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Taylor Ray and Naomi Chinnama jostling for position at a set-piece. Photo: Texi Smith

Each week during the A-League Women season, Round Ball Australia hands out a report card for the competition based on how the teams performed across the weekend’s fixtures.

Central Coast Mariners vs Perth Glory (3-3)

Central Coast Mariners: C

Perth Glory: C

As the Perth Glory kept its finals chances alive which are hanging on by the thinnest of threads, the Central Coast Mariners let a much-needed two points slip late in Gosford.

A first win since February 1 was there for the taking, which would have given them some breathing room in the top six, until Tijan McKenna’s equalising goal for Perth in the 93rd minute saw both sides leave with a point.

In the absence of Kelli Brown, it was Sarah O’Donoghue who stepped up with a brace for the visitors, and whilst the Glory sit six points back with four games to play, with most of the competition in the middle of the table seemingly out of form, there’s no reason to say they can’t make finals.

For Emily Husband’s side, a trip to Wellington awaits, and anything less than a win would be disastrous for the Mariners should they want to keep their top six chances in their own hands.

A loss guarantees they’ll be out of the six, whilst a draw would see them nervously await the result of Canberra vs Sydney.

Western United vs Canberra United (4-3)

Western United: C+

Canberra United: C

The second of the two Friday night games saw absolute chaos in Tarneit in a seven-goal thriller, which was unbelievably 1-0 at half-time.

This was a game dominated by Western United, and yet Canberra were much more clinical with its opportunities, and only a Madison Ayson own-goal in the 89th minute could separate the two.

But at this point in the season, that matters very little. What matters is that Western United left with three points, and Canberra with none. It was a win which gave Western United some breathing room in fourth place and left Canberra still on outside of the top six looking in.

With Melbourne City’s Champions League commitments, Western United have a week off, which could be incredibly beneficial to Kat Smith’s side and allow them to work on a few of their issues and try to recapture their early season form with three games to go before finals.

For Antoni Jagarinec’s side, they host the Sky Blues at McKellar Park on Saturday afternoon, and could find their way inside the top six pending other results.

Sydney’s record in the nations capital is not the greatest, having only amassed two wins in Canberra since 2016.

If Canberra want to control their own destiny, extending that record by another season is an absolute must, and hopefully the side will be bouyed by the news that new owners could be on the way.

Sydney FC vs Wellington Phoenix (2-1)

Sydney FC: C+

Wellington Phoenix: B-

It could have been and should have been at least a point for Wellington, if not all three, but instead they left Leichhardt Oval with none after Tiana Jaber picked up a second yellow in the 85th minute and Princess Ibini scored a 98th minute winner.

With nine more shots (19 to 10), seven more on target (nine to two), and 59 per cent of the ball, Paul Temple could have been frustrated with his players, but instead he was proud of their effort and the resolve they showed, particularly after they went down to 10 and looked the most likely to get a win once that happened.

For Wellington, a tough opponent in the Mariners awaits at Porirua Park, the first time the two sides will face off in New Zealand (their 2023/24 Wellington home game was moved to Sydney as part of Unite Round), and if the Nix want to make the top six, a win would go a long way towards that in a real “six-pointer” clash.

For the Sky Blues, it was just their fourth win of the season. Managing just two shots on target, they scored twice in a game they were thoroughly outplayed in, but left with the points to take them off the bottom of the table.

With finals well and truly out of reach, it’s about building for next season now and putting the foundations in place to bounce back and challenge for silverware for Ante Juric’s side.

What better way to start doing that than by dampening the hopes of a finals contender?

Melbourne City vs Adelaide United (4-3)

Melbourne City: B+

Adelaide United: B-

On a weekend in which one game got postponed for heat and another had four drinks breaks, it was pouring down for most of City’s clash with the Reds as a Holly McNamara hat-trick delivered all three points for the hosts, who are now five points clear at the top of the table.

The win also put City into outright first for consecutive games undefeated at 19, moving ahead of three teams all tied with 18 games.

Adelaide needed at least a point to keep their hopes of challenging for the Premiership alive, and even though they fell short, Adrian Stenta’s side certainly made City work for the win.

For Melbourne, their immediate future is a Champions League clash against Taiwan side Taichung Blue Whale, after which they immediately turn their attention back to league commitments on Wednesday night with a re-scheduled clash against Brisbane Roar and the prospect of keeping their invincible season alive, which would be the first of the full home-and-away era in A-League Women history.

For Adelaide, their immediate attention is the Brisbane Roar, but Stenta probably has one eye on Adelaide’s game against the Victory on March 29. With the two sides separated by only two points, that game could decide who finishes second and gets a week off to start the finals series.

Brisbane Roar vs Newcastle Jets (2-3)

Brisbane Roar: B-

Newcastle Jets: C+

Despite holding 62 per cent of the ball, the Roar failed to claim a point against a struggling Jets side who theoretically could still make a tilt at a finals spot.

The Roar started well with a Tameka Yallop brace, with the second of those two goals sending Yallop into outright second on the all-time A-League Women goal scorer list at 71 ahead of Sam Kerr on 70 (but still 45 goals behind Michelle Heyman at 116), as the Jets survived a lot of pressure, and claimed a late win through Lauren Allan in the 95th minute, sending fans home from Perry Park disappointed.

After a high-flying start to the season, the drop off in form for the Roar can be summed up with one word. Injuries.

Alex Smith’s side have not been able to field a full-strength side for a couple of months now, and are digging deep in their squad to even field a full line-up.

If they manage to make finals, it will be because they limped their way in in the second half of the season after their dominant first half.

For the Jets, they’re only five points back, but they have the three Melbourne teams (who currently occupy three of the top four spots on the ladder) and an F3 Derby clash to round out the season.

It would take some miracle to make the finals from here, but if they can keep eleven players on the pitch for all of them, they have as much of a chance as anyone with the talented players Ryan Campbell has at his disposal.

Listen to the latest episode of The Dubcast, Round Ball Australia’s Women’s Football podcast on Spotify, Apple, or watch on YouTube, with new episodes every Wednesday.

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