The MyState Bank Women’s Super League returns for Round 10 and in a refreshing change we have a couple of Sunday fixtures this week. Those combined with the Friday Night NPL game helps spread the weekends top flight action out a bit which is good to see. I understand the logistical reasonings for why it has panned out the way it has this year, but having 7 NPL/WSL games all kicking off within a few hours of each other on a Saturday afternoon most weekends has been a tad frustrating for the consumer. It just seems a tad counterproductive to me in terms of promoting our top divisions. So, more weekend schedules like this one in future please!
In the games we have, South will be looking to slash the gap at the top to three points as they take on Taroona, whilst Devonport and Zebras sitting further back know that any further slip ups will end their already slim title chances. So they will both likewise be looking to avoid any major upsets as they take on Olympia and the Lions respectively. The Cup Champions Launceston United meanwhile will take a week off and get some time to celebrate their achievement before turning their focus back to the league next weekend. They are in the box seat to complete the League/Cup double as we turn into the second half of the year and the main question left to be answered is. Are any of these sides capable of catching them?
South Look to Close Gap To United
Despite falling to them 4-2 in their most recently played match the most likely challenger to a Launceston United double remains South Hobart. They are the nearest side to them on the table, though are now sitting 6 points back following that defeat. As such they will need United to slip up elsewhere in addition to beating them in the third and final match between the sides. That’s all much further down the line though and for now South’s focus needs to be on taking three points from Sunday and potentially boosting their goal difference when they take on Taroona at Darcy Street.
Taroona have improved from their earlier season struggles and been more competitive of late, but an 8-2 thumping at home from the Devonport Strikers last time they took to the pitch demonstrates they are still a long off the best sides in the league and they will enter this one as big underdogs. They fell 5-0 to South last month at Kelvedon Park so anything closer than that would represent some improvement. Player availability has hurt them this year, and a clear example of that is Daisy Parsell. With 3 goals in 3 games this year they will certainly hoping to have her more available in the second half of the year as she has been a major difference maker for them.
South Hobart should be winning this one and it represents a chance to boost their goal difference, which is an area they need to inflate given they are currently level on it with Launceston United. If they can’t eek ahead on that metric, then even if South were to win every game from here on out they would also need United to drop points in at least 3 of their remaining matches. That is certainly possible, but perhaps not probable given their current unbeaten status.
Lions Facing Tough Ask to Shake Off Monday’s Defeat
In the game that looks the closest of the three on paper, the Clarence Zebras will welcome the Kingborough Lions to Wentworth Park for the Safari Derby on Sunday afternoon as the Lions look to rebound from Monday’s Cup final defeat.
The Zebras have shown a ruthless streak this year and dished out some absolute thumping’s to the sides at the lower end of the table. They’ve scored 23 in 2 games against the Warriors, put 15 past Taroona and hit the Lions for six in a 6-2 result last month. Whilst I think the Lions are closer to the top few sides than the bottom couple, it’s a vulnerable defence that has been exposed by some of the better attacking outfits this year, which the Zebras certainly rank amongst. As such they will need to approach the game in the same manner they did the Cup final, with a defensive first, deep setup designed to try and frustrate the Zebras.
It’s basically a question of whether the Lions can translate their Cup form over to the league. It’s been chalk and cheese their Cup v League performances this year, particularly at the back. In the Semi Final against Devonport and in the final against United, they have done a good job in limiting the opposition chances, but that hasn’t been the case in their WSL performances to date. We saw 6 days ago they can certainly hang with the better sides, so there is no reason they can’t push the Zebras closer this time around here. This could be a tight battle if the Lions bring their best, but purely on league form, you’d have to say Clarence should be too potent in attack and get the job done.
Strikers Looking to String Together Big Wins
In the lone game on the Saturday, the Devonport Strikers will be looking to make it back to back big victories as they entertain Olympia at Valley Road. On paper this appears to be a straight forward assignment for the Strikers given the Warriors struggles that have left them rooted to the foot of the table, without a point and bleeding goals.
There are many reasons for why the year has gone the way it has for Olympia, but the main one is quite simply that they lost a lot of talented players from last years side and largely had to replace them internally. That meat players from their Championship side have been forced to make the leap to the top division prematurely. Of the 10 players who started in 80% or more of WSL games for them last year, only Natalia Leszczynski remains and there was some serious state level talent that departed like Inni Michael, Kate Ollerhead and Issie Cane. The current young players will be better off for it in the long term, but for the 2022 season, with 12-0 and 10-0 defeats in their past two outings, they’re clearly a long way off the pace at the moment.
So the Strikers will be eyeing off a chance to score another big win here. I don’t think there is a hungrier player in the league for goals than Jazmin White. She has scored 11 goals in her past two games to jump to the lead in the Golden Boot race and will surely be eyeing off the chance to fill her boots. This could be a record breaking season for the prolific striker and this is the first of 3 games to come against an Olympia side who have been unable to contain fast moving forwards this year, so don’t be surprised if we see a third successive week of White putting a team to the sword.