Dominate Melbourne City return to the winners’ circle

Melbourne City put on a dominant effort to defeat Canberra United 4-0 away from home, with captain Rhianna Pollicina scoring a double for the visiting team.

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The last time Canberra played at Seiffert Oval, the game had to be abandoned due to lightning, but the rain held off this time for the Friday night match.

Within the first 30 seconds Canberra took City by surprise with Michelle Heyman rushing towards the goal before the visitors were able to stop her run.

City were the first to get a clear look at the goal when Pollicina broke through Canberra’s defence for a one-on-one with goalkeeper Keeley Richards but her shot just flew over the top of the crossbar.

Several more opportunities followed for the visitors as they continued to push forward with speed and aggression, but no-one managed to hit the back of the net until the 28^th minute when Pollicina rolled one into the bottom left corner.

𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐈 𝐒𝐐𝐔𝐀𝐑𝐄𝐃! 💥

Another 𝙦𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙨𝙝 from Rhianna Pollicina & @MelbourneCity are 2⃣ to the good in Canberra 💪

Catch all the action LIVE on @Channel10AU PLAY  📺

Follow live: https://t.co/O2b43WyFhm#CANvMCY #WeAreALeagues @LibFinancial pic.twitter.com/QyVP09zLpe

— Liberty A-League (@aleaguewomen) December 23, 2022

The midfield continued to open up for City as they kept the pressure on Canberra, resulting in multiple steals to keep possession in their own half.

Heyman got close to scoring for the home side after a cross from Grace Jale but the captain’s shot went just too high of the goal.

Neither team were able to create any more opportunities before the break, with City keeping a 1-0 lead going into half-time.

After the break, Canberra substituted previous championship player Ellie Brush into the match, her first since tearing her ACL twice.

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Canberra came out ready to remedy their errors from the first half, coming out with a sense of urgency and stepping up their physicality.

However, they couldn’t keep it up as City went on to score through Pollicina who rolled it past Richards once again.

City dominated possession during the whole second term with the ball rarely venturing out of their own half.

Their constant efforts paid off when Maria Jose Rojas got within the box and kicked it into the top left corner to score City’s third goal of the match.

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Chelsea Blissett received a yellow card after a late tackle on Canberra’s Laura Hughes, but little else went the way of the home team as City kept them away from their end.

The visitors kept up the relentless effort which ended in another goal for City after Daniella Galic followed form by rolling the ball into the bottom corner to extend the lead to 4-0 just as play was wrapping up.

The win sees City return to the top of the ladder ahead of their next game back at home against Perth Glory in just four days time. Meanwhile, Canberra will rest up before also heading to Melbourne as they go up against Victory in their last match before the New Year.

Canberra United 0

Melbourne City 4 (Pollicina 28’ 55’,  Galic 88’, Rojas 69’, Galic 88’)

Stadium: Seiffert Oval, Queanbeyan

Referee: Georgia Chirardello

Assistant Referees: Delfina Dimoski and Maddy Alum

Fourth Official: Isabella Mossin

Canberra United: Keeley RICHARDS (GK), Sasha GROVE, Madison MCCOMASKY, Kennedy Jade FAULKNOR (Ellie BRUSH 46’), Emma ILIJOSKI, Laura HUGHES, Vesna MILIVOJEVIC, Grace MAHER, Nickoletta FLANNERY (Hayley TAYLOR-YOUNG 70’), Grace JALE, Michelle HEYMAN (C)

Unused subs: Chloe LINCOLN (GK), Sofia CHRISTOPHERSON, Emily ROACH

Melbourne City: Sally JAMES (GK) (Melissa BARBIERI (GK) 78’), Kaitlyn TORPEY, Naomi THOMAS-CHINNAMA (Caitlin KARIC 70’), Katie BOWEN, Julia GROSSO, Leah DAVIDSON, Rhianna POLLICINA (C) Isabella ACCARDO 77’), Leticia MCKENNA (Daniela GALIC 46’), Bryleeh HENRY (Emina EKIC 56’), Maria Jose ROJAS, Chelsea BLISSETT, Bryleeh HENRY

Unused subs: N/A

Feature image credit: Melbourne City