Welcome to the Weekend Wash-Up from Round 8 of the MyState Bank Women's Super League. It was a weekend that saw the Kingborough Lions produce one of their finest-ever Super League performances, whilst the competition's top two sides, Launceston United and South Hobart both maintained the pace at the top of the table.
Watkins Leads Lions Rout
Samantha Watkins scored three times and set up another as the Kingborough Lions dealt a hammer blow to the Devonport Strikers title aspirations, running out thumping 6-2 victors.
In their most impressive performance of the season, and quite possibly the best in their WSL side’s history, the Lions produced a wonderful attacking performance that left the Devonport defence in tatters and with no answers for how to handle Watkins or Davis.
The Lions took the lead in the 28th minute as Moore and Davis combined sharply, before Watkins chipped Ponting from the top of the box with a perfectly placed curling shot.
That lead was short lived however, as Maddy Payne offered an immediate riposte, volleying home a lovely goal from a corner just a minute later to square the game at 1-1.
In a devastating final five minutes of the half, the Lions broke away to a 3-1 lead at the break as the brilliant Laura Davis started to exert her influence on the match. She beat her defender all ends up before squaring one to Watkins for the tap-in to make it 2-1 before doing the same again moments later, this time taking the shot on herself to make it 3-1 at the break.
The Strikers halved the deficit just prior to the hour mark as the high-quality goals continued, this time via substitute Mia Smith who picked out the top corner at the near post with a thumping hit.
This time it was the Lions who provided an immediate response, as Nikki Moutsatsos smashed in a long-range shot from outside the box that might’ve been the pick of all the top quality goals that were scored throughout the afternoon.
The Striker's defence were being utterly outclassed by the Lion's attackers and Sam Watkins led them a merry dance for their fifth goal. She picked it up on halfway, before tearing off towards the goal and getting the better of both Vernham and King before sliding a centring ball to Lashmar to deposit into the net and make it 5-2.
Watkins then completed her hat-trick and day out by beating the offside trap and sending a looping header over the top of Ponting after Lashmar crossed it in. The Strikers looked for a flag, but none was forthcoming as they had stepped up too late and Watkins took full advantage.
It secured the thumping 6-2 win that certainly rates as the Lions best of the season to date and leaves them level on points with the Clarence Zebras. It leaves Devonport’s slimming title hopes in tatters, as they now sit some 9 points adrift of South Hobart and they have lost by 4 goals on each of their last road trips South. There is still a long way to go, but they have little margin for error now.
Gunton Stunner Guides United Past Zebras
Launceston United kept up the pressure on South Hobart at the top end of the table, as they secured a 3-0 win over the Clarence Zebras, with Dani Gunton producing a goal-of-the-season contender to help see her side home.
United should’ve led early on, as Adilat Otto had a glorious chance to open the scoring in the 7th minute but from close range she headed Smith’s in-swinging corner over the crossbar.
The teams then traded spells in attack but as the half wore on, the shot disparity began to mount as Gunton tested Pinkiwiecz on a couple of occasions and United began to get on top.
They found the breakthrough just prior to halftime when the in-form Courtney Marten surged down the left before cutting it back for Gunton who arrived in the penalty area and slid home the opening goal.
The second half largely picked up where the first left off, a pretty open game with United firing off more shots, but clear-cut scoring looks were proving hard to come up.
Eventually, the second goal arrived and it came in spectacular fashion from Gunton. Receiving the ball in an advanced area, wide on the left with her back to goal from a throw-in, Gunton turned inside, weaving between the two defenders nearest to her before curling a shot in that caught out the keeper and lobbed in.
Courtney Marten would then go on to extend the lead even further when substitute Estelle Tomkinson played her through and the American chipped home the sealer to make it 3-0.
That was how it ended, a 3-0 win for United and that coupled with the Strikers again dropping points, leaves them as perhaps the lone challenger to South Hobart in the title race, who still sit 4 points ahead of them after 8 rounds.
South Overcome Stubborn Taroona
On Sunday at Darcy Street, South Hobart had to work hard to overcome a stubborn Taroona outfit, as goals from Amy Ollington and Pishon Choi secured a 2-0 victory.
Tina Turner’s Simply the Best may have echoed out around Darcy Street after Pishon Choi made sure of the points when she made it 2-0 in the 77th minute, but this was far from South Hobart’s best performance of the season. For much of the afternoon, the result looked far from secure as Taroona frustrated them and threatened to equalize. It was a flat performance from the WSL front runners who struggled to break down a well-organized Taroona defence.
Amy Ollington opened the scoring in the 13th minute when she made an intelligent run to the near post and produced a fine first-time finish to prod home Ruby Batchelor’s cross from the left.
But if South thought the early goal was a sign of things to come and that they would simply stride to another thumping win akin to their last match with Taroona, they were very wrong.
The game would remain at 1-0 for the next 64 minutes of play and whilst South were seeing much more of the ball and dominating territorially, the chances weren’t flowing as Izzy Ottavi probably enjoyed one of the quieter afternoons she has had in goals this season.
Whilst it was 1-0, there was always the danger of Taroona conjuring a leveller and whilst they weren’t offering loads in attack, they had some moments that caused some heart flutters at the back.
The Pirates were well organized at the back, led superbly by the Wise/Dunbabin pairing in the heart of the defence, with Fujiura and Barton also doing well in negating South's dangerous wide players.
It was perhaps no coincidence that the second goal finally arrived just minutes after the excellent Dunbabin had been subbed off.
Madi Chambers, who was announced this week as a new signing whilst she is on break from Alabama State University, came off the bench and eventually unlocked the Pirates defence to make sure of the three points. She played a raking through ball which Pishon Choi ran onto, rounded the keeper and tapped home to make it 2-0.
The game would end at that score, though that was due to both goalkeepers making quality saves in the final 10 minutes of play, with Farrow and Ottavi both coming up big in their side’s goals.
For South, whilst below their best today, they got the three points which is all that ultimately matters to them and they remain four points clear on top as a result.
Taroona meanwhile can take great heart from this performance which was probably their best of the season to date. If they can bring this defensive effort in future weeks, a breakthrough result could be on the cards.
MyState Bank Women’s Super League
Round 8
Kingborough Lions 6 (S.Watkins 28” 42” 84”, L.Davis 45+4”, N.Moutsatsos 59”, C.Lashmar 71”)
Devonport Strikers 2 (M.Payne 30” M.Smith 58”)
Launceston United 3 (D.Gunton 43” 72”, C.Marten 78”)
Clarence Zebras 0
Goal Highlights
South Hobart FC 2 (A.Ollington 13”, P.Choi 77”)
Taroona FC 0