Melbourne Victory endured a tough afternoon in Round 4 of the NPLW, suffering a 5-1 defeat away to South Melbourne.
The away team were hampered by an early red card on Saturday afternoon, losing a defender to a straight red card for denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity after just nine minutes at The Home of The Matildas.
Meisha Westland, via a deflection, thumped in the resulting free kick, and Hellas took full advantage of the dismissal, adding goals two and three before half-time.
Alexis Pantazopoulos neatly found the far corner once she had broken into the penalty area, and Westland bagged her second of the match with a close-range finish.
Victory got on the board on the hour through Anika Dovaston’s cross-shot, which crept in at the far post, but would be breached twice more during the second half, with Heidi Dalton scoring a brace.
Match details are available by clicking here.
Speaking to MelbourneVictory.com.au, NPLW Head Coach, Santi Escudero, reflected on a tricky NPLW encounter.
“Despite the early setback, the team, featuring many younger players, showed admirable bravery in a really challenging situation, being unafraid to take risks as we reshuffled defensively.
“The team did not relent in their commitment, displayed great character, and will be able to take plenty of lessons from the match. Now it is about correcting individual mistakes and being more efficient with the ball in pressure situations.”
