Charlestown Azzurri coach Heath Whyte concedes "it wasn't our cleanest" but was happy to open their 2024 account in NPLW Northern NSW with a win as they eye a quick turnaround and a sterner test on Tuesday night.
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Azzurri beat Adamstown 4-1 in round-two action at Lisle Carr Oval on Saturday afternoon and will back up against the Maitland Magpies, who lost 2-1 to Broadmeadow at Magic Park on Friday night, in their rescheduled opening-round exchange.
Charlestown took a 3-0 lead into the break after a clinical but not dominant first half and were already 4-0 up before Tori Johnson broke through in the 85th minute for Adamstown's first goal of the season.
Jess Gentle scored in the fifth and 65th minutes for a match brace and new recruit Sienna Fraser-Kelly (26th, 33rd) also bagged a double with goals in quick succession.
"We definitely tried to execute our style of play, it just didn't work for us all that well in the first half and that was just through player misunderstanding of Adamstown's structure and set-up," Whyte, who has taken the first-grade reins this year, said.
"We allowed Adamstown to have way too much possession in that first half but we took our chances. We had to wrestle the game back off them in the second half but then I thought we dominated possession quite well. I'm generally happy with that as a first hit-out. It's a nice base to build from.
"I'm expecting a tough hit-out on Tuesday night. If we can execute our style of play, we'll be more than competitive, and we're managing the fatigue so we're preparing as best we can in a very short space of time."
Versatile Lori Depczynski missed the match through suspension carried over from last season and is unavailable through work commitments on Tuesday night.
Strike weapon Sarah Halvorsen was out due to a back complaint but could be back in action against Maitland.
The Magpies will be missing captain Sophie Stapleford, who did not play Friday night after straining her quadriceps in the warm-up. The former Newcastle Jets forward is expected to be sidelined for a few weeks.
But midfielder Paige Kingston-Hogg, who was forced from the field midway through the second half against Broadmeadow due to a head knock, is expected to play.
Maitland coach Keelan Hamilton said the move to bring the former Jets midfielder off was precautionary.
The Magpies beat Magic 4-2 in the Charity Shield two weeks earlier but were on the back foot early on Friday night when Adriana Konjarski scored from close range in the opening minute after goalkeeper Arabella Thornton had blocked Chelsea Lucas' initial shot.
Maddy Howard equalised one minute before half-time with a good finish from directly in front after a well-timed run into the box to meet Georgia Amess' cross into the goalmouth.
But Magic midfielder Keziah White delivered the killer blow in the 66th minute after turning Maitland's Sophia Laurie then finishing at the near post from a tight angle.