Mt Druitt Town Rangers 0 Blacktown City 0
Blacktown City travelled to neighbours Mt Druitt for a Mother’s Day fixture at the new Popondetta synthetic stadium and after a bruising ninety minutes came away with an important point against the high-scoring hosts. A game that was littered with fouls and mystery stoppages threatened to boil over as tempers became frayed on a surprisingly warm day, and goalkeepers Laura Tredennick and Anna Ivanovic had to be on top form to keep the game goalless. The game opened up as the second half wore on, and despite City sensing a three-point haul, the elusive winning goal was missing and the visitors had to be content with the point.
The players were walked on with their mums before the game, a lovely touch for Mothers Day, and they were met by bright conditions and hot sun between the heavy clouds. Mt Druitt were on the back of a defeat to Bankstown during the week, and thing could have got worse in the opening stages, when Hayley Reynolds was played in on the right, but her fabulous shot from an acute angle hit the outside of the post. City were positive right from the start, hassling and harrying their opponents, but the danger from the home side was evident when Makayla Crouch crossed from the right and Samantha Cole was forced into conceding the first of many corners.
Lily Thompson combined with Brianna Tinney, but the through ball was too strong, and from the clearance, Tinney hassled Tiana-Louise Barton and lofted a high shot that was dipping under the bar, Tredennick standing her ground and showing good handling to prevent the ball crossing the line. Reynolds then stole the ball again as City pressed, this time Tinney’s low shot was easily saved.
City’s slick passing was causing trouble, Tinney with a sweeping ball to Reynolds but she couldn’t get around her player. Sofia Sollecito then combined with Crouch up the right for the home side, Lara Green doing well to concede the corner, and from the short corner the ball was flashed across the face of goal and Cole did well to force the ball behind again. Reynolds eased the pressure with a galloping run up the right to win a corner for City, and Emily Jackson’s corner into the penalty area was headed wide by Tinney.
The referee was whistle-shy, many niggling tackles and late hits going unsanctioned, but Tinney managed to draw a free-kick, wrestling Jessica Anand to the floor. Reynolds then raced clear on the right and opted to pass early instead of taking the clear run on goal, the pass not finding its target and the chance was gone. Sienna Bell went in with a crunching tackle that allowed Reynolds to race down the right, and her dangerous cross was well fielded by Tredennick.
The duels were appearing all over the field. Green vs Crouch, Bell vs Barton. When Cameron Janssen released Isabella Williams, the assistant’s flag came to the rescue, and when Barton played in Sollecito, Cole’s improvised overhead clearance brought applause from the fans. Sollecito and Crouch combined again up the right and when the cross was fired in, Niamh Nolan’s clearance went just past the post with hearts in mouths. A timely interception by Green then diverted the ball into the path of Sollecito who found herself in a one-on-one with Ivanovic, and the City goalkeeper got a touch to send the ball wide. The resulting corner was missed by Ivanovic, Williams free at the far post, but she could only bundle the ball wide with the goal at her mercy.
A flashpoint then could have seen yellow cards, Bell dragging down Barton, who reacted with a petulant push on the City midfielder, but again the referee chose to ignore it. Jackson then robbed her defender and teed up Tinney, but the ball had bounced off her hand and she was denied. Sarah Polinsky was then caught in possession but Tinney couldn’t find any power in the shot.
When Anand went down with a head knock on the sideline, the game took a mysterious turn. Play was held up for four minutes while teammates took photos of the head wound, and the referee team were in discussion, with no indication of what was happening. The welcome break for drinks and coach instruction was taken though, and play resumed for a short period, Williams playing in Sollecito, who crossed for Crouch but the shot faded away from goal and past the post. The game was locked at 0-0 but not through a lack of effort and enterprise.
The second half started with Sollecito playing in Williams for another one-on-one, Ivanovic doing brilliantly to force the ball away, and City broke up the other end, Reynolds and Jackson hassling well to free Tinney, and her shot was only just over the bar, a superb move from the visitors. More tenacity from Tinney won a ball in an advanced position and Bell was allowed to stride forward and fire in a shot that Tredennick saved.
Molly Jones played in Anand on the right who could have done better, before Cole dallied on the ball and presented the a chance to Williams, but Green was there to intervene and she won a free kick after being bundled over. The boistrous tackling continued when Bell flattened Kaitlyn Smith, and when Crouch was released on the left, her cross found Isabella Bonnici but the shot went tamely wide. City continued to probe on the counter-attack – Nolan played the ball to Jackson, racing up the right and her cross found Bell, but she was penalised for flooring Anand and a good chance went begging.
Jackson was instrumental in attack and played in Reynolds again on the right, who homed in on goal and smashed in a shot. Tredennick got her fingers to it, but the ball spilled at the far post, alas there was no City player on hand to finish the job. Jackson stretched her legs again on the right, cut past her defender and this time opted to lay the ball square for Reynolds. Alas she couldn’t sort out her feet and missed the shot completely.
Bell was down for a moment after hitting the ground hard chasing Anand, and Reynolds was busy again, winning another corner. Issy Saunders’ corner was deep and just out of reach of the incoming Annabelle Gerard. It was time for another mystery moment as Nolan went down on the touchline in front of the benches. Play was stopped even though she was off the field, the referee unsure what to do and when the Mt Druitt bench asked for play to continue, Cole dragged Nolan onto the field to keep play stopped. Absolute comedy gold.
An injection of energy from Abby Duggan saw her race forward and release Reynolds again on the right – the cross was too strong but City won a free kick on the left when Saunders was upended. Her bending shot from the set-piece was well saved by Tredennick.
At the other end, Crouch raided down the left but Cole was calm and ushered the ball out for a goal kick. Anand and Ella Mangan then combined to prise open the City defence, Ivanovic racing off her line to smother at Mangan’s feet. We finally had yellow cards in quick succession as first Crouch then Lucia Franuolvic were booked.
Saunders and Thompson combined to release Duggan on the right side of the penalty area and her shot was saved by Tredennick. City continued to press and seemed to have a shock win on their radar. Mackayla Diasinos did brilliantly to clear the ball from danger, and Reynolds and Keiara King exchanged words on the byline as tempers flared, the referee choosing not to take any action other than a stern talking-to. A dangerous cross from Crouch from the left was then saved by a combination of Green and Ivanovic, the ball grasped gratefully as it was lodged under Green’s foot.
Polinksy then found herself in a good position, her shot saved by Ivanovic, and the game ended with a frantic attack by the visitors, Gerard finding herself in attack and feeding Mel Napoli in space, but the defence swamped her and the shot was charged down. The final whistle brought an epic goalless draw to a close. and Mothers Day would, as a ressult, be a happy day for everyone.
Mt Druitt will rue the chances they spurned in the first half, and Anna Ivanovic was the difference, while City sensed a chance to grab a statement win in the second half, but just fell short. This goal-shy Blacktown team failed to find the target again, but their resolute defence made sure that their miserly goals against column remained one of the tightest in the division. This will not go down as a classic, and on paper the 0-0 draw looks action-free, but this was an entertaining encounter with plenty of talking points.
Mt Druitt now travel to South Coast Flame for a tough encounter with one of the league’s strongest teams, while Blacktown City are at St George next week, who made easy work of high-flying Flame this weekend. Another difficult fixture for Blacktown City, but the endeavour and spirit is bountiful in this young team. Stay tuned for more!
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