Melbourne City handed out a lesson to the Western Sydney Wanderers in their round 12 clash on Sunday, with City bagging another four goals courtesy of Kim Little’s brace, and singles to Beattie Goad and Marianna Tabain.

Consistency

Almost like clockwork, City added three points and four goals to their tally. The points have become the norm. No team this season have beaten them or made them share points. The measure for City has been almost purely against themselves.

City’s early matches this season were exciting with blazing goals and flaming score lines. Tales of incredible feats such as defeating Sydney 6-0 in their opening encounter will be recalled for years to come.

Now times are tougher. Their own brilliance makes the spectators and fans want more, the bar to be raised even higher.

And so, when City spend so much time controlling the ball and the pace of play, only to falter at the final attempt, their frustration matches ours. They’re aiming for perfection. We want to see perfection.

This is the level we now expect and demand.

Still Learning

And yet, even with City as good as they are, they’re still learning. Just as their opposition are learning how to counter and lean in to their own games, City are striving to improve theirs.

Players are still fighting for positions, with Tabain, Alex Chidiac and Goad all given chances to prove their worth and delivering while other players, like Amy Jackson, are reinventing themselves.

“I’m constantly learning new things in that role [right back] and I’m being challenged. I’m training with the world’s best players and I’m getting the best out of myself“ Jackson said after the match.

Mistakes are still being made, with Larissa Crummer an obvious focus with her positioning and timing after a number of offside calls against her. Small improvement here, along with better communication in parts, will make City an even more formidable finals opponent.

Ridiculous Respect

It’s almost beyond belief how good Kim Little is, for it’s one thing to boss the midfield and it’s another to boss the goals … but bossing both just highlights what an exceptional player she is. Skilled and hardworking across the field, Little’s precision and power is just one of the keys of City’s domination.

Streaks & Stats for City

  • 11 wins from 11

  • Another clean sheet taking their streak to seven games (since round 4)

  • Top three goalscorers in the league belong to City (Crummer 11, Little 8, Tabain 6).

    Total of 25 goals from just these three players is more than Canberra’s total of 22 goals.

  • 21 consecutive unanswered goals

It’s not all bad news

For the Wanderers it wasn’t all bad news. Ellie Carpenter was again a standout, even taking Steph Catley to task and winning, something we don’t see that often.

Whilst occasionally criticised for playing Carpenter too much, Wanderers coach Norm Boardman allayed concerns by saying they manage her time well but “At the end of the day, you don’t get experience from sitting on the bench”.

Despite being beaten four times, Teigen Micah also stood tall on the day. In goal and under pressure from some of the world’s best, saving a number of opportunities is not something that comes easily.

Boardman was somewhat pleased with the result and complementary of City’s game.

“The positives were we stuck to a structure obviously allowing them to have a lot of the ball and that was part of the plan and try and catch them on the turnover” he said.

“They’re a pleasure to watch” Boardman commented, going so far as to quip to one of the Melbourne players, “How much do we owe you for the lesson?”

https://twitter.com/KeelinWinters/status/683520116860956672

Next Up

Melbourne City have a bye whilst the Wanderers, still with a slim chance of making the finals, are on the road for a huge clash against Canberra United.

Match Details

Melbourne City 4 (Kim Little 12’, 33’ pen, Beattie Goad 66’, Marianna Tabain 70’)

Western Sydney Wanderers 0

Sunday 3 January 2016

C.B. Smith Reserve, Fawkner, Melbourne

Kick-off: 2pm

Referee: Rachel Mitchenson

Melbourne City: Brianna Davey (gk), Alexandra Chidiac (Marianna Tabain 63’), Jennifer Beattie, Aivi Luik (Laura Alleway 46’), Steph Catley, Kim Little, Larissa Crummer, Jess Fishlock (c), Rebekah Stott, Amy Jackson, Beattie Goad (Anisa Guajardo 79’)

Substitutes – Trudy Burke (gk)

Cautions – none

Western Sydney Wanderers: Teagan Micah (gk), Caitlin Cooper, Carmelina Moscato, Chloe O’Brien Kendall Johnson, Erica Halloway, Michelle Carney, Keelin Winters (c), Hannah Beard (Elisa Ammendolia 70’), Ellie Carpenter, Jordan Baker (Liz Grey 70’)

Substitutes – Lisa Farrington (gk), Rachael Soutar

Cautions – none