Round Ball Australia 
Emily Gielnik warming up for Melbourne Victory. Photo: TobyMcG - Wikipedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0 cropped.
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.
Brisbane Roar vs Perth Glory (3-0)
Brisbane Roar: A
From the opening whistle to the closing whistle, this was Brisbane Roar’s game and the home side never looked like losing it, with a brace to Yallop and a screamer from Tamar Levin sealing a 3-0 win for the Roar.
We’ve seen glimpses through the opening two rounds about what to expect from the Roar, and this looked like their most complete performance to date and how Alex Smith wants his side playing each week.
The defence was solid, the attack was fantastic, and the midfield was slick.
It was a performance where the less said about it the better applies in the best way possible, and if they perform strongly again, they could temporarily leap to the top of the table with a win over the Wanderers on Friday night.
Perth Glory: D-
From the opening minutes of this contest, it felt like the Glory were a step behind the Roar, and that was made evident with Yallop’s opening goal, before they conceded a second not long after.
The second half started with three successive corners for the visitors to Perry Park, but could not make full use of it in what was probably their brightest spark of the entire game as the rain set in.
Following a penalty converted by Yallop for her brace, Stephen Peters attempted to inject some spirit into the Glory side with Morgan Roberts introduction in the 70th minute for her first minutes this season, but it was to no avail.
Overall, it was a very un-Glory like performance considering so far this season they took it to the Premiers for 55 minutes and were victorious over the Newcastle Jets at home. Expect a rebound performance this week against Canberra during Unite Round.
Poletti
Sydney FC vs Western Sydney Wanderers (1-0)
Sydney FC: C
The performances are improving for Sydney FC as they build into their season, but they are still lacking a consistent 90 minute performance.
Sydney were able to work the ball into the final third quite well, but lacked the finishing touches to make the Wanderers pay for the most part, until Caley Tallon-Henniker’s winner in the 87th minute.
They also got caught out in transition frequently, although the defence was up to the task with tracking back and shutting down most opportunities.
An immediate concern for the Sky Blues will be any potential injury to Faye Bryson, who went down in the first half but recovered, before being substituted moments after the resumption of play in the second half, with Abbey Lemon taking her spot at left back and putting in a quality performance.
A longer-term concern will be that after three games, Ante Juric’s side has only three points. They next face Melbourne City at Unite Round, which will be their toughest test to date.
With a 23 round season, it is still too early to write off any side from making finals, especially one who is improving week on week like Sydney, but time will start to run out soon, and getting more wins on the table is going to be a necessity sooner rather than later.
Western Sydney Wanderers: C
For the second time this season, Sham Khamis was once again the Wanderers best player on the field, coming up strong to deny Sydney FC from scoring multiple times with goal line saves, and backtracked hard to avoid being caught off her line by Princess Ibini in the 77th minute.
Khamis was also helped out by the defence, who needed to be strong with their being next to no defence in midfield, although that was a problem Sydney FC also struggled with, as both attacks were able to glide through the middle of park at will.
Coach Robbie Hooker said there were some positives to take from the result, and that he felt it was the best their side had played so far this season with some players having standout performances.
He also noted that with the side being quite young, it was going to take time for the side to build and that they just needed to keep working on what they are currently doing.
With a match against Brisbane Roar at Unite Round on the Friday night, it presents a good opportunity for the Wanderers to indeed keep working on things against a side who have been strong to open the 2024/25 season, and Hooker said he wants his side to put on another performance like they did against Sydney FC.
Poletti
Melbourne City vs Central Coast Mariners (2-2)
Home Team: C
The return of captain Rebekah Stott was a welcome sign for City, who dropped points for the first time this season, but still sit on top of the table.
Alexia Apostolakis scored a screamer to open the game in the third minute, before a defensive error led to an equaliser two minutes later, with Lourdes Bosch continuing her strong start to the season to get City’s second.
In hot conditions at Casey Fields, the result is a reasonable one for City, who are a lot further into their season than every other side, having competed in the group stage of the AFC Women’s Champions League, who now have six competitive games under their belt compared to three for everyone else.
A strong turnaround will be expected against Sydney FC, who can grow the gap on one of their rivals for the Premiers Plate in an early season “six-pointer” at Unite Round.
Away Team: B-
The Mariners kept their composure despite the early goal, coming from behind twice to secure a point against last seasons Premiers.
Dominating the second half, they were rewarded with their second equaliser through Isabel Gomez, who was called up to the Matildas squad earlier in the week.
The attack was scintillating and could have had more, but were denied by the offside flag. Had they timed their runs better, they might have been able to secure all three points.
Following a 0-0 draw with Western United in Round 2, this was a great re-bound performance by Emily Husband’s side ahead of a tough match against Melbourne Victory at Unite Round.
