W-League: Lady Reds share points with Roar

Brisbane’s hopes of a top-three finish in the Westfield W-League standings have been dealt a hammer blow after an 87th-minute goal handed Adelaide United a 1-1 draw with the Roar.

Substitute Emily Condon gave the Lady Reds a share of the points against the visiting Roar, cancelling out Emily Gielnik’s 64th minute opener.

With one round remaining in the 2013/14 W-League season the top four has already been decided, however, the order is still to be confirmed.

Heading into Round 12, a solitary point is all that separates Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne at the top of the table, with Brisbane just a further three points behind.

Adelaide was on the back foot for much of the game but managed to fight on and snatch a point from the high-flying visitors who had won three of their previous four matches.

Brisbane’s midfield took control of the match early with the quality of Tameka Butt, Kellond-Knight, Polkinghorne and Gorry proving too much for the Lady Reds to handle. Polkinghorne and Butt combined in the 24th minute to send a scare through the United camp.

Polkinghorne’s positioning allowed her to cut off an Adelaide through pass and charge at the unprepared centre-halves. The Roar’s number 4 played in Butt who had the goals at her mercy but she could only slide her shot across the face of Barbieri’s goal.

Adelaide captain Kristy Moore had the best chance of the half for United after pouncing on a defensive error. A lapse of control by a Brisbane centreback allowed Moore to nab the ball and burst into space with just the ‘keeper to beat.

Unfortunately for the home side, Moore’s chipped attempt was well-read by the Roar custodian, failing to lift it over Angerer’s head.

The Lady Reds managed to frustrate the Roar and keep the game scoreless at the major break.

Brisbane finally broke the spirits of the home side in the 64th minute when Gielnik found herself in the right place at the right time to open the scoring.

Katrina Gorry’s strike inside the box was blocked however the ball fell fortuitously to Gielnik whose fierce strike left no hope for Barbieri as it nestled in the far corner of the net.

With just 10 minutes remaining in the match all seemed lost for United as the visitors began to concentrate on holding possession to close out the game.

This move by the Roar had Reds coach Ross Aloisi instructing his charges to press higher up the pitch to force a turnover and possibly an equaliser.

The Lady Reds got what they were after just three minutes from time as a quick attack caught out the Roar defence which had until that point stoically held off everything Adelaide had thrown at them.

Quick passing and movement from the Reds brought the ball into the path of Snez Veljanovska on the right side who lofted a pass over Brisbane’s defence, falling perfectly for Condon.

The substitute calmly lobbed the ball over Angerer, clipping the post as it made its way into the back of the net. Condon's goal was a sucker lunch for the Roar who couldn't take advantage of a plethora of chances they carved out.

The final round of the regular season sees the Lady Reds travel to Newcastle to face the Jets while Brisbane host the Victory. The Roar will need to win by at least four goals to leapfrog Melbourne and take third place on the ladder.



Adelaide United: Barbieri, Stockdale, Woods, Iannella, Borg, Brown, McCormick, Powell, Veljanovska, Moore, Mason

Subs: Quigley, Condon, Nagel, Barltrop


Brisbane Roar: Angerer, Alleway, Polkinghorne, Spence, Carroll, Kellond-Knight, Crummer, Gorry, Popovic, Butt, Raso

Subs: Burgess, Gielnik, Norrie, Stewart