Blacktown Spartans 0 Blacktown City 2
Second-half goals from Emily Jackson and Sienna Bell steered Blacktown City to victory at Blacktown Football Park on Sunday, but the victory came at a cost. A snapped wrist in the final moment of the derby encounter with the Spartans saw combative midfielder Bell end the game in agony to take the shine off the three points on a hot and sunny Sunday afternoon in Western Sydney. A game that see-sawed in a scrappy opening twenty minutes and could have gone either way eventually settled into a dominant display by the visitors, who move into the top half of the table with some enticing games to come.
Playing representative football in Australia comes with some difficulties, and two of those were at play today at Blacktown Football Park; the temperatures at the height of the day can vary wildly at this time of year, and this one was played in furnace-like conditions in unrelenting sunshine. Coupled with the unforgiving artificial surface, which adds several degrees to an already scorching arena, there is an immediate dip in quality with these uber-slick and extra-bouncy surfaces strewn with black rubber. The result is a game where the biggest challenges are controlling the bounce and the adjustment in weighting the pass, with even the softest touch sending the ball rolling past its intended target. It’s a frustrating game to watch, and the players learn to revel playing on grass when they get the opportunity.
Today’s Blacktown derby was one of those games, and it took both sides a long time to get used to the conditions. City were the first on the break, Lily Waterhouse and Bell pressuring the Spartans defence into a corner; Rachel Fry’s corner kick saw a scramble where Aurelia Smith’s shot was blocked by a sea of legs. The left side of attack was fruitful for the visitors, the Spartans defence of Aaliyah Hsieh and Aoife Murdock kept busy, but the home team had the first real chances, and they were created by mistakes at the back from the usually solid City defence.
First, goalkeeper Courtney Mackenzie miskicked her clearance, the ball falling to Leila Khattab who couldn’t force the ball past the stranded goalkeeper, atoning for her mistake, and Khattab blazed the rebound over. Moments later Zara Eade was presented with the ball from a wayward clearance from Mackenzie, but her shot was blocked, City making a meal of clearing the ball and looking lost at sea.
Lara Green was taken out on the right, Courtney Kitching swung in the free-kick and Bell was there to smash a shot over the bar as City got back into their rhythm, but Spartans still had a spring in their step, Murdock blazing upfield and cutting inside, but her shot was fielded easily by Mackenzie in the City goal. A game that swung from end to end continued as Kitching went long for Fry; her battle with Murdock saw the ball pop out to Green, whose shot was saved by Amelia Shepherd. The lively Eva Buterin lined up a shot from distance that Mackenzie had no trouble with, before City fashioned a great chance. Bell burst through on the left and slipped the ball in for Fry; the return ball to Bell saw her advance on goal, but the shot was wide, and the offside flag would have gone up anyway, but it was a superb move.
Another rampaging run by Bell resulted in a hurried clearance in the box; Green backtracked and controlled the ball before firing in a thumping shot that soared onto the crossbar in a thrilling moment that got the crowd going. More good work by Bell forced a corner, Fry lifted the ball in, Smith got her head to the ball to send it goalwards, and Shepherd did well to gather the ball with Bell lurking. Spartans were quick on the break despite being hemmed in, Khattab and Ava-Rose Lewis combining for Aria Miltiades but the shot was wide under pressure. Lucy Silk then scampered up the left, but Angelica Conate was there to clear the danger for City.
Mackenzie’s difficult first half continued when Silk launched in a speculative shot that should have been food and drink to the expert City shot-stopper, but she fumbled the ball out for a corner. The resulting corner sailed over Mackenzie’s hands and hit the inside of the far post, the ball somehow ending up over the bar in the scramble, with the City defenders looking at each other with relief and disbelief.
Emilie Chandran’s long throws were searching down the left, Green advanced with the ball at one point, surveying what was ahead before standing on the ball awkwardly and coughing up possession. It was starting to look like one of those games where nothing goes right for the visitors, but when a ball was deflected into the path of Sarah De Sousa, she took time to control the bouncing ball and her shot was blocked for a corner. From the second corner, the ball fell for Emily Jackson who fired just wide, City getting closer to breaking the deadlock. Another long throw from Chandran saw Fry control the ball in the area and lay off to Smith, the resulting shot sailing just past the far post to oohs from the crowd.
