Melbourne City star Holly McNamara scored a classy hat-trick to inspire her side to a 4-3 win over Adelaide United on Sunday afternoon, as the league-leaders broke the Ninja A-League’s all-time unbeaten streak record.
City came into the game with an equal share of the league’s undefeated streak of 18 games but made that record their own with the slender win over a Premiership rival; City have now gone 19 games without defeat this season, with Saturday’s win extending their lead at the top of the table to five points over Melbourne Victory.
Adelaide began the afternoon just four points behind City in third and despite pushing City all the way at ctrl:cyber Pitch, the Reds failed to find an all-important fourth goal as a big chance to close in on top spot went begging for Adrian Stenta’s side.
McNamara scored her first two goals in the first half before adding a third in the second; Adelaide scored through Ella Tonkin, Erin Healy and Zoe Tolland but a Lucia Leon own goal helped City score four goals to the Reds’ three in a seven-goal thriller.
City took just 10 minutes to open the scoring at ctrl:cyber Pitch and it was Holly McNamara who got the hosts on top with a tap-in from close range after a free-kick from Tyla-Jay Vlajnic saved by Adelaide keeper Claudia Jenkins into the path of the CommBank Matildas star.
Adelaide had several half-chances to get back on level terms but just before the half-hour mark it was City who scored again. McNamara was at the double after Lourdes Bosch’s driving run down the right wing as the hosts took a commanding lead.
Adelaide then fought back into the contest just as Ella Tonkin halved the deficit at the end of a chaotic sequence in City’s defensive box – but the hosts restored their two-goal advantage shortly before half-time thanks to an unfortunate own goal by Reds import Lucia Leon.
The seesawing action continued after the break as Erin Healy made things interesting with a fine finish from the edge of the area, buried into the bottom-left corner to make it 3-2 at ctrl:cyber Pitch.
The concession of a fourth goal did little to blunt Adelaide’s attacking intent and in the 73rd minute, Zoe Tolland’s first-ever Ninja A-League goal brought the Reds back to within one goal of City at 4-3.
But the visitors couldn’t muster an all-important fourth goal to equalise at ctrl:cyber Pitch as City clung on to win the seven-goal thriller and make Ninja A-League history with a 19th consecutive game without defeat.
