WNPL - Review after Round 7

[Lucas Leiva]

I thought I'd try and jump start a thread about actual football.

Now that a third of the season has passed, we've seen each team play each other and probably have a better idea of who will be challenging for the title, who will be challenging for the finals, who might be a dark horse, and who might be battling to avoid the relegation playoff. It has been interesting viewing so far, and unlike another thread states, whilst only one team has really stood out defensively so far, the attacking quality across the league has been quite good.

1ST - WEST ADELAIDE
Having conceded one goal thus far, it will be hard to see West Adelaide breached consistently now they have the defensive element so well structured. Sarah Willacy has come in and made an immediate impact to a team that was so close but so far last season. However, as we all know from last year, the weaker sides get smarter, the results get narrower, and the teams up the top have to manage their squad and their performances to keep it rolling on. Case in point, a narrow 1-0 win over Cumberland may signal this process already beginning. Ultimately, being undefeated at this stage is a great achievement and they are the team to beat.

2ND - ADELAIDE UNIVERSITY
Perhaps a bit of a surprise to some, but Uni have made the most of a slow start from some of the other sides to snatch 2nd spot. It seems as if the squad is starting to settle and unlike previous seasons, goals are coming from multiple sources, making it harder for opposition defences to focus solely on Cote Rojas (as seen in their win over reigning champs Metro). With Kristi Harvey returning in goals, this can only make them harder to break down and catching them just that little bit harder.

3RD - ADELAIDE CITY
A work in progress, or already at their best form? Only time will tell with this City side, but Paul Pezos has them excelling early. There has been a bit of an adjustment in personnel, first in pre-season and now again with a few squad players moving on, but given results in both seniors and reserves they have obviously have quite a number of players in contention to keep improving as a group. Even without Isabelle Scalzi they've managed to keep their goals against low at a touch over a goal a game, which will worry those who thought they could potentially exploit the backline. Equal highest scorers and the only side to take a point off of West Adelaide, I wouldn't be writing them off at all.

4TH - METRO UNITED
Metro have been interesting viewing this season. Nothing is broken yet that ability to dominate games and "win ugly" in 2016 has probably not been allowed this year from opposition sides. No doubt Metro will rise to the challenge - their 2-1 win over City on Friday evidence of this. 2017 has been a good test of the strong depth they obviously have - they've already used 22 players this season, compared to 26 all last year. And given injuries that have occurred, this will probably see them become more consistent compared to other sides moving forward.

5TH - FULHAM UNITED
Given the season they had in 2016 (cup winners, league semi finalist), you would imagine that this could only be seen as a slight underachievement. Having a look at them play though, and it's hard to see why. The forward line are still as dangerous as ever, and it's only probably a minor amount of tweaking that will see more consistent points on the board. The comeback 5-5 draw against Metro probably illustrates this best - if they're not chasing games, they're in control. However, that needs to come soon as we all know once the gap between 4th and 5th grows, it's hard to play catch up for more than half a season. First up, against Westies, things will get harder before they get easier.

6TH - SALISBURY INTER
Not a bad start for a side many said were going to be a rehash of PHK. Adrian Santrac has them playing smart football and they are probably the side in the lower third with the biggest upcurve to come. A win over Cumberland, a draw with Fulham and a narrow loss to Uni shows they have pedigree at this level and have been a welcome addition to the WNPL. Sian Mclaren has added a great level of experience and stability in the backline that will only benefit them more over the rest of the campaign.

7TH - CUMBERLAND UNITED
A positive goal difference yes second to last, not a common sight at the WNPL level. This shows how unlucky Cumby have been on the whole, and how they've probably not fulfilled their potential just yet. Their 5-0 win over Uni stands out, yet that form seems to have eluded them since. A tight 1-0 loss to Westies this week might signal the corner has been turned. Their structure seems to be quite solid on the picture, therefore a game plan is there and will no doubt come right again. Tight results against their nearest opponents in Fulham and Inter means this pack of three may interchange positions again and again over the coming rounds.

8TH - CAMPBELLTOWN CITY
A young side learning much in a baptism of fire - this sentence could've been said before Round 1 and still applies now. They will improve, that much is evident given the individual performances. As a collective, it is good to see they haven't taken a pragmatic approach given the results and are still trying to improve elements of their game that will make the difference later in 2017, and in 2018. It will be a great celebration when they earn their first points of the season no doubt.

[Rightside]

Thanks Lucas Levia - this is fantastic to read and you are spot on with many of these comments!

I look forward to seeing how the rest of the season progresses, while there have been a fair share of unexpected blowout results there have also been many tight entertaining games.

Campbelltown have some good players and I hope they continue to enjoy their Friday night football, learn and remain positive.

