A sensational late goal from captain Rebekah Stott has seen Melbourne City return to the top of the Liberty A-League after snatching a point against Central Coast Mariners.
Below their usual standard for large parts of the game, City found themselves behind early in the second half after Rola Badawiya’s cool finish put the Mariners in front on Friday.
However that goal eventually sparked City into life with Stott curling a beauty into the far top corner in the 78th minute from what was just the visitor’s second shot on target of the evening.
The draw moves Melbourne City back to the top of the Liberty A-League, one point ahead of Perth Glory who host Sydney FC on Sunday, whilst the Mariners move up to seventh on the ladder.
A local power outage in Gosford saw kick-off delayed by 30-minutes but when proceedings did get underway it was the Mariners who almost took the lead despite City dominating the opening stages.
Faye Bryson’s deflected cross was stabbed towards her own goal by midfielder Taylor Otto who could only watch on as the ball rebounded off the far post before being cleared away.
Chinese forward Wurigumula then forced City keeper Lysianne Proulx into a smart stop from close range before the visitors had their first real sight of goal in the 36th minute.
After forcing a turnover in the middle of the park, Leticia McKenna fed Hannah Wilkinson in behind the Mariners defence who then cut the ball back to the on-rushing Rhianna Pollicina but her shot found the crossbar rather than the back of the net.
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What started as a cagey affair was now a game swinging from end to end and it was the home side who came closest to opening the scoring in the first half.
Played through on goal, Badawiya chopped back inside with the ball eventually working its way to Bianca Galic but she too was thwarted once more by a strong left arm from Lysianne Proulx.
However the Mariners would get their reward early in the second half care of a brilliant finish from the lively Badawiya.
A cheap turnover in possession saw Isabel Gomez come away with the ball and she slotted an inch-perfect pass into the path of a galloping Badawiya, who then coolly dinked the ball over the on-rushing Proulx to open the scoring.
The 25-year-old then almost had her and the Mariners’ second just a few minutes later but Proulx was on hand once again to push Badawiya’s effort onto the post following a goalmouth scramble.
Dario Vidosic’s side almost pulled level but Mariners keeper Sarah Langman pulled off a brilliant close-range save to deny Pollicina however the crowd sensed an equaliser was coming and it duly did.
Recalled to the starting line-up, captain Stott spotted Langman off her line before unleashing a stunning left-footed curler into the the far top corner to score her first Liberty A-League goal since March 2020.
The talking point
Rebekah Stott, take a bow.
The New Zealand international was missing last week as City succumbed to their first defeat of the season but she was back in the side tonight and made all the difference for Vidosic’s side.
Putting on a proper captain’s performance, her stunning goal ultimately ensured her side travel back to Victoria with a point despite playing below their usual best for large parts of the contest.
The star
While the Mariners tired towards the end, they were certainly full of life when Badawiya was on the pitch.
The 25-year-old caused City’s defence all sorts of problems with her intelligent runs, created more chances than any other player on the pitch and capped off an impressive performance with a beautifully taken goal soon after half-time.
What this means
Both sides came into this contest having lost in Round 7 and while it may feel like a frustrating result for the Central Coast Mariners, Emily Husband’s side will be pleased with the amount of chances they managed to create against one the league’s best sides.
As for Melbourne City, they move to the top of the table, one point clear of Perth Glory, and they may look back on this result in a few months time thinking it was definitely a point gained rather than two dropped.
The Mariners face a trip to Canberra United in Round 9 while it’s a Christmas cracker for Melbourne City as they face Melbourne Victory on December 23.
