Melbourne Victory has kept its Westfield W-League finals hopes alive with a comfortable 3-0 win over Adelaide United at Hindmarsh Stadium on Saturday.
Melbourne Victory has kept its Westfield W-League finals hopes alive with a comfortable 3-0 win over Adelaide United at Hindmarsh Stadium on Saturday.
Victory, piloted by two goals to Selin Kuralay, were rarely troubled and the result was seldom in doubt.
In the 36th minute, Kuralay, recently returned from the United States, put Melbourne in front when she rebounded an easy goal from a deflected save from under-siege Adelaide goalie Sian McLaren.
Kuralay’s strike broke the shackles after a prolonged arm-wrestle in which neither side could muster any real initiative.
Melbourne took a 1-0 lead into the sheds at half-time, Adelaide ruing a golden chance to equalise in the 41st minute when striker Sharon Black missed a penalty shot to the left.
Black’s attempt came after Brittany Timko, after slipping the ball through her opponent’s legs near goal, was felled well inside the box.
Victory opened the game up after the interval, the visitors really putting their collective foot on the accelerator.
Melbourne peppered its goal repeatedly in the second half and was finally rewarded through Daniela Digiammarco who headed one into the back of the net in the 64th minute from a perfectly executed and textbook corner kick from Marlies Oostdam.
Kuralay added the icing to the cake when she went on a solo run and converted in the 70th minute for her second and Melbourne’s third of the afternoon.
Deanna Niceski and Sarah Groenewald had some close calls late in the piece while the best efforts of Black and Donna Cockayne for the Reds went unrewarded as Victory proved far too strong.
Melbourne coach Matt Shepherd could not have been more thrilled with the way the afternoon unfolded.
“It was our day today,” he said.
“The game was very even at the start, then we got the first breakthrough with the
first goal.”
“From there, when they (Adelaide) missed the penalty, I got the feeling it was just going to be one of those days.”
“We were good enough to build on it in the second half and that was what made the difference in the end.”
