Canberra United welcomes Newcastle Jets to Deakin Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Saturday 8th December 2012
Canberra United v Newcastle Jets
Deakin Stadium, Kick off 4pm
Canberra United welcomes Newcastle Jets to Deakin Stadium on the back of a seven match winning streak against the Novocastrians stretching back to January 2009 when a solitary goal from Kara Mowbray proved enough for the green team to secure a 1-0 win at Energy Australia Stadium and move onto to the inaugural Westfield W-League Grand Final where they were to lose to Queensland Roar. The Jets had already beaten United once that season having had the honour of winning the Round 1 fixture between the pair, the first match in both team-s history in the Westfield W-League, with the Jets winning 2-1 despite going behind to a second minute goal from Sasha McDonnell.
Since then it-s been United all the way with seven wins in a row culminating in a 5-0 hammering for Newcastle on their own patch earlier this season when Canberra netted a nap-hand of goals in the final sixteen minutes. Hayley Raso began the rout with her first ever Canberra United goal and when Michelle Heyman made it two, six minutes from time, the result was never in doubt. Two goals in a minute from Ariane Hingst and Caitlin Munoz took it to 4-0 before Ashleigh Sykes completed the scoring. Hingst incidentally is one of seven players to have donned both jerseys through the five year span of the competition joining the likes of Hayley Crawford, McDonnell, Mowbray, Thea Slatyer, Emily Van Egmond and latterly Samantha Wood.
United-s run of wins against Newcastle continued in Season Two when Cian Maciejewski, Tseng Shu-O and Kahlia Hogg struck in a 3-1 win at Energy Australia Stadium with Hogg-s goal being her only strike for United before her departure on a scholarship to the USA. United was in the steel city again in Round 5 in Season 3 where a Michelle Heyman goal was sufficient to bring home the points before the teams met in Canberra for the first time in Round 8. Deakin Stadium was the venue, as it is today, for a comprehensive home win as Caitlin Munoz struck twice, either side of an Alison Lipsher own goal, with Emily Van Egmond completing the 4-1 success. United-s liking for the Jets continued into Season 4 and a brace of wins both at home and away. Sally Shipard finally opened her United goal scoring account in a 3-1 win at McKellar Park on 19th November 2011 with Heyman and Taryn Hemmings on target in the return fixture at Adamstown Oval as Canberra continued what was to be an unbeaten season with a 2-1 victory.
The Jets haven’t enjoyed the best of season-s top date but have some bug game players and appear to be finding their feet led by the goal-scoring of US import Tori Huster. Huster netted three times in the opening five rounds of the competition, leading the Jets scoring charts, but she isn-t the only goal threat as the visitors to Deakin can also boast youngsters Tara Andrews and the hard-running Van Egmond. United will need to be wary to close down the threat of the speedy Jets forwards, yet Jitka Klimkova already knows that her team can score goals. Newcastle will undoubtedly be keen to exercise the memories of their hiding at Wanderers Oval earlier this season and therefore we should be in for an entertaining encounter in front of an anticipated large crowd for a fixture that always produces something exciting.
United-s exciting 2-1 win over Perth Glory on Wednesday night has brought them right back into the title race. Jitka Klimkova will be looking at this game as a prime opportunity to keep the momentum building as United aims for a top four spot. The Jets though may well have other ideas.
Canberra United:1. Mackenzie Arnold, 2. Caitlin Cooper, 3. Georgia Yeoman-Dale, 4. Christine Walters, 5. Grace Field, 6. Caitlin Munoz, 7. Ellie Brush, 8. Hayley Raso, 10. Snez Veljanovska, 11. Michelle Heyman, 12. Sally Rojahn, 13. Nicole Sykes, 15. Sally Shipard, 16. Catherine Brown, 17. Ariane Hingst, 18. Samantha Wood, 19. Jennifer Bisset, 20. Trudy Burke
In: In
Unavailable: 9. Grace Gill (injured), 14. Ashleigh Sykes (injured)
