The Kingborough Lions dominated from start to finish in a convincing 6-0 win at Lightwood Park today. Mia Cane and Laura Davis proved too much for the visiting Clarence side as they scored five goals between them in an offensive masterclass.
In the final round of WSL action all eyes were on KGV as the Warriors and Zebras battled out a title decider however Kingborough put on a show of their own as Cane opened the scoring just nine minutes into the match. She took possession on the left flank and cut inside before unleashing a powerful effort past the outstretched arms of Vanderniet. Cane's goal set the tone for the rest of the game as her team-mates continued to create chances, the next coming just three minutes later when Watkins' header from just yards out went over the bar despite Vanderniet being caught out of position and presenting the Kingborough winger with an open goal.
Vanderniet saved Clarence on several occasions and prevented a potentially ugly opening 20 minutes for the Reds but she could do nothing against a quick thinking Watkins who, in the 24th minute, took a settling touch and slotted home from a tight angle to double the lead for Kingborough. Clarence had a couple of forays forwards on the counter attack but could cause no problems for Kingborough. In the 40th minute Cane scored again and made it three as she kept a cool head in the 18-yard box to take a rebounding ball under her spell and find the net in a crowded area.
Kingborough went on to hit the post before the half time whistle brought Clarence a welcomed break as they looked to regroup at half time. The second half started worse than the first however, and within ten minutes of the restart the score had blown out to 5-0. The fourth goal came to Mia Cane who completed her hat-trick when she received a centred pass from Davis following a miscued Clarence goal-kick. The fifth goal came just three minutes later in the 55th when Davis scored one of her own to well and truly bury the tie.
Clarence had a good spell over the next 20 minutes and slowly worked their way into the game with some key defensive tackles and a few ventures forward but couldn't capitalise and turn it into goals. Davis put an end to any confidence Clarence were building when she scored her second in the 80th minute. She showed her class when she nutmegged Vanderniet with her first touch and regained possession with her second to score into an empty net.
The game ended 6-0 and Kingborough left the field to a home crowd standing ovation after finishing the season in fourth place. Clarence finished one spot below in fifth place but the 18 point disparity tells the story of two very different seasons as both teams will now look forward to the 2020 kick-off.