They say ‘a New Year is a new me’, and for Melbourne Victory this is definitely the case.

Victory defeated the Brisbane Roar 4-1 in stunning style, which saw them secure their first win of the season and the first time they have beaten the Roar away.

It was a match that could have gone either way with the Roar previously losing two on the trot and the Victory coming close the week before against Canberra.

Brisbane Roar - Key Points and Players

They started the game strong with quick counter attacks and majority of the possession but a set piece from Victory saw them on the back foot.

It was 50/50 between the two sides until the second half started, and the Roar came out strong but it seemed as though they did not want the win as much as Victory did.

Katrina Gorry was once again everywhere on the pitch and lent a helping hand when her team needed her most. She was able to intercept passes in the midfield and bring the ball forward with just one simple pass.

While Brisbane was able to create opportunities in the front half of the pitch, the defence was anything but perfect.

The structures the Roar had formed in previous games and training were lacking. Easy balls were lost, miscommunication was a common occurrence in transition play and players would lose the ball and give up.

“Too many mistakes were made,” coach Melissa Andreatta said.

“[We need to be] working smart on our decision making so that we can prevent losing the ball but also in defence dealing with those nine’s who like to attack the space behind the centre backs and stopping that ball getting through but also dealing with it when it does,” she added.

Talking point

This is the Roar’s third loss in a row and they have almost conceded as many goals as they did at the end of the 2015/16 season and with three matches left to play they will need maximum points to secure a position in the finals. 

Melbourne Victory - Key Points and Players

They started the game slow, sat back deep to pressure the Roar in the final third and when they did get the ball they were on for a quick counter attack.

After the first goal, Victory grew in confidence and continued to pressure the Roar defence through Natasha Dowie and it paid off.

Dowie was ruthless in front of goal and tore the Roar defence apart as she was able to get in behind. She has caused problems for every defence in the league but Sunday was one of her best games. She is now equal top goalscorer in the league and holds the W-League record for most consecutive scoring matches.

Bianca Henninger stood firm between the posts, and would stop powerful shots time and time again without a problem. She was one of the best on the pitch Sunday afternoon and kept Victory in the game.

“The last three weeks we have been putting ourselves in positions to win games, and we’ve not really followed through,” coach Jeff Hopkins said.

“I think Tash [Natasha Dowie] has given every defence problems this year and look Bianca came in and did really well, she was under a bit of pressure because Beth [Mason-Jones] had been in for three-four weeks while she was out.”

Talking point

After a few unlucky losses, Victory surprised everyone by defeating the Brisbane Roar at home. They were clinical and showed that they can beat anyone on their day.

What’s next?

The Brisbane Roar women are playing a W-League/A-League double header at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday, 7 January against the Western Sydney Wanderers. Melbourne Victory will face Perth Glory on Sunday afternoon at Dorrien Gardens.

Brisbane Roar FC: (Chapman 42’)

Melbourne Victory FC: (Spiranovic 18’, Dowie 45’, 72, 93) 

Sunday 1 January 2017

AJ Kelly Park, Kippa-Ring

Kick-off: 4p (AEST) Referee: Lara Lee

Brisbane Roar FC: 1.Mackenzie ARNOLD (gk), 2.Nina FRAUSING-PEDERSEN, 3.Amy CHAPMAN (Allira TOBY 66’), 4.Clare POLKINGHORNE (c), 6.Angela BEARD (Brooke SPENCE 85’), 8.Kaitlyn TORPEY, 10.Katrina GORRY, 13.Tameka BUTT, 14.Summer O’BRIEN (Sunny FRANO 65’), 17.Emily GIELNIK, 18.Maddy EVANS

Unused substitutes: 20. Georgina Worth (gk)

Yellow cards: Angela Bear 55’, Sunny FRANCO 87’

Red cards: NIL 

Melbourne Victory FC: 1.Bianca HENNINGER (gk), 2.Alexandra NATOLI, 5.Alex GUMMER, 6.Annabel MARTIN, 9.Natasha DOWIE, 10.Christine NAIRN (c), 13.Laura SPIRANOVIC (Mindy BARBIERI 88’), 15.Adriana TARANTO (Ayesha NORRIE 79’), 16.Samantha JOHNSON, 17.Gulcan KOCA, 25.Kariah WHITE (Lia PRIVITELL 63’)

Unused substitutes: 20. Bethany MASON-JONES