A quick flurry of goals proved too much to come back from for the Southern United women.
Southern remained winless as it slumped to its third loss of the season, going down 5-1 to an unbeaten Capital side in Petone yesterday.
A much improved Southern was well in the game for the majority of the first half. It delivered a tidier performance than in last week’s 8-0 loss to Northern, holding its shape better and looking to press higher up the pitch on defence. That saw them turn over ball and get their strikers possession further up the field. One of those strikers, Stephanie Lee, was able to get Southern on the board in the 27th minute, levelling things after Briar Palmer had put Capital up 1-0 in the 19th minute.
Capital proved to be a well-organised team, however, and threatened out wide in space.
A Maggie Jenkins goal from a free kick gave Capital a 2-1 lead two minutes before the break, before a goal right afterwards rattled the Southern side. Two further quick ones saw the score balloon out to 5-1 and while Southern regained its composure at that point, a comeback proved a bridge too far.
Defender Sophie Dijkstra had a strong game, closing down several threats, while Holly Johnstone was good in the midfield. Lee too was among the side’s best, applying pressure well and netting the goal.
Coach Hayley Stirling was happy with the improvements, although admitted the patches where the team conceded were frustrating. She said the team could look good for much of the match, but often conceded multiple goals at once. However, she remained upbeat as the side looked ahead to next week’s game against Waikato-Bay of Plenty.
Meanwhile, Northern beat Canterbury United 3-1 and Waikato-Bay of Plenty was 4-2 winner over Auckland.
