Central Coast Mariners 4 Blacktown City 0
Blacktown City’s five-game winning streak came to an abrupt end at Pluim Park as a freezing cold midweek encounter with Central Coast Mariners slipped from their grasp in a first-half collapse. A booming finish from Mikayla Standen signalled the turning point after a good spell of pressure by the visitors produced no goals, Rahni Deeley’s first time finish made it two as City wilted and when Holly Whormsley headed home unmarked from a corner, the game was all but over as a contest. City stemmed the flow in the second half, but a reaction finish from Chelsea Boelhouwer after a corner wasn’t dealt with put the game beyond City’s reach and try as they might, there was no consolation on a night that reminded everyone just how chilly Australia can be in winter.
The choice of State Of Origin or Football NSW Girls Youth League football was an easy one to make, and Blacktown City started this game with Central Coast Mariners full of confidence, with the verve and energy that had seen them power up the league table. Sarah De Sousa was lively, Zoe Thompson playing a neat through ball for Lara Green on the left but Wholmsley did well to clear. The Mariners looked full of running, and when a cross was played in from the right, Deeley sized up the opportunity, but she didn’t catch it well and Courtney Mackenzie in the City goal made a routine save.
The home team applied the pressure, Deeley spun past Courtney Kitching but Aurelia Smith was there to poke the ball away for a corner. Emilie Chandran did well to foil Deeley again, another corner the result, and when the cross came in from the right, a mad scramble ensued and Mackenzie was fortunate to get the run of the ball and pounced to avert the danger. The pressure was also self-inflicted, Kitching too short with a ball to Dominique Ashton, but Deeley’s touch was just too strong, Mackenzie fielding comfortably.
Blacktown attacked, Thompson with the approach play, feeding De Sousa whose hold-up play allowed Green to join the attack and the first time shot sailed wide of the goal from distance. De Sousa then chased down Isla Low in the Mariners’ goal, the ball popping out to Lily Waterhouse, but the shot was weak and Low was down low to make a simple save. Superb hustling from Thompson then forced the error from Low, and the ball was fed to Emily Jackson on the edge of the area but her fierce shot hit the side-netting, City edging closer. The high press of Thompson then forced a turnover and De Sousa was unlucky that the ball didn’t fall her way.
City’s first real chance came from a free kick on the left after Green had been fouled. Ashton’s cross was flicked by defender McKenzie and De Sousa stretched to get a telling touch to send the ball towards goal, but the ball was taken off her foot for a corner. The corner saw a counter attack by the home side and Chandran had to be alert with a good clean tackle to prevent the breakaway.
Olivia Burgess was running the show for the Mariners in midfield as the visitors found themselves swamped, and when Chandran rolled the ball back to Mackenzie, the City goalkeeper hit the ball straight to the Mariners striker, but Mackenzie atoned for the error with a superb fingertip save. City’s best form of defence was attack, and after a good steal in midfield, Thompson’s snapshot had Low scrambling. Rachel Fry then won a corner on the left and took it herself, Mckenzie away but Thompson found Kitching, still forward from the corner, but her low shot didn’t trouble Low in the Mariners goal.
All of a sudden, the Mariners struck and it was Burgess with the ball out wide to Standen. With Mikayla Gadd racing to close down the angle, she unleashed a looping effort that looked to be sailing over Mackenzie in the City goal; she got her fingertips to the ball, but it was in vain as the ball dropped over and bounced into the net, no one at Pluim Park realising that the ball had gone in until the Mariners players raced to congratulate the scorer.
Almost immediately Blacktown reacted, Kitching surging from defence with the ball and when she played the ball through for De Sousa, Mckenzie hesitated and then barged into the City striker in the area sending De Sousa flying. The appeals were vocal, but the referee was right on the spot to turn them down and the Mariners survived. Mathilde Montell was played through the middle but Kitching covered well, before De Sousa broke free on the right, but the shot lacked any conviction and was scooped up by Low.
A simply sublime move then produced the second goal, and the City midfield was otherwise occupied as Burgess was free to play in a magnificent through ball for the unmarked Deeley, who didn’t break stride and lashed the ball low into the net past the stranded Mackenzie for 2-0. Chelsea Boelhouwer then raced up the left, teasing and dancing around Gadd, Smith smashing the ball out of play to finally foil the raid. Evdokia Papafilopoulos was clipped in midfield giving Jackson an opportunity to shoot, but the effort lacked purpose. By now Leni Ang was on and controlling the midfield, but City had a good chance when Papfilopoulos reacted first to a stray ball; Low had come out a long way and was stranded, Papafilopoulos unable to find a shooting angle, and by the time she off-loaded to Thompson, the opportunity had gone.
