Stallions crowned Under 20s Champions with victory over Sydney Olympic

The 2-0 win for Ben Dehaan?s outfit ? courtesy of goals from Daniel Ott and Graziano Trimboli – clinched yet another youth title for the West Sydney club, who has a proud tradition of player development within Australian football.
The Stallions dominated a noticeably lethargic Sydney Olympic outfit, who rarely threatened goalkeeper James Chronopoulos and ultimately undone by a lapse in concentration in defence, which allowed Trimboli to take possession inside the penalty area and slide the ball into the back of the net, burying any chance of an Olympic revival with just under ten minutes remaining.
Marconi had taken an early first-half lead through Daniel Ott, who produced a brilliant curling effort that beat an outstretched Olympic goalkeeper. It was a blow from which Sydney never seemed to fully recover, with Marconi largely monopolising scoring opportunities, coming close on 35? minutes when Brodie Mooy stormed into the penalty-area unchallenged before blazing the ball high and wide from a narrow angle.
Sydney Olympic were almost the architects of their own downfall just five minutes before the break, as David Smith almost sent the ball into his own net when he stretched to intercept a stray back-pass from his own team-mate, almost diverting it beyond a wrong-footed shot-stopper. To the relief of coach Pat Morando, the ball trickled wide of the goalkeeper?s left post.
Morando attempted to change the pattern of the game by introducing Stefan De Jesus and Reuben Lagos at half-time but the move did little to disrupt a confident Marconi outfit, who almost put the game beyond Olympic?s reach in the 66? minute.
Substitute Graziano Trimboli managed to get to the by-line on the left-flank before deftly chipping the ball towards the back-post, where an unmarked Timothy McGowan blasted his first-time volley over the bar.
Olympic then almost proceeded to gift Marconi the Championship, as some suicidal defending saw the Sydney outfit unable to clear the ball properly, allowing it to fall to Marconi man Brodie Mooy inside the penalty box, who disappointingly dragged his shot wide under no pressure.
It was a miss which almost came back to haunt the Stallions, as just moments later Olympic hit the cross-bar with a flick-on header but it was to be the last time Morando?s men truly threatened Chronopoulos in the Marconi goal.
The West Sydney outfit was contrastingly dangerous and they almost doubled their lead in spectacular fashion with eight minutes left on the clock. The impressive Stefan Donesvki latched onto a long ball on the left side of the penalty-area, where the Sydney Olympic goalkeeper had committed and followed the Marconi striker. As the custodian back-tracked towards goal, Donevski attempted to lob him and the ball barely cleared the crossbar with only a single Olympic defender left on the goal-line.
Marconi confirmed their status as champions in the final minutes of the match, as a defensive error that epitomised Sydney Olympic?s afternoon gave the Stallions the title. A mistake by Stamatellis at the back eventually was pounced upon by Marconi, with the ball falling to Trimboli who from inside the area made no mistake, coolly slotting the ball home and assuring that the Grade 20 TeleChoice Championship Series trophy would be finding its way back to Sydney?s West.
-By Chris Paraskevas