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020325
Adelaide Overpower Wellington In Porirua
by Jeremy Ruane
Adelaide United underlined their Ninja A-League Women's title credentials at Jerry Collins Stadium on March 2, overpowering Wellington Phoenix 3-1, a scoreline which flattered the home team, who had Carolina Vilao and the woodwork to thank for keeping the score down.
The visitors hit the ground running, and were on the board in the fourth minute of play, Ella Tonkin heading home a Dylan Holmes corner on the far post to give Adelaide the perfect start as the race for play-off spots intensifies - there are just six rounds remaining after this match.
Not satisfied with the early goal, United kept on pressing for more, with Vilao denying Fiona Worts in the sixth minute. Only Mackenzie Barry's timely tackle prevented Chelsie Dawber from doubling the visitors' lead six minutes later, while the combined efforts of Vilao and Alyssa Whinham were required to keep Adelaide at bay sixty seconds later, following a well-struck Worts free-kick.
Another minute had elapsed when United produced a super move. Emily Hodgson picked out Worts, whose first-time round-the-corner pass sent Dawber scurrying through the inside left channel and into the penalty area, where she fired past the approaching figure of Vilao but into the near post side-netting.
In the midst of this spell of pressure, Wellington launched a counter-attack through Emma Main, who broke clear on the right before looking to pick out Olivia Fergusson at the near post. Claudia Jenkins grabbed the ball in front of the striker, one of the few occasions she would be called upon in this contest.
She looked on with concern in the eighteenth minute when Annalie Longo's corner was headed past the far post by Zoe McMeeken, while pressure from Whinham and Fergusson five minutes later forced an opening which saw Tonkin gift possession to Main. Her shot was blocked by Zoe Tolland.
Back came Adelaide, Worts firing a free-kick past the defensive wall in the 28th minute which Vilao fumbled, but recovered in time to prevent Erin Healy from stealing in and tucking home a second goal.
Soon after, a Dawber shot was blocked by Barry, with the rebound inviting Healy to let fly. Her twenty-yarder curled narrowly past Vilao's left-hand angle. Soon after, Healy was in again, charging down the right this time before inviting Holmes to let fly. She miscued her effort, but it dropped invitingly for Dawber to steer a cushioned volley goalwards, only for the ball to hit the bar.
Vilao gratefully grabbed the rebound and launched the ball downfield, with Main in hot pursuit. She gathered the ball, but saw her bid to level the scores blocked by Matilda McNamara, who repeated the feat ten minutes before half-time to deny Whinham, after Tiana Jaber, Maya McCutcheon and Longo had combined to create a half-chance for the enterprising playmaker.
Five minutes before half-time, another Holmes corner - Adelaide had enjoyed plenty of them in this half, but had only capitalised on the first of them - picked out McNamara. She squeezed the ball back to Healy, whose rising shot cleared the crossbar.
It was a miss which was to prove costly, for from the resulting goal kick, Wellington equalised, very much against the run of play. Adelaide were directly responsible for the goal, too, McNamara under-hitting a pass towards Tonkin which Fergusson pounced on in an instant, then lobbed the stranded figure of Jenkins from fully thirty yards - 1-1.
That goal gave the home team hope, but they had to rely on Vilao to maintain parity twice before the half-time whistle, the 'keeper denying twenty-yard attempts by Sarah Morgan and Worts - the latest chapter of her battle of wits with Wellington's custodian, which continued in the 48th minute when the striker fired a shot on the run straight at the goalkeeper.
Cue a few good minutes from Wellington, with Longo and Whinham working a one-two on the right before McCutcheon just failed to get on the
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end of Longo's cross. The Football Ferns newly-appointed captain then threaded a lovely ball through for Fergusson to chase, with McNamara for company. The defender went to ground, prompting referee Beth Rattray to award a defensive free-kick, but there didn't appear to be any contact from the striker …
Adelaide responded via Lucia de Leon, who did half-time substitute Daisy Brazendale an absolute treat in the 53rd minute, flicking the ball over her before setting up Dawber for what should have been a nailed-on goal, only for the striker to poke the ball past the post from ten yards.
Two minutes later, Adelaide regained the lead. A Worts shot was blocked, and Healy latched onto the rebound before steering the sphere out wide to de Leon. She unleashed a cross-shot which deceived Vilao as it arced out of the sun and over the goalkeeper's head before finding the far side of the net - 2-1 to the visitors.
Worts and Vilao resumed their battle in the 62nd minute, with the 'keeper prevailing yet again, this time tipping the striker's shot over the bar as she made something out of nothing. Vilao then pawed Nanako Sasaki's resulting corner out from beneath her crossbar, with Tonkin stabbing the sphere narrowly past the post from close-range as she pounced on the dropping ball.
Things were starting to get a little willing by this point, the trigger point a very rugged challenge on Jaber by Worts going unpunished by referee Rattray. Tempers started to fray, but the chances kept on coming, a volleyed opportunity for Longo, from McMeeken's lobbed pass, the pick of Wellington's openings in the 68th minute.
United responded two minutes later through Sasaki, whose long-range free-kick was directed straight at Vilao. The 'keeper then produced another fine save to turn Tonkin's thumping header onto the bar after she'd been picked out by Sasaki's free-kick to the far post.
Seconds later, Jaber and Dawber were in a foot race towards Wellington's goal, both pursuing the ball as it entered the penalty area. The defender attempted to hook the ball clear, but instead caught the striker in the face, forcing her to ground. Referee Rattray saw no reason to stop play, eventually doing so when it became obvious that Dawber had suffered a head injury.
It ultimately forced her to be withdrawn from the fray, and by the time she'd been helped from the field, the referee had been involved in conversations with her colleagues which saw the game being restarted with a penalty to Adelaide, rather than a drop ball from where play had been halted to address Dawber's distress.
To say Jaber wasn't best pleased by this is something of an understatement, and the yellow card she received for the raised boot at head height didn't appease her in any way whatsoever. So you can appreciate her delight when she watched Vilao pull off a superb one-handed save to turn Worts' spot-kick round the post for a corner.
The danger wasn't over, however, with Sasaki's set-piece delivery picking out Worts, whose header hit the crossbar. But Adelaide kept on coming, and four minutes from time finally scored the goal which settled the contest, de Leon hooking home from close range after Wellington failed to clear another Sasaki corner.
There was still time for Vilao to deny Worts once more, while Main fired a thirty yard free-kick over the bar as the home team chased a game which had long since been beyond them, Adelaide deservedly prevailing 3-1 to maintain their impressive run of form, leaving Wellington four points outside the play-off spots with six games still to play.
Wellington: Vilao; Jaber (booked, 80 (Tanaka, 85)), Barry, Kelly (booked, 26 (Brazendale, 46)); McMeeken (Elliott, 69), Whinham (Abbott, 69), McCutcheon, Longo, Wall; Fergusson
Adelaide: Jenkins; Tolland, McNamara, Tonkin; de Leon (booked, 49 (Karambasis, 87)), Holmes (Sasaki, 60), Morgan, Hodgson; Dawber (Kirkby, 80), Worts, Healy (Panagaris, 87)
Referee: Beth Rattray
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