Sinkhole delays Wanderers game as Adelaide capitalise on leaky defence

An emerging sinkhole on Marconi Stadium’s pitch foreshadowed turmoil for Western Sydney Wanderers on Friday night’s battle against Adelaide United in round eight of the A-League Women.

Discovered by a Reds player prior to kick-off, the detected sinkhole delayed the game by 25 minutes to allow for pitch maintenance.

With the fault being patched minutes before the game started, safety concerns were put into question as no inspection of the repair had occurred.

Fans were vocal to these concerns but also grew restless with fears of another game being postponed.

It was a critical match for both teams with a position in the top four at stake.

Adelaide took their first chance early in the game with an opening goal coming via some scrappy defence from Western Sydney.

Confidence for the Wanderers quickly collapsed, much like the sinkhole, when their defensive strategy was broken from an impressive rhythm in the beginning of their campaign.

With three seasons of defeat against Adelaide United, Western Sydney hoped to break that losing streak but a disjointed game with passes going astray and patience wearing thin resulted in a 3-0 loss.

The lack of defence did, however, highlight Sarah Langman’s undeniable skill as a goalkeeper.

Formerly an Adelaide United keeper, Langman haunted her previous team with multiple saves that seemed to be near impossible.

The goals she did concede could have been prevented with better defence from the Wanderers players in front of her.

Having suffered another defeat, Western Sydney are running out of time to turn their season around with their two goals in eight games not inspiring much belief that they can rise up the ladder.

Feature image: Steve Christo