Cardiff City got their revenge on Cardiff Met, as they hammered the Archers 9-0, to go one win away from the Adran Premier title.
Four goals for Eliza Collie, a brace for Rhianne Oakley, and one goal each for Danielle Broadhurst, Seren Watkins, and Meg Bowen made it an incredibly comfortable afternoon for the Bluebirds, against an Archers team who didn’t turn up at all.
The result means if Cardiff City beat TNS next week at the Cardiff International Sports Campus, they will win their first league title in a decade.
Met set up in the same formation as last week in the Adran Trophy final, a formation that caused the Bluebirds a headache all game long. They weren’t falling for the same trick twice today, however.
Six minutes in and City put themselves ahead. A cross from, who else, but Ffion Price found the head of Danielle Broadhurst, who stretched her neck out superbly to head home.
Ten minutes later they were given a golden opportunity to double their lead. Sophie Davidson fouled Broadhurst right on the edge of the area. It was certainly a foul, and the referee deemed that it was in the box, to the astonishment of the Archers players. Seren Watkins confidently stepped up and struck home to double the lead.
From an Met standpoint, the game was in danger of emulating the league fixtures between these two; City controlling possession, with Met struggling to get out of their half. Two goals in within three minutes of each other really hammered that reality home.
Firstly, Price did brilliantly to hustle Ellie Preece and win the ball back, before producing one of her trademark crosses, and this time found the head of Elize Collie, who made it three.
With her strike partner having scored one, Rhianne Oakley could smell an opportunity to get on the scoresheet, and she found her goal. A great pass from Watkins split the Met defence, allowing Oakley to use her speed to get in behind and finish at the near post to make it four. This was becoming a rout.
With one goal now under her belt, Oakley wasted no time in getting another on the stroke of half time. A dinked ball by Broadhurst allowed the forward to run onto it and easily finish past Amelia Forkings, as the Bluebirds went back into the dressing room with five goals to their name.
You could sense at the beginning of the second half that City were happy with their five-goal lead, and perhaps took their foot slightly off the gas, but that didn’t stop Collie from grabbing her second. Manon Pearce with a well weighted ball in behind to Collie, who made no mistake with the finish.
It was becoming a memorable day for the youngster, and she scored her first senior hat-trick five minutes after scoring her second, meeting Price’s corner with a thumping header. This was becoming embarrassing for the Archers.
Met were simply not learning their lessons as the Bluebirds capitalised on another corner. Yet again, Price’s delivery was headed home, this time by Meg Bowen.
Many of the goals were almost carbon copies of each other, and the ninth was no different. A ball through cutting the defence wide open, this time supplied by Lily Billingham, and the forward executing a composed finish by the keeper. That finish came from Collie, who had four for the afternoon.
Truth be told, City could’ve had more than nine, but nonetheless it was a truly deserved win for the hosts.
Player of the Match: Eliza Collie
There was a wealth of talent out on the pitch today. Ffion Price and Danielle Broadhurst deserve a mention, but what a day for Collie. Her finishing ability was on show, but also she ran for every loose ball, never gave up when going in for a tackle, and she fully deserved her goals.
Cardiff City
Ceryn Chamberlain (GK) (Emily Roberts, 59’), Ffion Price, Hannah Power, Siobhan Walsh © (Michaela Major, 65’), Rhianne Oakley (Catherine Walsh, 59’), Seren Watkins (Zoe Atkins, 59’), Danielle Broadhurst (Lily Billingham, 65’), Danielle Green, Meg Bowen, Manon Pearce, Eliza Collie
Goals: Danielle Broadhurst (6’), Seren Watkins (17’ p), Eliza Collie (35’, 61’, 66’, 83’), Rhianne Oakley (38’, 45’), Meg Bowen (76’)
Cardiff Met
Amelia Forkings (GK), Sophie Davidson (Kennesha Nanette, 66’), Grace Corne (Eve Pearson, 17’), Steph Turner ©, Sophie Hancocks, Tiggi Webb, Tija Richardson, Erin Murray, Emily Allen, Ellie Preece, Grace Batsford
Unused Subs: Charlotte Smith, Annabel Carr, Lauren Hibbert
Yellow Cards: Tiggi Webb (32’)
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