Report by Tommy Doleman

Perth SC's Abbey Meakins. Photo by Rob Lizzi

A top-of-the-table clash headlines Round 12 of the NPL WA women’s competition as Perth SC face Perth RedStar for the first time this season on Saturday afternoon.

Second-place Perth have seemingly turned a corner, with arguably their best league performance of the season coming in Sunday’s 3-0 win over Fremantle City. They then went on defeat Subiaco 12-1 in the Women’s State Cup this midweek and will head into Saturday’s fixture full of confidence.

The Azzurri still trail unbeaten leaders RedStar by 10 points with 10 games remaining, but get their first crack at Carlos Vega Mena’s side after their Round Five fixture in Joondalup was postponed due to Covid.

But with nine points still available between the teams and plenty of matches still to play, midfielder Abbey Meakins says Perth haven’t given up on closing the gap.

“We’ve still got three games to play against RedStar, so we don’t think the title is over at all,” Meakins said.

“This game has come at the perfect time for us. We had a couple of disappointing results before last weekend’s game, but to hit our straps and have everyone contribute, execute our game plan, and then to put the ball in the back of the net was good.

“We all said after (beating Fremantle), that it’s the standard we have to keep ourselves to now, and I feel we’ve been building towards a performance like that throughout the season. It hadn’t all quite clicked before that, but on the weekend it seemed to fall into place and defensively I also thought we were really strong.”

That defensive solidity has been at the heart of Perth’s season so far. Eight clean sheets in 10 games mean they share the joint-best defence with RedStar, having conceded only five times.

It is a result of adjustments in the game plan made by coach Peter Rakic, who arrived at Dorrien Gardens in the off-season as a previous title-winner with Murdoch University Melville in 2020. Meakins believe those ideas are starting to translate to the pitch.

“He has brought in a really good game style and has focused us on being more patient with the ball, and a couple of changes have also helped us become more comfortable on it,” Meakins said.

“It’s changed the habits of some players and Pete’s been really good at communicating how he wants us to play. Everyone’s really on board with it and it’s starting to show like it did on the weekend.

“Bec (Rebecca Bennett) has been huge for us this year and has kept us in games at times, but she’s also taken her distribution to another level. I played with Alyssa (Van Heurck) at NTC and have known her for ages, and have tried to get her across to Perth for a while when she’s been back from the US.

“She’s been a huge part of our success this year. She’s been solid with all the challenges she makes for us, while Judy (Connolly) has slotted into centre back after we lost a couple of players. She’s so comfortable on the ball and is good at reading the play, and Emma (McMurdo) has also stood up for us as a strong defensive player while Jaymee (Gibbons) has been out.”

Shutting out an in-form RedStar strike force has proven tough for all challengers this season with the leaders scoring 45 times in 10 outings. But Meakins hopes Perth can put some of what they’ve done well this season into practice again on Saturday.

“They’re obviously all so clinical and are really unselfish up there, so we’ve got to try and stop that distribution into the final third to start with, but I feel that’s been a strong point of ours,” Meakins said.

“So, we’ve got to stop them from getting in behind us, while covering well in defence and staying switched on. But then also we’ve got to try and tie them down, keep possession well in their half and be comfortable on the ball, which will hold us in good stead.”

Round 12 begins on Friday night when in-form Balcatta Etna travel to bottom side Curtin University. The home side are still chasing a first win of season 2022, while the visitors have hit form in recent weeks with four straight wins in all competitions without conceding.

Two fixtures round out the weekend on Sunday. Fifth-placed Murdoch University Melville go to third-place Fremantle City at 1pm with an eye on three points which could tighten up the middle part of the table. Five points separate the sides as Luke Thompson’s young team starts to find their feet, while City come off back-to-back league defeats, but did beat MUM FC 3-1 in the Women’s State Cup meeting during the week.

Hyundai NTC are also jostling with those around them for a top-four berth and will look to bounce back from 3-0 league and cup defeats to Balcatta in the space of four days. Subiaco need wins if they are to close the gap to fourth and keep any hope of a finals push alive.

Round 12 fixtures (3pm unless stated)

Friday: Curtin University v Balcatta Etna (8pm). Saturday: Perth SC v Perth RedStar (1pm). Sunday: Fremantle City v MUM FC (1pm), Hyundai NTC v Subiaco.