The Central Coast Mariners have been bundled out of the race to the W-League finals after going down 2-0 to league leaders Queensland Roar at Ballymore Stadium.
The Mariners were part of the bottleneck at the bottom of the ladder looking to scrape into the semi-finals, but the loss to the Roar, who stitched up the minor championship last week, means their tilt at the title is effectively over.
The visitors battled hard, and started the second half on equal footing with the Roar at 0-0, but the hosts soon clicked into gear, putting two into the back of the net in a frantic six minutes of football.
Courtney Beutel broke the deadlock in the 50th minute with a magnificent solo-effort that ended in a curling strike that Mariners keeper Emma-Kate Dewhurst could do little about.
Lana Harch then made the score 2-0 when she chipped Dewhurst perfectly.
An excellent looping long ball from Ellen Beaumont, fired from the halfway point of the field, found Harch alone and Dewhurst decided to rush after the ball, coming a long way off her line.
Harch calmly lobbed the ball over Dewhurst, sending the crowd of 940 into jubilant celebrations.
The match started relatively slowly as both sides struggled to keep control of possession, but it soon ignited with a couple of special efforts from Lauren Colthorpe that almost resulted in goals.
The first, which was the Roar’s first genuine chance in the game, came in the 16th minute when Colthorpe thoroughly tested Dewhurst.
A diving Dewhurst was able to grab the ball, but the shot triggered a shift in the game as the Roar started to lift.
Five minutes later Colthorpe launched close to the perfect long ball that found Harch on the edge of the box.
A charging Dewhurst did well to defuse the situation, snaffling the ball before Harch was able to properly pull the trigger.
The chances continued to flow thick and fast for the home side as Tameka Butt fired over the top of the crossbar after a great run, minutes before Beutel did the same.
Beutel’s shot, easily the Roar’s best opportunity in the first half, was taken from just inside the box and was less than 10 inches away from finding the back of the net.
The visitors dogged defence continued to hold firm and the Mariners had a handy chance on the eve of half time when Trudy Camilleri almost caught Roar keeper Casey Dumont off guard.
Dumont was up to the task and the two sides headed into the break on level terms.
Central Coast battled gamely after conceding the two goals but was not able to find the necessary goals as Queensland continued its dominant season.
The Roar have now claimed victories in all but one of their nine games in the maiden W-League season.
Match Details
Queensland Roar 2 (Courtney BEUTEL 51-, Lana HARCH 57-)
Central Coast Mariners 0
Saturday 20 December
Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane
Crowd: 940
Local kick off 6.00pm (7.00pm AEDT)
Referee: Prue Donohoe
Assistant Referees: Rebecca Durcau, Renae Coghill
Fourth Official: Kate Jacewicz
Queensland Roar line up: 1.Casey DUMONT (gk), 3.Karla REUTER, 4.Clare POLKINGHORNE, 5.Brooke SPENCE, 8.Elise KELLOND-KNIGHT, 9.Alicia FERGUSON (15.Stephanie LATHAM 72-), 10.Lana HARCH, 13.Tameka BUTT (14.Vedrana POPOVIC 61-), 16.Lauren COLTHORPE, 18.Courtney BEUTEL (11.Ruth BLACKBURN 72-), 19.Ellen BEAUMONT
Substitutes not used: 20.Lara BOON (gk).
Yellow cards: Nil.
Red Cards: Nil.
Central Coast Mariners line up: 1.Emma-Kate DEWHURST (gk), 2.Caitlin COOPER (c), 3.Lyndsay GLOHE, 4.Rachael DOYLE (15.Elizabeth O-REILLY 59-) 5.Jodie BAIN, 6.Karina ROWETH (12.Gill FOSTER 79-), 7.Teresa POLIAS (18.Emma STEWART 64-), 8.Renee ROLLASON, 10.Kyah SIMON, 13.Trudy CAMILLERI, 23.Jenna KINGSLEY.
Substitutes not used: 20.Lisa HARTLEY (gk).
Yellow cards: Nil.
Red Cards: Nil.
