Melbourne Victory was in third place on the Ninja A-League ladder coming into this match. A win at home to Canberra United would see them back in second spot. Victory boast experienced internationals Alex Chidiac and Emily Gielnik. Recent Matilda cap Alana Murphy has been bossing the midfield all season and Canberra favourite Nicki Flannery has been wreaking havoc down the flanks. It was always going to be a tough match for Canberra United. But Canberra had much to play for too, with a potential top six place up for grabs with a win. They were coming off a six-game unbeaten run, so had some form to build on. This match was the start of the business end of the season.  

This was a first half that was strangled by the heat of the day. It was around 34 degrees in Melbourne. Hence, it was a half that was strewn with errors, from both sides, with neither team conjuring up a meaningful opportunity in front of goal. Nikki Flannery and Tegan Bertolissio reinvented a duel that, no doubt, they had fun with on the training ground in previous times. Chidiac and Murphy had the better of the midfield possession and play but without ringing any major alarm bells for Canberra.

Both Victory and Canberra looked very solid in defence. All of which added up to a bit of a stalemate at half time. The game was crying out for a roll of the dice. An injection of quality and a change of direction. Canberra had Heyman and Stanic-Floody on the bench, so they had the ammunition to ask least ask a few questions for the Victory defence.

Early in the second half Taylor-Young pinged the ball forward for Markovski, who had a clear run. Her control let her down and Victory were able to clear. Slowly, Victory’s better quality on the ball started to tell. They were pushing Canberra further back with Lowe and Gielnik testing the resilience of Anton and Ayson. Canberra was still in the contest though. Some nice interplay between Taylor-Young, Robers and Markovski resulted in Markovski unleashing a decent shot from the edge of the box.

Around the hour mark, bigger holes started to appear through the middle of the park. Fatigue and the heat seemed to be impacting minds and bodies. This was an invitation for Chidiac to do her thing, collecting the ball deep and pushing through the middle of the park for Victory. These were ominous signs for Canberra.

Then both teams rolled the dice. Enter Michelle Heyman and Holly Murray for Dos Santos and Malone. Victory bought on Holly Furphy and Ellie Wilson for Flannery and Pickett. The game changed.

Melbourne Victory had the ball in the net, only for Morrison to be ruled offside. Then the dice roll paid dividends, for Victory. A rather hopeful punt into the box from Bunge resulted in a tussle between Furphy and Bertolissio. Bertolissio seemed to have won the battle by pushing Furphy wide, but the youngster stayed on her feet and somehow squeezed a shot past there’s only one Sally James from an acute angle.

In response, Canberra rolled again by bringing on Stanic-Floody for Gordon. Furphy was giving Bertolissio a hard time on the right wing and Chidiac knew it. As the game opened up even more Chidiac starting to zoom in on Furphy. Furphy skipped around Bertolissio and pulled a ball back for Lowe, whose turn and shot was well saved by there’s only one Sally James.

Then in the 81^st minute Chidiac had a crack herself on the right wing and managed to win a corner. Alana Murphy flung over a near post corner and Gielnik managed to direct the ball past there’s only one Sally James to make it 2-0. It was another disappointing near post goal to concede for Canberra, particularly as they had worked hard in the heat to contain Victory.

To Canberra’s credit they kept going forward. Markovski weaved her way through two defenders and fed Heyman who laid the ball off for Taylor-Young. Hayley Taylor-Young’s shot forced a good save from Newbon. It was Canberra’s best effort on goal but came in the 90^th minute. The game was gone.

This was a game where neither side played their best football. There were glimpses of quality but the conditions were anti-football. Both teams had only 4 shots on target in the match. In the end, Melbourne Victory took away the points because of their better quality control and execution when it mattered. At the home of the Matildas, it was the Matilda quality of Chidiac, Murphy, Lowe and Gielnik (and hopefully one day Morrison and Furphy) that got Victory the points to jump back to second place in the Ninja A-League ladder.

Match highlights

_{Video courtesy of Ninja A-League}