The Youth League Report (Super Youth League) Round 9

At the moment, the top two clubs on the Club Championship table are holding down the top spots on the various age group tables but that can change so quickly because all the competitions are tight and a slip-up could prove very costly.
Club Championship
Frontrunners PCYC Parramatta would have been disappointed that they could take only five points from their home games against eighth placed Western Panthers while second placed Dulwich Hill inched closer to the leaders when they pocketed eight points from their home matches Spirit FC who dropped one place to fifth.
Third placed Central Coast Lightning were forced to split the points at seven apiece with seventh placed Blacktown Spartans and Northern Tigers climbed one spot to fourth when they took the full ration of points at home to twelfth placed Sydney Wanderers.
Macarthur Rams remained at sixth after they bagged ten points from the four games played at home against eleventh placed Southern NSW while ninth placed Schofields Scorpions had to settle for an even split of the points when they visited tenth placed Granville Rage.
Grade 13
There were some minor changes within the top five this week but other than that, the pecking order has remained pretty much intact. Whilst the top two teams have established a small buffer zone, the gap between third and seventh places narrowed from four points last week to three points this week and that is a further indication of just how tight this competition is at the moment.
PCYC Parramatta have shot out to a lead of three points thanks to their 3-0 win over tenth placed Western Panthers while Central Coast Lightning held onto second spot despite their 4-1 loss to Blacktown Spartans who have risen one place to fourth.
Northern Tigers moved up one position to third, three points behind Lightning, when they were 2-0 winners over eleventh placed Sydney Wanderers and Spirit FC tumbled from third to fifth following their 2-0 loss to sixth placed Dulwich Hill.
Macarthur Rams are still seventh after they won a five goal thriller by the odd goal over ninth placed Southern NSW and Schofields Scorpions remained at eight following their 3-0 success over twelfth placed Granville Rage.
Grade 14
There was no change to the appearance of the table this week due in large part to the fact that five of the six matches ended as draws. This competition is a far bit tighter than some folk think and you need no greater confirmation than this week?s results. It is worth mentioning that the top two teams are still unbeaten.
PCYC Parramatta saw their competition lead cut in half to two points when seventh placed Western Panthers held then to a 2-2 draw while second placed Northern Tigers posted a 2-0 win over eleventh placed Sydney Wanderers.
Dulwich Hill remained at third when they played out a scoreless draw with fifth placed Spirit FC and Central Coast Lightning are still fourth following their 1-1 draw with sixth placed Blacktown Spartans.
Granville Rage retained eighth position when they were held to a 1-1 draw by twelfth placed Schofields Scorpions while the match between ninth placed Macarthur Rams and tenth placed Southern NSW ended at 1-1.
Grade 15
While the frontrunners have earned a little buffer the race is already on in earnest for the remaining places in the top five and it is till so tight with such a long way to go that anything can and probably will still happen. At this stage it is impossible to write off any of the teams for a place in the finals series as the stringing together of a couple of wins can make a huge difference, and so could a couple of losses in a row.
Dulwich Hill took their competition lead to three points when they were 5-0 winners over tenth placed Spirit FC while PCYC Parramatta suffered their first loss of the season and they slipped back to third place when they went down 5-1 to Western Panthers who moved from third to take over second spot.
Macarthur Rams moved up one place to fourth when they registered a 2-0 victory over Southern NSW who have dropped one place to eighth and Schofields Scorpions also climbed one place to fifth with a 1-0 result over eleventh placed Granville Rage.
Central Coast Lightning tumbled from fourth to seventh following their surprising 2-1 loss to twelfth placed Blacktown Spartans who were recording their first three-pointer for the season while Northern Tigers shot up three places to sixth when they were 1-0 winners over Sydney Wanderers who have dropped one place to ninth.
Grade 16
Pssst! Do you want to see a tight competition? Well have a look at this one. Last week there was a margin of seven points between first and seventh places and now that has been reduced to a mere four points. Wow! The nerves will really be jangling over the next few weeks as every team tries to gain an important advantage over their nearest rivals.
PCYC Parramatta had their competition lead reduced to goal difference when they suffered a 2-0 loss to sixth placed Western Panthers while second placed Spirit FC missed the chance to take over the top spot when they were held to a 2-2 draw by Dulwich Hill who have dropped back one place to ninth.
Blacktown Spartans retained third spot despite their 2-1 loss to fifth placed Central Coast Lightning and Macarthur Rams are still fourth after they were 4-0 winners over eleventh placed Southern NSW.
Granville Rage climbed one place to eighth when they registered a 3-1 success over twelfth placed Schofields Scorpions while Northern Tigers remained at seventh following their 5-1 victory over tenth placed Sydney Wanderers.
Grade 18
This competition is becoming tighter with each passing round. Last week there were eight points between the first and seventh placed teams and this week that margin was reduced to six points. That has really set the stage for some exciting football over the coming weeks as each of the contestants seeks to gain an advantage over their rivals.
Dulwich Hill saw their competition lead cut from three points to goal difference when they suffered their first loss for the season, a 4-2 result against Spirit FC who moved up two places to third while second placed Central Coast Lightning inched closer to the leaders with a 3-1 victory over tenth placed Blacktown Spartans.
Schofields Scorpions slipped back two places to fifth when they were beaten 3-0 by ninth placed Granville Rage and Macarthur Rams remained at fourth when their match against twelfth placed Southern NSW was not played.
Northern Tigers climbed one place to sixth thanks to their 1-0 victory over eleventh placed Sydney Wanderers while PCYC Parramatta dropped back one place to seventh when they played out a scoreless draw with eighth placed Western Panthers.
-By Barry Davis