Kanwal v Terrigal
Kanwal will be looking to be the first team to take points from Terrigal when they welcome the Tords to Wadalba Sports Complex this Sunday for the WPL round 10 match of the round.
Last weekend all WPL teams enjoyed a weekend off after what has been a busy schedule of rescheduled games.
Only a select few from Kanwal and Terrigal got on the park last Monday for the 2024 edition of the North vs South Premier League All-Star game as they banded together to represent the North who claimed a 2-1 victory over the opposition as these players turn from teammates one week to enemies the next.
For the rest of the Kanwal squad, it was a long weekend to rest and recover after a busy two weeks playing four games. The highlight for Kanwal in this busy period was being the first team to score against and take points from East Gosford.
After an intense ninety minutes, Kanwal’s never-say-die attitude paid off as they were able to find an equaliser with the last kick of the game to secure a 3-3 draw against the defending Premiers.
Nonetheless, three defeats in their other three games during this heavy schedule has Jen Tatum’s side currently sitting in second last with four points to their name.
In recent fixtures, goals have not been hard to come by for the Bulls who have scored more than half of their goals for the year in their last three games.
However, it’s at the other end of the field they seem to be having the most trouble as they currently share the most goals against at this point of the season.
Having only played two of their six games this season at their home ground of Wadalba Sports Complex, in both of those fixtures the Bulls have slotted three goals to their name as they will be hoping this weekend brings them a similar fortune against a team yet to concede a single goal against them.
This will serve as the second meeting for these two teams this season, with Terrigal proving why they are the reigning League Champions in their last match, defeating the Bulls comfortably with a 5-0 victory.
With the wet weather not taking effect in recent weeks, it would have given Tatum time to get on the training pitch and work on their substandard areas ahead of this potential season-changing fixture.
Expect a closer contest this time around as the Bulls will be adamant about getting a result in front of their home fans.
As for the opposition, what a start to the season it has been for them. Terrigal enters round 10 with a perfect record of 6 wins from 6 games and what is more impressive about that is Gab Blanch’s team is yet to concede a single goal in 540 minutes of football.
Remaining undefeated is nothing new for the reigning League Champions who were able to go the entire 2023 winter season undefeated to claim first place. The only game the Tords did lose last season was the pinnacle match as they fell to East Gosford in the Grand Final.
Determined to go even one better this year, both players and coaches have stated they want to avenge that Grand Final loss this season.
When questioned if the perfect defensive record was something she anticipated at this point of the season, Blanch stated, “Absolutely not. The plan is just to play our best, I see winning, losing and conceding as all part of that”
“It’s not something we are focussed on as a group, however in giving credit where credit is due, our girls are showing up more consistently this year.”
As to be expected, Terrigal also boasts an extremely impressive goal-scoring record.
“I see our strength as being a team who don’t need to rely on just one or two prolific goal scorers. We play, win, and score as a team. I like that about us,” voiced Blanch when asked about the way she sets her team up which allows them to be so successful in front of goals.
Blanch was selected as head coach of the Women’s North All-Star team which she led to victory last Monday.
Terrigal’s Lily Brooks who featured in the exhibition match and was captain for the blue side was awarded the player of the match as she will take plenty of confidence into Sunday’s meeting with the Bulls.
Now with her attention turned back to leading Terrigal, Blanch will be looking to see a similar performance from her side when they last met Kanwal and claimed a 5-0 victory.
Despite heading into the weekend with a clear advantage, Blanch is taking nothing away from the Kanwal side as she anticipates them to raise their standard throughout the year.
“I expect Kanwal to be one of the teams that improve each week for the entire season, and I’ve no doubt they’ll be motivated to break our streak on home turf.”
“We’ll need to take our chances and remain disciplined for the entire 90 minutes. Kanwal are good at home, we need to show up expecting a battle.”
Match Official – Con Pantos
All Round 10 Fixtures –
