Blacktown Spartans 2 Blacktown City 0
The battle of Blacktown took centre stage at a packed Blacktown Sports Park on Sunday, with second tier City taking on their crosstown rivals Spartans in a tough pre-season clash. A goalless first half, where City held their own against their illustrious top-flight neighbours, opened up into a one-sided affair in the second half as the contrasting attacking intent of the two teams was exposed. Maja Prostran and Donelle Moore took advantage of generous City defending as the quality of the Spartans attack shone through, but City will be pleased with the way they stifled their opponents for long periods of the game. Top drawer performances from midfield enforcer Sienna Bell and goalkeeper Ash Mcintyre ensured that the scoreline remained close until the end in an entertaining contest at Western Sydney’s sporting hub.
Blacktown Sports Park was beyond busy, the full signs up at all the car parks, players having to walk a good distance to the venue as others battled the traffic and parked on unfeasibly steep terrain as the precinct far exceeded capacity. Such is the drawcard of a Blacktown derby. With conditions ideal for football, the weather gods for once not turning the heat up too far, City kicked off towards the Eastern Road end and sized up their physically bigger opponents.
Isabelle Wilson and Poppy Channing looked assured at the back for the hosts, using goalkeeper Makayla Kent as the extra outlet to keep possession and try to draw City out of their compact shape. The tall figure of Danielle Keller was the first to make a foray into City territory but the pass was too long, and before the game had a chance to develop, we had a stoppage, Niamh Nolan stretching to intercept and twisting her knee awkwardly. She was able to continue, but didn’t look comfortable for a few minutes.
Angelique Lynch then ran onto a ball from Moore, but the offside flag halted progress, Alannah Putica then raided down the left and swung in a dangerous cross for the Spartans that City’s Abby Duggan cleared under pressure.
City then had two opportunities on the right. Bell went in for a crunching tackle to win the ball and was then fouled. That gave the visitors a good position just outside the box, but the delivery was disappointing. Moments later Bell was involved again, brought down, but the short free kick was wasted and the opportunity to at least test the Spartans defence was missed. Nolan took aim from distance but couldn’t get any power in the shot, and City looked to be coming out of their shell as they enjoyed some flashing moments of possession. With Moore the playmaker, Spartans turned the screw. She played in Charli Leafe, Keira Hastings curled in the cross and Lynch fired in a shot that McIntyre saved. Moore was then released and blazed over, but the offside flag was already up. The pressure was relentless.
Zariya Essop then played Putica up the left but she couldn’t force the ball into the area, before Leafe created confusion in the City defence, the ball going out for a corner. This was a chance for the height of the Spartans attack to come into play, and Putica’s corner was headed just wide by defender Wilson.
City’s forays into the Spartans area were few and far between. Hayley Reynolds raced on to a clever pass by Emily Jackson, but the defence closed down the chance immediately. Ella Morris then tricked her way down the left for the home side, Lara Green making an important interception as the ball was played into a dangerous area. Keller spun to fire in a shot just wide, Lynch played in Putica but Duggan swept up, and it seemed a matter of time before the hosts would take the lead.
Suddenly City got a head of steam, Bell won the ball well in midfield and raced up the right only to give the ball away, but the referee had deemed it a foul. Wilson and Bell then traded words and there was a melee, the referee quick on the scene to quell any disquiet, Wilson extracted from the scene by her goalkeeper to avoid any sanction. Any thoughts of a dangerous free kick were gone when another short routine was wasted, and play went up the other end.
Spartans fashioned the best chance of the half, Wilson long for Lynch who shot against the post, McIntyre grabbing the rebound gratefully. Anabelle Gerard then had to make a great interception to prevent a breakaway, and from the clearance, Reynolds played in Mel Napoli, but the two players weren’t on the same wavelength and the chance evaporated.
The half ended with Spartans again on the attack. Lynch was played in on goal only to fire harmlessly wide, and Essop ventured up the left, Duggan again foiling the raid and the referee’s whistle was blessed relief for the players of both teams, the game hanging in the balance at 0-0. The City defence had remained firm, but there was very little to excite the crowd at the other end, and the initial period of the second half would perhaps answer some of the questions being asked of the City players.
Moore and Maja Prostran combined to fashion an early chance, but Kath Spooner-Smith made the clearance, Lynch then raced up the right to deliver a teasing cross but there were no takers. Essop then connected with another great cross from the right, but McIntyre was in the right place to block the shot. City couldn’t get out of their half. Duggan was adjudged to have pulled her opponent down, a free kick on the edge of the box, but the shot was deflected wide. The referee then forced Duggan to remove her necklace, a familiar sight in pre-season games as players forget the protocols of NPL football.
Fabulous play by Moore on the left saw a ball fed inside for Caterine Mazzotta, who rode a challenge, worked the ball into a shooting position, but fired spectacularly over the bar. Gerard forced the ball behind after Green had misjudged a header to leave City exposed, Helena Daniele smashing in a shot that McIntyre saved well. That was a warning shot though, and City failed to heed the warning, a weak header letting in Prostran, who slotted past McIntyre with a tidy finish to put Spartans into the lead.
The home team were hungry for more. Daniele played in Mazzotta and her left-foot shot was wide of the post. City then found some space, Duggan winning possession up the field on the right, Reynolds collecting a stray ball to fire in a shot that was blocked and Spartans were playing risky passes at the back, walking a thin line as City pressed looking to force the error.
A clever intercept by Bell out wide saw the ball squirm through for Nolan, who took aim and fired wide, but Bell had been penalised for a foul in the lead-up. With the game poised at 1-0, and Brianna Tinney flattened on halfway when challenging for a header, City then gifted a second goal. Aurelia Smith surrendered possession and the exciting Angelina Graiche raced down the left to feed Moore, and her shot from distance sailed over McIntyre and under the bar for 2-0. It was no less than the Spartans deserved for their pressure, but was another press on the self-destruct button for the visitors.
There was still time for Lynch to flash a shot well over the bar, Graiche then finding Moore but McIntyre made a good stop from point-blank range. Essop then raced down the left to cross, but McIntyre showed safe hands to pluck the ball out of the air. City had possibly their best chance with seconds remaining on the clock, Duggan racing on to a searching ball. She took a good touch, but the right-foot shot lacked power and Kent was able to gather with ease. The final act of a pulsating finish saw Prostran cut inside and fire in a shot that McIntyre parried, before grabbing the rebound to prevent a third Spartans goal.
The whistle sounded and this pre-season derby had gone as expected, City soaking up the intense pressing but unable to create much in the way of attacking options to relieve the pressure. The City players were upbeat after the game, coach Jake Gomez challenging his youthful players to show more aggression; as a pre-season trial against an opponent in the division above, this had been a terrific test, and if they can maintain the defensive strength while creating chances at the other end, the signs are bright for the season ahead.
Blacktown Spartans continue their preparations for the NPL Women’s reserve grade season on Sunday with the visit of powerhouse APIA Leichhardt, while Blacktown City head to the Gosford to take on fellow NPL League One Under 20s side Central Coast Mariners in a tough test of their own pre-season credentials.
Get excited, the season is coming up quickly. Blacktown City are on the up!
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