Canberra United were beaten by Sydney FC in a tough contest on Saturday afternoon.
Canberra had their fair share of chances but it was Sydney who were more clinical as they waltzed to victory.
Canberra certainly had their opportunities in the first half but it was Sydney who took theirs by converting two.
The game kicked off at a frantic pace with Keeley Richards being called upon in the opening minute. She was needed to come out of her net to make a diving effort to force a shot wide.
After the opening chance the next 20 minutes of the game provided a stalemate between both teams with only half chances being able to be created with both defenses proving to be a tough obstacle to beat.
But then in the 27th minute Hayley Taylor-Young took down Maria Rojas illegally according to the referee as Sydney were awarded a penalty. Which was scored by the Chilean forward.
Rojas nearly had a second shot eight minutes later but Richards positioned herself well for the save before releasing the Canberra attack. Where Allira Toby burst through the defense but could only hit her shot wide.
Michelle Heyman was next to have an opportunity but like Toby’s shot, it just wasn’t good enough to beat the Sydney goalkeeper.
Disaster struck with 5 minutes to go before the break when Maria Rojas read a back pass from Canberra before chipping the ball over Richards to extend Sydney’s lead.
Canberra showed their intent to get back into the game early in the second half with a Heyman shot, but the chance went begging.
Next up was a chance for Ashleigh Sykes but the ball got away from her when she was through on goal and the keeper was able to smother.
All of Canberra’s good work in the second half came undone after a spectacular shot by Ally Green that whipped into the top corner from an impossible angle.
Maria Rojas then scored her hat-trick from a dangerous corner.
Sydney would go on to tack on another two goals late as Canberra continued to battle. The referee would eventually blow their whistle to end a tough night for Canberra United.
