Report by Tommy Doleman

Fremantle defeated NTC last week but there is more on tonight's game. Photo by FotoEnzo

The Top Four Cup semi-finals begin this weekend as Perth RedStar turn their attention to the final leg of an NPLWA – Women’s clean sweep.

Carlos Vega Mena’s side go into Sunday’s major semi-final against Perth Soccer Club on the back of an unbeaten league campaign, which saw them possess the best attacking and defensive records.

But Peter Rakic’s Azzurri have shown they are capable of in holding the runaway leaders to draws in their past two meetings.

The winners of Sunday’s 3pm kick-off at RedStar Arena will advance straight to next Saturday’s Top Four Cup Final, while the losers will play whoever comes out on top in tonight’s minor semi-final between Fremantle City and Hyundai NTC at Wauhop Park (8pm).

This is a repeat of last week’s final round of the regular season which City win 3-1, a fixture of little consequence as NTC had already qualified for their first appearance in the post-season since the NPLW era began.

This weekend’s game is a different matter as both sides look to give themselves a shot at challenging for silverware one last time this season.

Recent weeks have seen Fremantle return to form with three wins on the bounce resurrecting their season, following a run of one win in six outings.

Forward Mikayla Lyons says Freo are not content with simply qualifying for the post-season and is confident her side can make a splash at the business end of the campaign.

“It has been a bumpy ride this year. We’re not happy yet in terms of just making the top four, because we always expected to be there,” she said.

“But I think we’re peaking at the right time, whether that’s strategic or through little bit of luck, possibly a bit of both.

“Getting players back such as Jamie-Lee Gale and Laura Waltman, we’ve got pretty strong squad heading into the final on Friday, but we’re definitely not happy with just making it, we’ll be going for it and trying to have a big finish.

“Coming towards the Top Four Cup and the last three games of the regular season, we’ve been able to field close to our best 11 and that’s really helped us gel. Most of us have also played together years on end, so having that consistency in the squad leading in will really help us.”

Despite some promising signs at the start of the season, City ended the league season 20 points behind RedStar and were unable to reel in Perth late in the year to earn a finals double chance. While Lyons said the table doesn’t necessarily lie, she believes there are plenty of positives to take from the season.

“I think finishing third was pretty fair for us, considering some of our games and draws which we shouldn’t have drawn, and losses where we could have taken the points,” she said.

“But leading into the top four now, it is a clean slate and the team you’ll see in finals will be different to what you’ve seen throughout the league. We feel we’re peaking at the right time and hopefully you’ll see our best football.

“It’s been good to see the younger players step up. They’ve found themselves in a sink or swim position at times and they’ve been able to swim for us, so that’s been one of the best things to come out of this season for us.

“Their exposure to the demands of NPL football has been a positive and it gives us a real reason to look forward to not just finals, but also to next season as well where we can hopefully continue to integrate some more young players.”

Aside from last week’s win for Fremantle, their two other games with NTC finished in draws. Lyons added: “NTC under the guidance of Ben (Anderton) are very gifted, very fast and technical.

“We’ve been able to get on top of them throughout games with our physical prowess, but ultimately if we follow our game plan and tactically match up with them, then we can hopefully get what we’ve been working on going.

“I feel last weekend was near our best squad, but against RedStar and Perth we haven’t quite had that yet. So that gives us a bit of confidence leading in and hopefully we get to play those teams at some point. It’s exciting for all the girls and I think you’ll see a different style of football from us in the Top Four Cup.

“We have believed all season that we have the potential to bring some silverware to the club. We’ll be going out there to win it and hopefully it’s something which puts us in good stead for next season, where we can aim higher for those positions towards the top of the league.”