The MyState Bank Women’s Super League is back for Round 9 with a top of the table blockbuster headlining its return. Launceston United and South Hobart produced a thrilling Cup Quarter final a few weeks back and they now meet with top spot in the Super League on the line. It promises to be a gripping encounter. Elsewhere the Clarence Zebras will look to pick themselves off the canvas and start trying to haul in the leaders as they take on Olympia, whilst Taroona and Devonport look to brush off their Cup disappointments from last weekend when they meet at Kelvedon Park.
Warriors Hosting Zebras On Friday Night
The Round will kick off at Empire Couriers Park on Friday night with the struggling Olympia Warriors attempting to breathe some life into their season as they host the Clarence Zebras. The two sides have played twice this season, the first time in Round 2 resulting in a thumping 11-1 win for the Zebras, before a closer clash in the Statewide Cup still saw the Zebras far too strong and winning 5-0.
Off the back of those results, the Zebras obviously enter this one as the overwhelming favourites to take the three points, but there is probably more than that on offer for them here if they still harbour hopes in the title race. The Zebras now sit some 9 points behind Launceston United, which is significant but not insurmountable given that both South Hobart and Devonport appear capable of taking points from United. They will need this to happen and will probably need to win every game from here on out themselves, a feat that is improbable but not impossible for this collection of players. One edge they do have is goal difference. They currently enjoy +7 lead on United and +3 on South Hobart. Given the tie-breaker procedure is this and not head to head records, it does mean they only need to draw level on points and not ahead as it currently stands. So they have every incentive to try score heavily and maintain this buffer and Olympia have certainly leaked goals this year. It will take a big effort on the Warriors behalf to dig in and make life tough for the visitors, but with the majority of their games at home in the second half of the season they need to start making this a tougher place for rival sides to travel to.
Top Spot On The Line as United hosts South
The game of the round is undoubtedly at Floorworld Park where Launceston United take on South Hobart in a top of the table showdown. United are undefeated so far in 2022 whilst South’s only blemish came at the hands of United back in Round 2. On that day, United flicked a switch in the second half and dominated the contest after a tight first half that had the game in the balance. Both sides have gotten stronger since that game and they have met once since, in the Statewide Cup.
United also took the chocolates in that Statewide Cup Quarter Final clash, though they needed 120 minutes and Penalties to do so. It was a very tight encounter that showed just how well these sides are matched and was a result that could have gone either way. It will just be a point apiece if they are tied after 90 minutes this time around, a result that would leave the gap between first and second at the 3 points it currently stands at. If South were to win then they would move into top spot given their superior goal difference, whilst a win for United would open up a 6 point buffer with 10 games remaining for each side after next week’s Cup Final.
So the stakes are high for this one and the stage is set for what should be a wonderfully entertaining game. These are two sides that like to play in a positive attacking manner and have given us 2 wildly enjoyable matches from their 2 meetings already this year.
It really is an enormous fortnight for Launceston United and comfortably the biggest since their ascension to the Super League. They have the chance to break open the League title race with a home game this weekend and then will head into a Statewide Cup Final against a side they defeated 5-0 just a month ago. It’s a decisive couple of weeks and if they can bring the level they have shown throughout the season already, it might be a fortnight they look back on with a supreme fondness as the most important in what could be a very successful season.
Defeated Semi Finalists Clash at Kelvedon
In the final game of the Round, Taroona will host the Devonport Strikers at Kelvedon Park with both sides looking to rebound after falling short in last weekend’s Statewide Cup Semi Finals.
Given they had beaten the Lions 7-1 a week earlier, the Strikers will feel like their Semi Final defeat was an enormous, missed opportunity. They had the chances to win the match but were profligate, leaving the door ajar for the Lions to smash on through which they duly did.
Now it is all about how the Strikers respond. They beat Taroona 7-0 earlier in the season at Valley Road, but as we saw last weekend, that doesn’t guarantee anything when travelling to that opponent later in the year.
It’s been a tough season for the Pirates but they have shown signs they are turning the corner and should be a much more competitive side in the second half of the year than they were in the first. Wins over lower league sides in the cup helped build some confidence in the group and whilst they likewise enter this coming off a Semi Final defeat, I reckon they will feel a lot better about their loss than the Strikers would be about theirs.
The 3-1 loss to Launceston United was one of the Pirates better performances of the year. This is a side that lost 15-0 back in April, so the fact they are now pushing the undefeated ladder leaders and giving them a tough match in a Cup Semi Final is an undeniable sign of progress on their part. Progress enough to take points a Strikers side who so comprehensively beat them earlier this year though? That remains to be seen.