Poletti
Canberra United vs Adelaide United (0-2)
Canberra United: C-
For the first time this season, Canberra have suffered defeat, but it was not a bad performance overall from Canberra, and there were some positives to take for Antoni Jagarinec going forward.
Sally James had a good afternoon in goals, preventing the scoreline from blowing out even more, while the duo of Markovski and Heyman continues to grow each week, and the younger players getting more experience at the top level.
A match against Perth at Unite Round will be a good test for Canberra, as they look to stay near the top of the table early in the season.
Adelaide United: B+
The A-League Women has one of the longest off-seasons in football, and based on how they have started this season, it was one that Adelaide desperately needed.
With a roster turnover and the addition of some new faces, it has done wonders for Adrian Stenta’s side, who now have half as many wins as they did last season just three rounds into the competition.
Fiona Worts returning to Adelaide has been instrumental, with her goal tally sitting at four, while Emily Condon has two, and the duo have regained the chemistry they shared during Worts’ first stint at the Reds.
With plenty of talent still to come back into this side, the biggest issue for Stenta could be how he fits everyone in, and whether that disrupts the sides chemistry.
Poletti
Newcastle Jets vs Wellington Phoenix (1-0)
Newcastle Jets: B-
You have to feel that Newcastle have not been that far away from claiming more points in their opening fixtures, but as coach Ryan Campbell has mentioned after each match they have not closed them out.
The Jets found a way to finally take three points against a travelling Wellington side in oppressive conditions, but it was far from convincing with their sole goal coming from captain Cassidy Davis’ self admitted attempted cross that lobbed Wellington’s keeper.
Positive signs for the Jets was their ability to adapt against the Phoenix, pivoting from a back three to a set up with wing backs to give them opportunity to work around the defence when pushing through was not working.
Coach Campbell was quite happy with the display and was positive around the fact the Jets got the job done without the likes of experienced midfielder Libby Copus-Brown, whilst also being able to blood two new youngsters in Gia Vicari & Claire Adams late in the fixture.
There is still quite some room for improvement for the Jets but three points will be of great solace. If they can start to back themselves in front of goal and take more of their chances they will continue to improve, but on the balance of three games so far that is a reasonably large if!
Wellington Phoenix: D
This showing from a somewhat disjointed Wellington team was far from what is required to genuinely compete in the league overall, yet somehow you could argue they could feel hard done by not to have walked away with something to show from their trip to Maitland.
Defensively Wellington are playing like a fringe finals team which is clearly some upside for coach Paul Temple, the counter however is that their attack is about as threatening as a gentle breeze (which admittedly would have been very welcome at a 32 degree Maitland Sportsground on Sunday).
Back to back weeks with no goals against mid to low table opposition is threatening to be an indictment on the season ahead for Temple’s side. Add in the factor that their only goals this season have been from an opposition own goal and a penalty and things shape even more ominously for the ‘Nix.
The lacklustre attack from the Phoenix was best summed up by the fact against a fellow lower table team they were unable to muster a single shot on target. It is going to be a long year if this is the trend for Wellington.
Chris Macpherson
Melbourne Victory vs Western United (4-1)
Melbourne Victory : A+
If this performance does not warrant an A+ grade, then something must be very wrong with the grading criteria.
Just days after being recalled by the Matildas, Emily Gielnik was simply phenomenal, opening the scoring after 10 seconds and completing a first-half hat-trick to send Victory on their way to an emphatic three points. Her movement, work rate and runs in behind a disappointing Western United defence are a massive bonus for Jeff Hopkins.
Alex Chidiac and Nickoletta Flannery were also standouts on the day, providing a burst of intensity and energy in wide areas which helped the team look dangerous every time they advanced forward.
Overall, Victory controlled the game when they needed to, with 19-year-old young-gun Ella O’Grady adding the cherry on top with a sublime run from the halfway line to add her side’s fourth.
Western United: D
Unlike their opening game against Wellington, a one-goal deficit could not be overturned as Kat Smith’s side drowned in defensive errors and a lack of ideas – severely punished as a consequence.
To concede after 10 seconds is inexcusable, and it is that lack of concentration from the first whistle that we were not accustomed to seeing from Western United for large parts of last season.
Alyssa Dall’Oste had an absolute howler in goal to give away the second goal with a mix-up with her feet, and the backline was barely in sync to allow Gielnik to escape the offside trap for her hat-trick.
Despite her versatility, Isabel Dehakiz’s centre-back role should only be seen as a short-term solution, with the 24-year-old more accustomed to the midfield.
This was an eye-opening result, but luckily for Smith and the players, it is a welcomed eye-opener so early in the season to rectify their deficiencies.
Christian Montegan