[United We Stand]

I thought I'd try and jump start a thread about actual football.

Now that a third of the season has passed, we've seen each team play each other and probably have a better idea of who will be challenging for the title, who will be challenging for the finals, who might be a dark horse, and who might be battling to avoid the relegation playoff. It has been interesting viewing so far, and unlike another thread states, whilst only one team has really stood out defensively so far, the attacking quality across the league has been quite good.

1ST - WEST ADELAIDE
Having conceded one goal thus far, it will be hard to see West Adelaide breached consistently now they have the defensive element so well structured. Sarah Willacy has come in and made an immediate impact to a team that was so close but so far last season. However, as we all know from last year, the weaker sides get smarter, the results get narrower, and the teams up the top have to manage their squad and their performances to keep it rolling on. Case in point, a narrow 1-0 win over Cumberland may signal this process already beginning. Ultimately, being undefeated at this stage is a great achievement and they are the team to beat.

2ND - ADELAIDE UNIVERSITY
Perhaps a bit of a surprise to some, but Uni have made the most of a slow start from some of the other sides to snatch 2nd spot. It seems as if the squad is starting to settle and unlike previous seasons, goals are coming from multiple sources, making it harder for opposition defences to focus solely on Cote Rojas (as seen in their win over reigning champs Metro). With Kristi Harvey returning in goals, this can only make them harder to break down and catching them just that little bit harder.

3RD - ADELAIDE CITY
A work in progress, or already at their best form? Only time will tell with this City side, but Paul Pezos has them excelling early. There has been a bit of an adjustment in personnel, first in pre-season and now again with a few squad players moving on, but given results in both seniors and reserves they have obviously have quite a number of players in contention to keep improving as a group. Even without Isabelle Scalzi they've managed to keep their goals against low at a touch over a goal a game, which will worry those who thought they could potentially exploit the backline. Equal highest scorers and the only side to take a point off of West Adelaide, I wouldn't be writing them off at all.

4TH - METRO UNITED
Metro have been interesting viewing this season. Nothing is broken yet that ability to dominate games and "win ugly" in 2016 has probably not been allowed this year from opposition sides. No doubt Metro will rise to the challenge - their 2-1 win over City on Friday evidence of this. 2017 has been a good test of the strong depth they obviously have - they've already used 22 players this season, compared to 26 all last year. And given injuries that have occurred, this will probably see them become more consistent compared to other sides moving forward.

5TH - FULHAM UNITED
Given the season they had in 2016 (cup winners, league semi finalist), you would imagine that this could only be seen as a slight underachievement. Having a look at them play though, and it's hard to see why. The forward line are still as dangerous as ever, and it's only probably a minor amount of tweaking that will see more consistent points on the board. The comeback 5-5 draw against Metro probably illustrates this best - if they're not chasing games, they're in control. However, that needs to come soon as we all know once the gap between 4th and 5th grows, it's hard to play catch up for more than half a season. First up, against Westies, things will get harder before they get easier.

6TH - SALISBURY INTER
Not a bad start for a side many said were going to be a rehash of PHK. Adrian Santrac has them playing smart football and they are probably the side in the lower third with the biggest upcurve to come. A win over Cumberland, a draw with Fulham and a narrow loss to Uni shows they have pedigree at this level and have been a welcome addition to the WNPL. Sian Mclaren has added a great level of experience and stability in the backline that will only benefit them more over the rest of the campaign.

7TH - CUMBERLAND UNITED
A positive goal difference yes second to last, not a common sight at the WNPL level. This shows how unlucky Cumby have been on the whole, and how they've probably not fulfilled their potential just yet. Their 5-0 win over Uni stands out, yet that form seems to have eluded them since. A tight 1-0 loss to Westies this week might signal the corner has been turned. Their structure seems to be quite solid on the picture, therefore a game plan is there and will no doubt come right again. Tight results against their nearest opponents in Fulham and Inter means this pack of three may interchange positions again and again over the coming rounds.

8TH - CAMPBELLTOWN CITY
A young side learning much in a baptism of fire - this sentence could've been said before Round 1 and still applies now. They will improve, that much is evident given the individual performances. As a collective, it is good to see they haven't taken a pragmatic approach given the results and are still trying to improve elements of their game that will make the difference later in 2017, and in 2018. It will be a great celebration when they earn their first points of the season no doubt.

Thanks Lucas Leiva. That was well-written and informative. It is exactly the type of posts that I was hoping for when I made my request. Just one question. You say that some squad members at Adelaide City have moved on after the preseason. Who are the squad members that have moved on? I imagine the arrival of Chidiac would have meant limited game time for some of the midfielders.