caused them all manner of problems at the back and so the foot speed of White looms as a major problem in this clash they are going to need to solve.
That Round 1 clash away to Devonport was probably the Zebras’ best performance of the season. They could easily have taken something from that game and if they can produce a similar effort here on home turf then they will fancy themselves to get something this time around. The issue is that they haven’t really been able to match that level ever since and they enter this contest off the back of two defeats. The loss to the Lions would have stung them and it sees them now slipping six points behind the top three sides. They need a response to jolt start their season and will be hoping a return to their home patch at Wentworth Park, where they are generally a tough side to get past, can provide it.
South Looking To Cement Top Spot
On Sunday, having claimed top spot, South Hobart will look to remain there as they entertain the Kingborough Lions at Darcy Street.
In the Round 1 match that also took place at Darcy Street, the Lions defended stoutly, frustrating South for much of the afternoon before in the 72nd minute some fancy footwork from Eve Swain finally unlocked the Lions defence to set up Brigette Wright for the match winner. Both sides have strengthened since that meeting and have lifted the level of their performance on the pitch as they work into the season.
South should be filled with confidence off the back of last weekend's stunning performance away to Launceston United. They were dominant in that match, bossing possession and playing the majority of the game around the opponent's penalty area. If there is one area they probably need to improve in though it’s being a bit more clinical with their chances. The Summer Cup Final, Round 1 against the Lions and then last week against United are all occasions where South have largely dominated territorially but just not scored as many goals as their dominance would warrant. If they leave the door ajar by being wasteful, then they have shown themselves to be slightly vulnerable on the counter. United couldn't convert, but they did have 2 excellent scoring chances from counterattacks that would've made it 1-0 at halftime, despite South bossing the first 45 minutes.
As the Lions showed last week against the Zebras, they carry a bit of a threat going forwards, particularly on counterattacks, where their fleet-footed attackers can burst into the space. Space that will likely be afforded to them this week if South are to control possession and pin the Lions defence deep as they did in Round 1.
Champions Look To Bounce Back At Home
In the final game of the round, Launceston United will take on Taroona FC at Floorworld Park.
Launceston United will be out to do something they’ve rarely had to in recent times, which is bounce back from a defeat. United had previously occupied top spot on the Super League table at the conclusion of every round dating back to Week 2 of last season prior to their defeat last week at the hands of South Hobart. They start this week in third place, though they sit just a point off the summit. This should be a relatively straightforward operation for United given Taroona’s struggles thus far in 2023. Last week was a setback to their title hopes, but hardly terminal given the season is still in its infancy. This is a side loaded with talent as we saw across the opening rounds of the season and they should get back to their free-scoring ways here.
Taroona suffered another heavy defeat last week as they went down 7-1 to Devonport, making it 16 goals they’ve shipped in their past two outings. They desperately need to find a way to stem the bleeding here. Finding positives from such results is tough, but they can probably point to their second-half performance being significantly better than the first last week, only conceding one goal in the second 45 and so will hope to build from there. Daisy Parsell also got them on the scoresheet for the first time this year with a delightful chipped goal. A win here seems considerably unlikely, but having lost 5-0 to United back in Round 1 attempting to at least better that should be the aim.
Round 5 Fixtures
Saturday 22 April
Clarence Zebras v Devonport Strikers, Wentworth Park, 12:15pm
Sunday 23 April
South Hobart v Kingborough, Darcy Street, 2:00pm
Launceston United v Taroona, Floorworld Park, 2:00pm