Another glorious through-ball by Burgess to Deeley had Chandran sprinting back to slide the ball away for a corner. The cross was floated into the penalty area where the City defence had neglected to mark the tallest player on the field, Whormsley having to stoop to meet the ball and she found the net with a simple header for 3-0. All of City’s good pressing and hassling had amounted to nothing and they were almost dead and buried. Papafilopoulos persisted, flicking the ball out to Gadd on the overlap, but the cross went behind, then enterprising work from Thompson saw the ball fall for Jackson, but the low shot was off target.
The half ended with Isabel Grant bundling through two tackles, Kitching across to make the final challenge, who was sent flying, and the half-time whistle sounded to take the players into the freezing cold changing rooms for a post-mortem.
The opening exchanges of the second half gave an indication of what was to come; Fry raced up the left to cross, but Whormsley made the clearance, and the Mariners were straight onto the attack, Coco Furniss racing up the right to pull the ball back for Boelhouwer who rode the challenge and had a simple opportunity right in front, but Mackenzie’s left foot was enough to send the ball away for a corner. The pattern was set for an entertaining half of open attacking football, Chandran and Thompson combining well on the left, but there was nothing at the end of it. The home team had inserted yet another silky playmaker into the fold, Milly Ivins making her presence felt in midfield, and a free kick from Furniss on the right was inviting, but there was no one on the end of it.
City were feeding off scraps at the back, Papafilopoulos so close to intercepting, Uma Osborne relieved to come away with the ball, and that led to a cross to Deeley, but Kitching was in quickly to clear for a corner. Thompson ploughed a lone furrow up the left and was upended. Her resulting free kick was too close to Low though and the in-rushing bank of City players made the run in vain.
Boelhouwer turned brilliantly and fired just wide, before City attacked with purpose, Waterhouse finally finding space after intercepting well, passing inside to Smith who fed Jackson. The bustling midfielder skipped past her player and advanced, sending the shot wide, but this was much better from the away team. Ang showed great feet to get herself out of trouble, then Standen played in Furniss who should have homed in on goal, but took too many touches. The resulting corner was into a dangerous area, Angelica Conate couldn’t control the ball and when Gadd’s clearance fell to Boelhouwer, she reacted quickly and finished past Mackenzie before the City goalkeeper could react.
The resistance was over and the game opened up even further, Chandran played in Fry, who burst up the left past Whormsley, but the shot was easy for Low. The left-hand side continued to be a rich source of City attacks, Chandran and Fry combining to free Green, who raced forward to shoot, but Low made a good save at her near post. Conate’s tackle on Burgess was spectacular, and the compact midfielder raced forward soon after into enemy territory showing quick feet, but ultimately running the ball too far and the chance was gone.
Grant was released on the Mariners left and cut in to shoot, Mackenzie made the save, and the rebound took a deflection, City relieved to see the ball out for a goal kick. Burgess then had a powerful shot straight at the City goalkeeper.
A marauding run by Green then took her up the middle, heading for the penalty area and she was brought down right on the edge. Kitching fancied this one, and stepped up to float the ball goalwards, but the effort was too high and would never have troubled Low’s goal as it sailed over the bar. De Sousa continued to battle and won a corner on the right. Fry’s corner was helped away by Mckenzie, but it fell perfectly for Ashton, who teed up a shot for herself, the ball flashing just over the bar. City were finishing with a wet sail, and Jackson embarked on a trademark mazy run, beating two defenders on the left to fashion a shooting chance from an acute angle, but her shot whistled past the far post by a matter of inches. De Sousa then broke and elected to try and play in Waterhouse, when perhaps the shot was the best option, and just as City were pressing for the elusive consolation goal, the final whistle sounded and an entertaining game concluded in handshakes, smiles and a heavy steam coming from all the players.
This had been a difficult evening for Blacktown City. For all their positive energy in the first twenty minutes of the game, when Central Coast Mariners were genuinely concerned, the first goal sucked the life out of their performance, and the home team began to grow in confidence and ultimately had the game won by half time. There were eye-catching performances from Zara Mckenzie and Olivia Burgess, while Leni Ang and Milly Ivins also put on a show in a dominant midfield masterclass from the home team. For City, the opening period of the game typified their hard-working football, but the inability to adapt to the swarming Mariners midfield as the half wore on was telling. This was perhaps a free hit for Blacktown, against a team at the height of their powers, and a 4-0 reverse was neither surprising nor upsetting.
Mariners should continue their path to the top of the league with the visit of Sutherland Strikers on the weekend, while City have to pick themselves up in a difficult fixture at Marconi on Sunday. The Football NSW GYL2 Under 18s title race is back in the Mariners’ hands; will Blacktown City be in the mix come the end of the season? Time will tell.
Thank you for joining the action from Pluim Park on a bitterly cold winter’s evening. There will be mistaken identity in this report; no teamsheet, numbers hidden behind long hair, a mystery number 51 which may have been 61, quite the challenge tonight in the relative darkness. If there’s anything glaring, such as the wrong goalscorer of the first goal, let me know and it will be changed. Apologies for the low-quality photos tonight, nothing my knowledge or my equipment can master! See you on Sunday.