The Central Coast Mariners Academy Women recorded an emphatic win over the Marconi Women at Pluim Park on Sunday afternoon thanks to a Candice Phelan brace and a goal to Georgia Davis.
Mariners Academy Women 3 (50’ 65’ Candice Phelan & 71’ Georgia Davis) Marconi Stallions Women 1 (89’ Nicole Ossio)
With the race to the finals now firmly in focus, First Grade Head Coach Mark Yule needed his players to start fast and assert dominance in an important game.
The Mariners Women heeded the instructions from the opening whistle against Marconi.
Yule had his speedster Gabbi Blanch drift wide on the right side from where she created chances in attack throughout the match.
Blanch’s first chance was in the 27th minute when she took on the defence and set off down the right flank before cutting back behind the defender, straightening toward goal and firing off a rocket with her left foot, the shot was saved only by a diving Stallions keeper.
The Mariners were well served by their talented midfielders Jade Mcatamney and Captain Oriana Keane and it was Mcatamney who delivered a class ball through to Candice Phelan who jinked and shot off the post which rebounded to her. Phelan’s athletic bicycle kick on the second attempt flew just wide.
The teams went into the break at 0-0 but the Mariners looked well in control at home.
The second half started in the same way as the first with wave after wave of attacks by the Mariners and with Georgia Davis injecting herself it seemed like only a matter of time until the scoreboard ticked over.
It was Davis who skilfully switched the ball to a wide waiting Rochelle Johnson. Johnson took the space down the wing before sliding a perfectly weighted pass to Phelan who obliged with a simple tap in.
Yule instructed his players to keep hungry knowing they were up against a talented Stallions outfit.
15 minutes later and from left back Letisha Waddell surged deep into the opposition territory before picking out Phelan whose initial shot was blocked by the keeper but the ever present striker followed through and at full stride, poked the ball past the sprawling Stallions keeper to make it 2-0.
In the 71st minute the referee awarded the Mariners a free kick against the Marconi keeper not releasing the ball in time. Oriana Keane tapped the ball to Georgia Davis who struck a curling strike over the wall and into the net to make it 3-0.
That fired Marconi into a late revival and Yule screamed at his team to finish the game off as he sensed shift in momentum, A late 89th minute consolation goal to Marconi saw the final result an empathic 3 -1 win to a slick looking Mariners outfit that was witnessed by one of the team’s biggests supporters, Jake Banks making it all that more special for the Academy girls.
“It was a well deserved victory today,” Yule said. “We’re extremely happy with the quality of our football, we bossed the game for the most part. We looked really good when we played with simple width and didn’t rush. We are in the hunt,” Yule said.
Next weekend is Round 14 in the women’s PS4 NPL 2 which sees the Mariners travel to Concord Oval to take on Inter Lions SC. Under 13’s kick off at 8.30am and First grade kick off at 3pm.
MATCH STATS
Sunday 9th July
Pluim Park
Referee: L Hockings
Central Coast Mariners Academy Women: 1. SCHULTZ Jess, 4. DAVIS Georgia, 5. WADDELL Letisha, 6. MCATAMNEY Jade (3.BRYANT Grace), 7. BLANCH Gabrielle, 8. KEANE Oriane(15 LOPEZ Nubia), 12. OLIVEIRA Katie, 10. JOHNSON Rochelle (13 Jade- Anne Kroemer), 14. SHORTER Elizabeth, 9. PHELAN Candice and 16. DUFFY Kate
Subs not used: TERRY Jessica and 20. BRADBURY Maddison
Marconi Stallions FC Women: BEALE Jessica, CAMBAZ Ceyda, CLIFFORD Alesha, CONNERS Mia, HENSMAN Kate, LAURIC Amanda, WILLS Kalinda, MACGIO Kiera, CIABALTI Vanessa, GOODWIN Ella, OSSIO Nicole, POTTER Matilda-Lee, BALZAN Montana, DUFFY Heather, SPUWAY Kayla
Subs not used: OLARTE Jessica
Yellow cards: CLIFFORD Alesha
CCMA Women Earlier Results
- Under 13 CCMA 1 MSFC 2
- Under 15 CCMA 0 MSFC 2
- Under 17 CCMA 1 MSFC 2
- Reserves CCMA 3 MSFC 6
