After an early bye round, our Liberty A-League women face an intriguing Brisbane Roar side at Casey Fields this Saturday afternoon.
Round 1 saw our City girls thrash the Phoenix in Wellington as we shot right to the top of the table, only displaced now due to a bye in Round 2. In order to return to where we rightfully belong, we must mount early pressure on newcomers Western United who have found two wins from two games.
Here are the three things to look out for as we look to double our points come Saturday:
Expect some goals
As many expected, we put Wellington in their place in Round 1 by scoring four goals in a 21-minute blitz. This showcased the fantastic ability our squad holds, especially newcomer Maria Rojas; coincidentally the best Rojas to ever play in Melbourne.
While we should not get ahead of ourselves, try and stop me! Brisbane Roar have had a fairly successful start to their season by gaining four from six available points, but I have hope that we will bring that form crashing down.
In their opening two matches, Brisbane conceded a plethora of chances that agonisingly went amiss by Newcastle Jets and Canberra United in their respective matches. According to FBRef.com, the Roar now hold the third-worst xGA (expected goals against) in the league at 3.4 per game.
If we see the same clinical City this Saturday, the Roar are in big trouble.
Saturday arvo and free entry
Our club is doing a fantastic job here, enticing fans to make the trip to Casey Fields on Saturday afternoon with free entry to the game. With the A-League Men’s season still at a standstill, there is no better time than the present to get to an A-League Women’s game.
While Casey Fields hosted pretty shocking weather for the Australia Cup earlier in the year, Saturday poses a much better day out, suggesting a gorgeous high of 28 degrees. Make sure you bring the sunscreen!
The girls absolutely deserve all the support they can get as they challenge for silverware again this season. Be there!
Rhianna Pollicina: Golden boot dark horse?
We witnessed a very strong season by Pollicina last year with a total of 10 direct goal involvements from 14 matches played. She has no doubt improved year after year since debuting with the Jets in the 20/21 season, as we’ve seen from her brace-scoring, assist-providing Round 1 performance.
As Pollicina matures as a player, refining her skills, it is certainly not out of the realm of possibility to see the 25-year-old challenging for a golden boot towards the pointy end of the season, if she can stay fit, of course.
The ability is there. The drive is considerable. Pollicina is no doubt one of the most dangerous players in the league when she is on. Personally, I cannot wait to see her in action at Casey Fields this Saturday. Expect fireworks.
Get down to Casey Fields this Saturday to cheer on the girls, it will certainly be worth it.
Score prediction: City 4-1 Brisbane
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