Wollongong sneaks past Rams
The game was delicately poised at the beginning with both sides showing signs of great passing and well-held possession.
The first real strike of the game came in the 3? minute when Macarthur?s Jason Lewis attempted to chip the keeper with a long-range effort from 30-metres, only for his shot to just miss the crossbar; it was an early scare for Wollongong FC goalkeeper Justin Pasfield.
In the 5? minute Wollongong FC’s defensive midfielder Steve Hayes nearly opened proceedings but his shot from 20 meters out just missed the crossbar.
Both teams were looking good at the early stages however Wollongong FC were making more from their possession, in the 9? minute, Lachlan Cahill made a great run down the middle, then putting in a great pass to Osagie Ederaro who moved inside the defender only for his shot to just sail over the crossbar.
Macarthur was struggling to make any real great progress with their possession until the 15? minute. Macarthur?s Sam Mort put in a low cross from the left side which passed Wollongong?s defensive line, only for Renato Jelen?s shot from the right hitting the outside of the net.
Wollongong FC had the best chance of the first-half in the 20? minute when some great link-up play by Steve Hayes led to a great cross in the middle only for Daniel Aliffi?s shot to hit the left post.
Wollongong FC’s Steve Hayes and Ballamadou Conde were proving to be a nuisance for the Macarthur defence.
Macarthur?s Matt Toogood was proving the most effective for the Rams, linking up well with Sam Mort and Daniel McCann.
This led to a Macarthur opportunity in the 30? minute when Toogood?s free-kick from the right side was met by Sam Mort only for his shot to sail over the bar.
In the 33? minute Toogood?s corner from the left side met Jason Lewis only for his shot to just pass the right side post.
Just before half-time, Toogood?s cross this time met Sam Mort only for his header to just miss the goal; Macarthur was dominating the latter stages of the first-half.
The first 10 minutes of the second-half was all Wollongong as again Steve Hayes was involved, this time he hit a shot just outside the 18-yard box; however Macarthur?s keeper Brody Crane was alert and made a great save.
From the resulting corner Wollongong FC looked to catch the Macarthur defence napping however Mitchell Long?s shot just missed the right side of goal.
The early second-half pressure from Wollongong FC proved costly for the Macarthur defence when a 55? minute cross inside the packed 18-yard box was well dealt with by former Nigeran youth international striker Osagie Ederaro to put the visitors 1-0 in front.
Macarthur was trying to keep it together with Matt Toogood again in the thick of it when his shot from a free kick in 66? minute just sailed over the crossbar.
The Rams were beginning to look unorganised and frustration kicked in when Adam Wither was shown a controversial second yellow card after he collided with a Wollongong FC player.
Macarthur seemed to increase the pressure and they were nearly rewarded after Daniel McCann?s powerful free kick from 20-meters out just sailed over the crossbar.
The Rams were putting a lot of pressure on the Wolves in the final five minutes however it was Wollongong FC?s goalscorer Osagie Ederaro that nearly put in his second for the night, when he beat Brody Crane only for his shot to be cleared off the line by Macarthur?s Jason Lewis.
However, despite the late pressure from the Rams the night solely belonged to the visitors with a vital 1-0 to give themselves three points and two straight wins in the TeleChoice Premier League.
Wollongong FC Assistant Coach Tony Pace commented his side?s performance following the match:
?I thought tonight we showed great courage in a tough game, I think with two wins in a row we should be happy however we still need to stay concentrated and take care of the ball more so that we can create more chances.
?This is a great step for us, however we need to need to improve in-front of goal; we create a lot of the chances, now all we have to do is convert them to the back of the net?.
Match Stats
Macarthur Rams 0
Wollongong FC 1 (Osagie Ederaro 55?)
Venue: Campbelltown Sports Ground, Saturday 15th March
Macarthur Rams: Brody Crane, Adel El Jamal, Jason Lewis (Hugo Coronel 50?), David Gardiner, Matt Toogood, Sam Mort (Craig Cooley 70?), Daniel McCann, Andrew Keady, Adam Wither, Paul Crisp, Renato Jelen (Shannon Hankin 80?).
Subs not used: Matthew Kasbarian
Yellow Cards: 19 Paul Crisp, 17 Adam Wither, 15 Andrew Keady
Red Cards: 17 Adam Wither
Wollongong Wolves: Justin Pasfield, Alfredo Esteves, Lachlan Cahill, Michael West, Steve Hayes, Danial Cummins, Tynan Diaz, Mitchell Long (Chris Price 90?), Daniel Aliffi (Ilija Prenzoski70?), Osagie Ederaro, Ballamadou Conde).
Subs not used: Ben Blake, Matt Bailey
Yellow cards: 4 Michael West
Red Cards: Nil
Referee: Jonathan Streater
Player Ratings:
3 – Steve Hayes (WFC)
2 – Matt Toogood (MR)
1 – Osagie Ederaro (WFC)
-By Johnny Casni