De Sousa was brought down on the right, Kitching swinging in a free kick that was easy for Shepherd, then Fry was upended on the left. Kitching’s effort this time was deflected over her own bar by Mackenzie Clifford-Farrell, and the resulting corner was headed high over by Kitching, the final action of a busy but goalless first half that could have seen either team with a commanding lead.
The conditions were not deemed warm enough for a drinks break this week, the referee turning down requests from the players, but now the constant breeze had returned and there was at least some movementin the hot air. Clifford-Farrell and Silk combined well on the left as Spartans started the second half on the front foot, but the conditions were taking their toll and the pace of the game dropped dramatically. City’s attack fashioned a chance, Zoe Thompson and Waterhouse combining for Fry to send in a shot that Shepherd saved at the near post.
City had started the second half tentatively, but the moment that changed the game came as City stepped up a gear. Chandran placed a good pass inside for Jackson who took the space up the middle, playing a glorious one-two with Thompson and taking the time to steady herself before placing her shot past Shepherd for 1-0, a brilliant goal. The CIty players and fans alike were thrilled with the goal and they didn’t have to wait long for the next action, Thompson gifted a free shot by the Spartans defence that took a wild deflection and bounce to wrong-foot Shepherd, but the Spartans goalkeeper made an astonishing save before pouncing full-length onto the rebound.
The danger of Murdock continued as she strode out of defence from a goalkick to win a free kick on the right. Midfield kingpin Buterin’s shot was easy for Mackenzie, but the free kicks continued, Waterhouse somehow winning hers in a dangerous position on the left. This was Kitching range, and with the wind now in City’s favour, the resulting ball in was only just too high for the in-coming Smith, the ball bouncing harmlessly wide.
Smith’s ball through for Waterhouse had just too much on it, Jackson was the calming influence in a frantic midfield, while Buterin continued to run the show for the Spartans. Jackson played in the marauding Mikayla Gadd on the right, but the cross was wayward, Waterhouse hassled well to win a throw-in up the left and when the ball was bouncing around the penalty area, Smith showed great determination to try and force the ball goalwards to no avail.
Jackson lined one up from distance that Shepherd saved easily, then Kitching played a long ball over for Gadd, who won a corner on the right. Kitching was still up with the attack when the ball fell her way on the left. In a run not unlike Aziz Behich vs Argentina in the FIFA World Cup in 2022, she glided past players and it was only the final ball that let City down, the ball flashing across the face of the goal with no takers. Spartans were still in this, and Buterin cut inside to fire in a useful shot that Mackenzie saved well.
At the other end, Evdokia Papafilopoulos and Smith traded passes, Papfilopoulos unlucky to see her shot charged down, and then the killer goal arrived. Smith was in there causing a nuisance, a high ball deflected into the air as the home team tried to clear; Bell took the ball down and weaved into the penalty area, the defence parting like the Red Sea as Bell finished expertly past Shepherd for 2-0, another excellent goal for City.
Bell was having a strong game, playing on the edge but getting very little from the officials, and Jackson took the opportunity to slalom through the generous Spartans defence, but couldn’t emulate her teammate’s goal, the shot blocked. With time almost up, Bell raced up the left, her energy limitless despite the challenging conditions. She was sent crashing to the floor in a tackle and stayed down holding her arm, in obvious anguish. The final whistle was almost ignored as the midfielder was given treatment from the concerned physio team, and she was helped off the field holding her forearm. We would later find out that she would be out for six weeks with a broken wrist.
The gloss was taken off an excellent three points for Blacktown City, but in reality they had found the going tough today after two good performance against teams at the top end of the table. With next weekend’s game on Saturday, the chalenges are coming thick and fast, this time a mid-table clash of 7th v 8th as Bankstown City Lions come to Landen Stadium looking to overtake their closest rivals. Blacktown Spartans face the in-form league leaders Hills United at Valentine Park on Monday, the league’s most miserly defence finally breached by Marconi Stallions on the weekend despite another big win. Stay tuned for more action from the Football NSW Leagues Girls Youth League 2 Under 18s. You’ll only find it here!
Thanks for reading. Any corrections, fire them through. Always a challenge to decipher a 5, 6 and an 8 on a crumpled shirt behind a pony-tail in the glaring sun; there may be cases of mistaken identity in the Spartans team! See you next week for more action.