Manly United 1-1 UNSW

Manly United and UNSW shared the spoils at Cromer Park on Sunday evening, with the two sides playing out a 1-1 draw.

A recent return to form has seen Manly rise up the ladder, with the potential for a push towards the top four. Standing in their way was a UNSW side eager to pick up three points and keep themselves away from the drop zone.

Manly’s attacking intent was obvious from the opening whistle, and the hosts would cause problems for UNSW with their high press. This determination would prove fruitful for Manly when they took the lead in the 6th minute. The ball was well contested in UNSW’s half and picked up by Tegan Biasi, who outpaced the defenders to put herself in a scoring position, before confidently firing home for 1-0.

Emily Minett had the next clear chance in the 24th minute after being set up by Biasi, however her low shot was well held by Tiahna Robertson. The UNSW shotstopper was then called into action twice on 33 minutes, first leaping to tip Phoebe Gilbane’s shot over the crossbar, and then saving Minett’s header from the resulting corner kick.

With halftime approaching, Nicole Stuart used her speed to trouble the visiting backline, with Maia Cameron doing just enough to prevent Stuart from unleashing a shot. Then at the other end, Chloe Smith’s speculative long range effort had Jodie Drever worried enough to dive, but the ball sailed wide of the Manly goal.

UNSW equalised early in the second half when they won a free kick 40 yards from goal. Leia Puxty’s lofted pass was laid off by Marcella Santos, and Talia Backhouse glided the ball over Drever to make it 1-1.

The second half was very much an armwrestle in the middle third of the field, and chances were at a premium after the UNSW equaliser. On 79 minutes, Biasi did her best to liven things up and dribbled past three defenders, but UNSW got enough bodies in her way to prevent her from scoring again.

By Football NSW