Round 11 in the MyState Bank Women’s Super League opens with an intriguing test for a title contendor on Friday night as the improving Lions take on South Hobart. Then on the Saturday Launceston United can take another step towards securing the title as they host the Devonport Strikers and the Clarence Zebras look to keep up their strong goal scoring form as they play Taroona.
Lions In Search of a Scalp Under Friday Night Lights
The Round will kick off on Friday Night at Clennett’s Lightwood Park as the Kingborough Lions take on South Hobart in what looms as a trickier fixture for second-placed South Hobart than it might have been for them earlier in the year.
The Kingborough Lions have demonstrated considerable improvement over the past few weeks and now the challenge for them is to convert that uptick in form into league points, of which they still only have the 3. In their past 3 games they have now beaten Devonport in the Statewide Cup Semi-Final then pushed two of the best sides in the WSL. They produced a spirited display in the final against Launceston United before falling 3-1 and again looked much improved last weekend in an eventual hard fought 3-2 loss to Clarence Zebras.
On Friday they once again take on one of the stronger sides in South Hobart and whilst they will enter as underdogs, those recent efforts suggest it should be a much tighter game than their most recent meeting which was a comfortable 7-4 victory to South Hobart. That was a game that looked a lot closer on the final scoreboard than it really was due to some late consolation goals. With the game reaching 7-1 at the hour mark, it’s fair to say South had them well and truly handled.
Such a high scoring game came as no shock and may well be on the cards again given the attacking talent in both squads. Even in the absence of their star striker Laura Davis the Lions have some major attacking weapons that will pose a threat to South here. Danielle Kannegiesser is in scintillating form and Amy Ollington continues to blossom into one of the stars of the league.
For South, Bonnie Davies did the damage that day with 4 goals and as ever will loom as the biggest threat that the Lions must handle if they are any chance. Her 20 goals for the season show just how potent she has been, but in recent games Mia Cane has also arrived as a nice complementary piece in attack, scoring 9 times in her last 4 games to offer another avenue to goal. The Lions defence has improved but still struggles with pacey strikers and so they might need to sit deep here as they did in the Cup final, in order to counter the speed threat offered by South’s pacey front duo.
Cup Champions Return To Face Strikers
On Saturday afternoon Launceston United will take the field for the first time since claiming the Women’s Statewide Cup as they look to maintain their grip on the top spot when they host the Devonport Strikers.
It’s quite possible that United will actually enter this game in second place, as should South Hobart win on Friday night then they will be at least temporarily displaced. Crucially they will still have 2 games in hand to play at that point so very much remain the front runners regardless, but it could add some extra psychological pressures ahead of this important game against a Strikers outfit that ran them close in their earlier league meeting.
United claimed a narrow 2-1 victory back in Round 4 at Valley Road as an Ellie La Monte first half double set them up for the win and the defence held firm under pressure as the second half wore on. It was a really hard-fought and tight affair that suggested that whilst United remain unbeaten this year, they aren’t miles ahead of the chasing pack and if they aren’t at their best, then they are vulnerable.
Having the bye following the Cup final was probably a fortunate piece of fixturing for United as they could breathe and celebrate their achievement properly before now turning their attention back to the league. The League/Cup double is very much on the cards, especially when you examine the games to come.
If South Hobart were to play out the rest of the season undefeated then they can get to a maximum of 48 points by the end of the year. That seems unlikely, but it’s the ceiling they can still get to. United currently have 10 games left to play and are on 24 points. Four of their remaining games come against Olympia/Taroona which they seem incredibly unlikely to drop points in and it should also be enough to see them surpass South Hobart’s goal differential. So that gets them to 36 points with a remaining 6 games. Take 12 points from those games and the title would more than likely be theirs. So if they win this weekend against the Strikers they’d probably only need 9 points from games against Kingborough x 2, Zebras, South and Devonport. And that’s with no slip-up from South, so realistically they might not even need that many points. If anyone other than United are to win the title then they’re going to need to falter in the type of games that they face this week. A win here for United and they take another giant step towards the double. Can Devonport deny them? We will find out on Saturday in what should be an interesting clash.
Taroona Look to Avoid Another Zebras Mauling
The final game of the round sees us head to Kelvedon Park as Taroona welcome the Clarence Zebras to what could well be a very heavy pitch. Whilst I haven’t seen the exact conditions of the pitch for a few weeks now, I have seen the weather we’ve had the past fortnight and so given it’s track record; this could well be very tough sledding for the players. That’s a factor that the hosts may very well welcome as they try to slow down this free scoring Zebras outfit.
The last time Clarence Zebras took on Taroona was the most one-sided game we have seen this year. The Zebras completely obliterated them 15-0 so it’s fair to say they head into this one as the most overwhelming of favourites. They’ve smashed the bottom couple of sides when they have taken them on this year which has seen them become the attacking juggernauts of the league, totaling 53 goals in their 9 games. That really jumps out, especially when contrasted with United who have 30 from their 8 matches despite being unbeaten whereas the Zebras have lost thrice.
So can Taroona compete this time around? Or at least keep it respectable on the scoreboard? Recent league defeats of 8-0 and 8-2 to South Hobart and Devonport suggest not, but their performance in the Cup Semi Final against Launceston United at this venue shows they are capable of much better. That was a 3-1 loss and comfortably their best performance of the season. That is what they are going to need to channel here if they are to get closer to this free scoring Zebras outfit.