SOCCER WRAP | City women continue their strong start

Ballarat City's women have picked up their third win of the State League 1 season with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Caroline Springs George Cross on Sunday afternoon.

It's been an outstanding start to the season for Ballarat City back in State League 1 with their third win from five matches, four of which have been on the road. The positive result moves Ballarat City to fourth on the ladder with a host of home games to come.

Coach Tessa Patrikeos said with the development squad winning 5-1 as well, it was a good day out for the club.

"It was a slow first half, we didn't handle their pressure overly well and gave the ball up too much," she said.

"We were fairly lucky to go 1-0 up at half time through a Tayte Fraser goal.

"We improved a lot in the second half and created a lot more goal scoring opportunities. Amy Whiting gave us the 2-1 win with an magnificent long range free kick."

Ballarat City finally get a chance to return home this coming weekend when it plays host to Craigieburn City, another team which has three wins from its five games, although it has -3 goal difference. It then goes on the road again for a fifth time in seven rounds when its clashes with Clifton Hill.

Ballarat City Men 1 def by Sydenham Park 4

Ballarat City men have tumbled down to seventh on the State League 1 ladder, unable to handle the power and precision of Sydenham Park in Saturday clash at Morshead Park, going down 4-1.

Michael Trigger's goal was the only joy for the home side which was unable to get into a rhythm as the visitors scored early.

A victory would have seen City move as high as third on the table, given the even nature of the competition this season, but the loss leaves them in seventh place with 10 points.

Coach Trigger said it was a tough night at the office.

"We just left ourselves too much to do after the poor start really," he said. "They deserved the win and played well, definitely one of the better teams we have faced."

Next weekend's contest with Corio now takes on a significant factor for City, with Corio sitting just one point behind the Ballarat team on the table. A win, will lift City clear of the chasing pack, while another loss could leave them in a precarious position on the ladder nearing the half-way point of the season.

Sebastopol Vikings 0 def by Heidelberg Eagles 2

The high-scoring Sebastopl VIkings have come back to earth with a thud, going goalless in heir loss to Heidelberg Eagles on Saturday afternoon.

It was a costly defeat for the Vikings as they could have found themselves knocking of the door of the top team, now, with just one loss they have fallen four points behind and struggling to stay in touch with the top teams in the league.

The Vikings struggled to get their game going early, giving up both goals in the first half. Even when Heidelberg Eagles were reduced to 10 men with the red carding of goal scorer Abdoul Aziz Gueye, the Viking still were unable to find an avenue to goal.

It's been a muddling year for the Vikings, but they would fancy themselves a big chance of getting three points on the board this coming weekend with a clash against Sunbury United on the road.

Ballarat SC 1 def by Bendigo City 2

Ballarat SC has slipped a rung on the State League 5 ladder, going down narrowly to Bendigo City on Saturday afternoon.

Despite another goal from the in-form Brendan Pym, Ballarat was unable to hold out the home side who scored twice in the second half through Lewis Merriman and Sam Farr.

The loss, on the back of a strong win last weekend against Wyndham, leaves Ballarat in second last position on the ladder, but the six points gained on the season has them well clear of the bottom team Tarneit United who they host in the round nine clash next weekend.

Heading into round five of the Ballarat District Soccer Association season, three teams had yet to drop a point, but the end of a thrilling weekend, all three had dropped points.

Creswick, Vikings and Ballarat North United had all gone through the early rounds in sublime form, but now just two teams remain unbeaten, and no-one is perfect after the Vikings and North United played out a high-quality 2-2 draw on Friday night.

In a strange quirk of scheduling, three matches were played on Friday night with the big upset occurring with Ballarat's 4-0 win over Creswick. It was also a goal feast for Forest Rangers who slammed home eight goals against Victoria Park with Joseph Walsh scoring a hat-trick for the winners. Sunday's only game was a 2-2 draw between Maryborough and Bacchus Marsh.

In the women's competition, it was Vikings that underscored their competition favouritism with a 7-0 win over Ballarat North United. Forest Rangers were untroubled, putting 16 goals on the board against Victoria Park while BallaraT White had a 6-1 win over Creswick, capping a great weekend for the club.