Sydney FC have scored four goals in the second half to secure a 4-0 win over the Roar in the Ninja A-League on a rain-soaked Friday night at Spencer Park.
Chances were few and far between in the opening thirty minutes, with both sides struggling to put together attacks on a rainy pitch.
The Roar sparked into action after the 30-minute mark, with Aimee Medwin at the heart of a flurry of shots, all blocked by a determined Sydney defence.
In the 34th minute, Marianna Seidl’s looping cross found Daisy Brown, whose close-range shot was turned away by Sydney goalkeeper Heather Hinz. Moments later, the Roar attacked again, with Bente Jansen curling a cross in from the right wing. Angela Beard rose to meet it, but her header drifted just wide of the target.
The Roar couldn’t find the elusive breakthrough, and the sides went into the break with the 0-0 deadlock still intact.
Sydney came out firing in the second half, and in the 47th minute, following a corner, stalwart Mackenzie Hawkesby received the ball at close range. She found space with clever footwork and drilled a lashed low shot past Chloe Lincoln at the near post to give Sydney the 1-0 lead.
In the 59th minute, Sydney struck again. Abbey Lemon charged down the left wing and sliced in a low in-swinging cross across the box that found 15-year-old Willa Pearson, who drilled it into the net.
Five minutes later, down the other end, Momo Hayashi stepped up to take a free kick outside of the box. Her long-range set-piece effort forced a strong diving save from Hinz.
On the counterattack in the 67th minute, Sydney’s Riley Tanner surged down the left wing and lashed a low shot that crept inside the near post, giving Sydney a 3-0 lead.
The Roar kept pushing but were unable to reduce the deficit.
In stoppage time, Sydney’s Skye Halmarick latched onto a long ball, rounded Chloe Lincoln, and finished into an empty net to notch another goal for the visitors.
Moments later, the referee blew for full-time, sealing Sydney’s 4-0 win.
The Roar return to action at Spencer Park next Sunday evening to take on Adelaide United.
