South Melbourne’s top-two ambitions remain on track in the Women’s Premier League after a 5-0 win against South Yarra at State Football Centre on Wednesday night.
Regular instruction from coach Socrates Nicolaidis to boost the goal difference motivated South Melbourne to press to the end, long after the three points were safely banked.
South Melbourne climbed to fourth with the win (39 points, plus 23 goal difference) with a game in hand on third-placed Bundoora United (40, +18) and second-placed Ashburton United (41, +36).
Brittany Dudley-Smith was the game’s stand-out player and capped an energetic performance with the goal of the night, South Melbourne’s third.
South Yarra may have conceded possession and territory but were committed to playing out the match and preventing the defending champion from running up the score.
Former South Yarra player Sara Alberici opened the scoring in the 11th minute when she ran onto a parried save from goalkeeper Sharon Walsh and finished from close range.
South Melbourne nearly doubled their lead within two minutes but Hannah Charman rescued South Yarra by clearing a goal-mouth scramble off the line.
Sarah Dash then prevented a goal by winning the ball off Alberici in the 30th minute after the South Melbourne striker had hurdled Walsh with an unguarded net waiting for the finish to be applied.
But South Yarra could only hold out for so long, and in the 36th minute Dudley-Smith crossed to an unmarked Rhea Schreuder, who prodded in a back-heel finish from close range.
Dudley-Smith was given space to shoot in the 48th minute and duly picked out the top left corner with a perfect long-ranged strike.
South Melbourne then pinned South Yarra in their defensive third but couldn’t break through until Kat Goff’s speculative long-shot in the 75th minute.
Goff hit a first-time left footed shot through traffic from outside the area on the right with so much power that a hand on the ball from Walsh couldn’t keep it out.
Caitlin Greiser finished the scoring in the 86th minute by running a shallow goal kick back into the penalty area and slotting under Walsh, not helped by two of her defenders knocking each other over in their attempts to back-track.
South Melbourne’s next match is against FC Bulleen Lions in an 8.30pm Sunday night kick-off at the Veneto Club, while South Yarra’s next assignment is a top-vesus-bottom clash on Sunday at 6pm against Boroondara Eagles at Knox Regional Football Centre.
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South Yarra SC 0 defeated by South Melbourne WFC 5 (Alberici 11′, Schreuder 36′, Dudley-Smith 48′, Goff 75′, Greiser 86′) at State Football Centre [HT: 0-2]
South Yarra SC: 1. WALSH Sharon (GK), 2. LORKIN Megan, 3. CHARMAN Hannah, 4. TIGHE Samantha, 5. DASH Sarah, 6. MURPHY Aoife, 8. WESTHAGEN Jennifer, 9. HUGHES Lauren, 10. FOSTER Katherine (16. TEMPLETON Gretel 76′), 11. MEALIN Eliza (15. BROGAN Ella 8′), 13. WALKINSHAW Hayley
Unused Substitute(s): 14 MITTEN Saraid
Yellow Card(s): Nil
Red Card(s): Nil
South Melbourne WFC: 37. MAJSTOROVIC Coco (GK), 2. DUDLEY-SMITH Brittany, 3. FEAKES Jade, 5. MARTINEAU Natalie (18. GREISER Caitlin), 6. CHEAL Alex, 7. SCHREUDER Rhea, 9. ALBERICI Sarah (22. GOFF Kat 46′), 10. ELIADIS Tiffany (31. AREZZOLO Jasmine), 13. VERDAN Sarah, 14. BRAJANOVSKI Natalie (32. HEIJDEN Emily), 17. BAKER Alison
Unused Substitute(s): 1. IBRAHIM Jenna
Yellow Card(s): Nil
Red Card(s): Nil