Sydney FC 1 (Latsko 14’) def. Melbourne Victory 0
Sydney FC will contest their third consecutive Westfield W-League Grand Final after fabulous 1-0 win in the semi-final away to Melbourne Victory, courtesy of a goal from US striker Veronica Latsko.
Moments That Mattered:
- BLEDSOE SAVE – 11’ – Dowie lays the ball back to Longo inside the box to shoot but Bledsoe is down low to save.
- LATSKO GOAL 14’ – Green’s excellent cross from the Latsko shoots from distance but the shot is just over.
- HUERTA CHANCES – 17’ & 18’ – Huerta twice finds herself on the right edge of the box after some slick passing play from the Sky Blues and her shots at goal are saved and go narrowly wide respectively.
- BLEDSOE SAVE – 52’ – Bledsoe is down quickly to her right to brilliantly stop Jackson’s shot.
- AYRES SHOT – 68’ – Ayres curls one just past Bledsoe’s left hand post.
- SIEMSEN CHANCE – 77’ – Hawkesby lays the ball back to Siemsen on the edge of the box and the striker blasts a shot just over.
- JENKINS FIRES OVER – 90’ – Jenkins bursts into the box but fires over from an angle.
Sydney FC will play either Melbourne City or Western Sydney Wanderers in the Westfield W-League Grand Final next weekend after Veronica Latsko’s first half strike proved the difference in this afternoon’s semi final at Epping Stadium.
The 1-0 defeat of arch-rivals Melbourne Victory came after Latsko pounced on Ally Green’s right wing cross to slot the ball past Casey Dumont in the 14th minute.
Bledsoe made two good saves to preserve the lead however the Sky Blues were never really tested, as they were excellently marshalled by the central defensive partnership of Alanna Kennedy and Ellie Brush, with Polias, Ray and Tobin providing cover in the midfield.
Ante Juric’s side will need to wait until tomorrow before finding out who their Grand Final opponents will be when the second semi-final takes place.
What They Said: Ante Juric
“I think that’s one of our best performances in terms of effort and the togetherness that we showed and I’m glad we did it in the Finals Series.
“In the first half we played decent football, we were positive and were set up well defensively. We ground it out in the second half in the wind and against a barrage of attacks which was something special.
“We will worry about ourselves but it will be a great week and it’s a great opportunity for these girls to achieve something special.
“I’m very pleased for the club and for the girls that we’ve made the Final for the third season in a row.”
Veronica Latsko:
“I think that it was always going to be a one goal game so to get the first goal was crucial and to go on from there an win it is exactly what we wanted to do.
“We’ve been doing so much crossing and finishing over the last two weeks and Ally has been consistently delivering those balls into the box, so credit to her, she put it on a platter and all I had to do was tap it in.”
Sydney FC: 1. Aubrey BLEDSOE, 2. Teresa POLIAS ©, 5. Ally GREEN, 7. Ellie BRUSH, 8. Lindsay AGNEW, 10. Remy SIEMSEN (20. Princess IBINI-ISEI 89’), 11. Sofia HUERTA, 12. Natalia TOBIN, 13. Veronica LATSKO (19. Amy SAYER 90’ + 1’), 14. Alanna KENNEDY, 18. Taylor RAY (15. Mackenzie HAWKESBY 77’).
Subs Not Used: 30. Trudy BURKE (GK), 17. Angelique HRISTODOULOU.
Yellow Cards: Green 82’, Huerta 90’+3’.
Red Cards: None.
Melbourne Victory: 1. Casey DUMONT (gk), 4. Emily MENGES, 5. Laura BROCK, 6. Haley HANSON, 8. Angela BEARD, 9. Natasha DOWIE, 10. Jenna McCORMICK, 11. Darian JENKINS, 14. Melina AYRES (13. Polly DORAN 89’), 15. Amy JACKSON, 16. Annalie LONGO.
Subs Not Used: 35. S. KHAMIS (GK), 3. Teigen ALLEN, 7. Emma ROBERTS, 18. Grace MAHER.
Yellow Cards: Dowie 12’, Beard 65’.
Red Cards: None.
Ground: Epping Stadium
Referee: Lara Lee
