Melbourne City will host the final on Saturday against Sydney FC, as the teams who finished first and second on the regular season table held on to their semi-final first-leg advantages and secured their place in the biggest game of the season.
Read our review of all of the action below.
On Saturday, Sydney FC held onto their aggregate lead to squeeze past the Central Coast Mariners in front of a raucous crowd at Leichhardt. The game ended 1-1 on the day – a Mackenzie Hawkesby goal gave Sydney the lead before Rola Badawiya got one back for the Mariners and gave the away side hope. However, the draw was enough for Sydney, who prevailed 2-1 on aggregate after their 1-0 win in the first game.
It was another even game and there was not a lot to separate the two sides. Both teams will feel like they squandered opportunities to score. In the end, it was Sydney’s experience in big matches that helped them over the line. They have now made an astonishing seven consecutive finals.
Cortnee Vine started for Sydney FC and was once again highly influential in the attack. Jada Whyman will be disappointed not to keep another clean sheet, but again, Sydney showed why they are the best defensive team in the competition.
For the Mariners, Kyah Simon started and played the full game.
Melbourne City by contrast eased into the final, repeating the 3-0 scoreline of the first leg and defeating the Newcastle Jets 6-0 on aggregate. This time it was goals to Rhianna Pollicina, Hannah Wilkinson, and Leticia McKenna who helped seal their passage to a home final next weekend.
Newcastle threw everything at City early, knowing that they had a mountain to climb if they were to get themselves back into the tie. Their starting front four of CommBank Young Matilda Lara Gooch, Lauren Allen, Melina Ayres and Sarina Bolden packed plenty of punch, but they weren’t able to make the most of their early opportunities. When Pollicina scored in the 26th minute it sucked the air out of the Jets attack - the result seemed destined to go only one way from there.
Daniela Galic started and played 67 minutes, picking up an assist in the process.
The stage is now set for a dramatic final between the two undisputed heavyweights of the competition on Saturday.
