Matildas At Home Review: Gielnik makes return for Victory; Kellond-Knight makes 100th appearance

Emily Gielnik made her much-anticipated return to football, marking 234 days since the forward last played a competitive match. At the same time, Elise Kellond-Knight made her 100th appearance to help Victory to their first win of the season. 

Read our review below of the Matildas at Home action. 

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Wellington Phoenix made it back-to-back wins when they hosted Tameka Yallop's Brisbane Roar, with Yallop starting for the visitors. The hosts got on the scoreboard early through Mariana Speckmaier, giving the Nix a 1-0 lead in the 6th minute. 

Annalie Longo came off the bench to make her debut for Wellington, getting on the scoresheet with five minutes left of regular time. Roar clawed a goal back in the fourth minute of stoppage time with Mia Corbin scoring her first for the club. However, it was not enough as Brisbane suffered their first defeat of the season. 

Jenna McCormick of the Roar appeals to referee Georgia Ghirardello during the A-League Women round three match between Wellington Phoenix and Brisbane Roar at Sky Stadium, on November 04, 2023, in Wellington, New Zealand. (Photo by Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images)

A five-goal thriller was played in the Nation's capital as Perth Glory made the trip east to face Canberra United. Glory skipper Tash Rigby opened the scoring 12 minutes into the encounter before Cannon Clough netted the equaliser for United four minutes later. 

New Zealand international Grace Gale restored Perth's lead, scoring against her former side. United equalised once again with Vesna Milivojević scoring from the spot to send the teams into the break at 2-2. Sofia Sakalis scored a penalty of her own in the second half to give Perth a 3-2 victory, continuing their unbeaten streak to the season. 

All eyes were on the 'Original Rivalry' as Melbourne Victory and Adelaide United were on the hunt for their first victories of the season. Lydia Williams and Elise Kellond-Knight made the start for the hosts, with the latter making her 100th A-League Women's appearance. 

Goals to McKenzie Weinert and Kayla Morrison gave Victory a 2-0 win over the Reds, Victory's first win of the season. Emily Gielnik came off the bench for the hosts, making her return to football after 234 days on the sideline through injury.

Chloe Logarzo’s Western United clawed back a point as they hosted Melbourne City in another derby. Western's Hannah Keane gave the hosts the lead just six minutes into the game. City would need to wait until the second half to net the equaliser, with Holly McNamara drawing the side's level. 

Hannah Wilkinson looked to have scored the matchwinner for City when she added her name to the scoresheet with 15 minutes of regular time remaining. However, Western clawed back the equaliser to seal a point with Kahli Johnson's shot from outside the box drawing the side's level. 

Lastly, Newcastle Jets and Western Sydney Wanderers played out a 1-1 draw. Wanderers took the lead through Vicky Bruce in the 75th minute, however, in the 2nd minute of stoppage time, Cass Davis scored the equaliser with a stunning volley. 

The game saw history made as the Wanderers' Ischia Brooking became the youngest player to play in the league at 14 years, 11 months and 13 days, breaking Talia Younis' record she set a week prior for the same club. 

You can catch all of the A-League Women's action live and free on 10Play, or on Paramount+.

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This article was originally published on the CommBank Matildas website.
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