Report by Tommy Doleman

Tayna Campos, centre, after scoring her Goal of the Week against Perth SC in Round One. Photo by Rob Lizzi

Round Three NPLWA - Women’s competition features two teams looking to record their first wins of 2021 but still with cause for optimism.

Curtin University face Subiaco AFC at Edinburgh Oval and both will see this as an excellent opportunity to kickstart their respective seasons.

One of the key players will be Tayna Campos, who has already shown she is capable of the spectacular after her Round One Goal of the Week strike against Perth SC.

That technical ability is something which developed from a young age for the Brazil-born playmaker and that passion for football has continued as she starts her second NPL season.

“I grew up in a different environment to most of the girls here. Back home I used to play football against the boys on the streets and I was always trying skills and something new,” Campos said.

“Every time I get the ball, I just want to have fun. That’s all that’s running through my head and what comes out as a result is that passion, which starts with getting to training early, listening to music with the ball at my feet and so on.

“A lot of football is mechanical and can be repetitive. So anything I can do with the ball that makes it fun is good, even if it’s walking around the house and dribbling around the plants!

“But I’m also a player who always wants to improve. I want to look back at this season and feel like I’m a better player, and not just by scoring or assisting goals, but also feeling like I’ve done everything I can for my team.”

Curtin won three of their final four games in 2020 and Campos says that run gave the squad plenty of belief going into this campaign.  

“It’s definitely growing. You can see we have a bit more of a structure and an idea of what we are trying to put forward,” she said.

“It’s something new that we haven’t quite perfected yet and we are also working in training to try and improve in the final third.

“We had a lot of injuries last season in a short period. But when we picked up again later in the year, we showed we can get on a roll when we start winning.

“So we came into the season with that mentality whilst also knowing there’s no easy games in the NPLW. The confidence and trust is there for this group to keep improving.”

Subiaco also have reason for optimism after their opening two fixtures of 2021, despite waiting to record their first points after a challenging maiden NPL season when they picked up just two draws from the whole 14-match campaign.

Captain Jen Walsh said the energy and vibe around the club is encouraging after a good pre-season.

“The team is feeling really positive. We seem to be conceding from mistakes which is a little disappointing and we’re also having to work really hard for our goals, but we’re putting 2020 behind us and looking forward to what we hope will be a good season,” she said.

“But in comparison to last year, I feel there’s a real shift to the intensity that we bring and the way we are playing. And we’ve taken confidence from being competitive against strong teams like Balcatta and Fremantle.

“We need to stay switched on for the entire 90 minutes because in both of our games so far we’ve only conceded in the last five minutes of a half against Balcatta, and in the first 15 minutes against Freo.

“So we want to come out against Curtin and be focused for the full game, start strong, carry on and hopefully get that first win on the board.”

Among the other fixtures in a full Friday night program, last season’s top two meet on the Murdoch synthetic as Perth SC aim to record their first win of 2021 against MUM FC. The Azzurri won this fixture 1-0 last season thanks to an Abbey Meakins penalty but will have their work cut out against the defending champions who put five past Hyundai NTC on Sunday.

League leaders Fremantle City host NTC at Wauhop Park having won both of their games so far. But they will be wary of the youngsters who won 6-1 in last season’s corresponding fixture.

Finally, two unbeaten teams meet at Macedonia Park as Northern Redbacks play a Balcatta team returning to the scene of their NPL Night Series triumph.

Fixtures

Friday

NPLWA - Women's Round Three (7.30pm unless stated)

Northern Redbacks v Balcatta (7pm)
Curtin University v Subiaco
Fremantle City v Hyundai NTC
Murdoch University Melville v Perth SC