Canty Pride bounce back
Canterbury United Pride easily accounted for Capital, 3-1, with Aimee Phillips, Rebecca Lake and Meikayla Moore – from the penalty spot – the scorers in the national women’s football league at Petone on Saturday.
Kennedy Bryant scored consolation goal for Capital, who have six points, and now have to get up for a big match next Sunday away against Northern, who have seven.
A big match looms for the Pride on Saturday, when Canterbury, on seven points, host Auckland with nine.
Those two teams are set to be hit the hardest by Football Ferns callups – the domestic-based players leave on November 20, and it is up to them whether they play in next weekend’s games.
Eleven players are affected – four from Auckland and Canterbury, and one each from Northern, Southern and Capital – and whether they play next weekend or not, they will all definitely be absent for the final round.
Southern United have gone clear at the top of the table but they can’t rest easy yet.
A first-half brace by Renee Bacon was enough to earn them a 2-1 win over Northern, who equalised through Dayna Stevens on the half-hour mark.
They couldn’t find another after going behind a second time, however, and the southerners were able to hold on and celebrate their third win of the season – a mark they have never reached previously.
In cold and windy conditions at Tahuna Park on Sunday, Bacon was teed up by Lara Wall for her first, in the 13th minute.
Stevens then levelled things up
with half an hour gone, but Bacon was set up again, this time by Ellie Isaac, just before the break.
Northern had the wind at their backs in the second half, but though they tested Southern keeper Tessa Nicol, they couldn’t find an equaliser.
Southern have the bye next weekend before facing Capital in Wellington in their final roundrobin game the following week, a match where they will be without their captain, Elise Mamanu-Gray, who has been called up to the Football Ferns for their friendlies against Thailand.
The way things are shaping up, they could need a win in that match to secure a place in the top three and the finals.
Five teams are separated by just four points, but two of them are going to miss out.
As things stand, Auckland sit in second place, one point behind Southern, after thumping Waikato-Bay of Plenty 5-1 at home on Saturday. The final game next week pits WaiBop against Central in Cambridge.