Bonnyrigg and West Sydney Berries end the year with a draw
Aheleas Kotsopoulos celebrated his 400th match for the club, but the White Eagles gatecrashed the Berries party to hold out their opponents at Lidcombe Oval on Sunday.
With both clubs? semi-final hopes dead and buried for season 2009, there was very little up for grabs in the round 22 fixture.
In a physical opening to the match, it was Andre Gumprecht who stood out in the early passages, showing his class with several deft touches and attacking raids on the Berries goal.
West Sydney?s Chris Gaitatzis tried his luck from the edge of the box, but his effort strayed high and wide of the intended target.
Gaitatzis was given a second chance moments later when he drilled a powerful low shot into the direction of Bonnyrigg goalkeeper Nenad Vekic.
But a diving Vekic deflected the ball towards Dimitri Zakilas who made no mistake guiding the ball into an empty goal, only to be called back for an offside infringement.
Bonnyrigg?s best chance of the afternoon came after 30? minutes when Steven Bozinovski made a run down field, but his shot from close range was brought to a halt by a brilliant diving effort from Hamish McClean.
Kotsopoulos was desperate to gain the ascendancy heading into the half-time break, dashing down the left flank before sending a ball across goal in the direction of Zakilas, but Vekic again denied the homeside by intercepting the cross.
The Berries snared the first few opportunities of the second-half, but Ryan Jones and Gaitatzis failed to direct their shots on target.
Zakilas tried to show his team-mates how it was done, beating Graeme Forbes in the last line of defence, but Vekic put his body on the line to again deny the home side in the 65? minute.
The Berries dominated the first part of the second period, but it was the final pass which brought about their downfall, struggling to crack Bonnyrigg?s final line of defence.
Aleksander Draca went on the counter attack for the White Eagles after a West Sydney free-kick, but unfortunately for the visitors he was unable to capitalise on a three on one situation, squandering a golden opportunity to take the lead.
There was very little desperation showed in the final stages, with both sides more than happy to round out the year with a hard fought draw.
Berries assistant coach Matthew Ribarovski said the players and officials were looking forward to the off-season:
?It?s been a very long year for us this season,? he said.
?We will keep the core of the squad and bolster a couple of positions and look to make the top five next year.
?Both sides tried hard but it was just one of those games where all both teams were playing for was sixth and eighth position.?
Bonnyrigg coach Brian Brown was disappointed to miss out on the finals but is looking forward to a hard earned rest:
?I feel as tired as the players,? Brown said.
?It?s hard to be critical of the players playing on a pitch like that but I was pleased with their effort.
?I?m very happy with the young boys who have stepped, David Gullo played his first game today and didn?t look out of place.?
Brown believes 2010 could be a big year for the club.
?The club has the potential to be one of the strong teams in the Premier League if not the strongest,? he said.
?It?s our job to get the right players who have the fire in the belly, the enthusiasm and desire to do that for Bonnyrigg.?
When asked who had been the best for the White Eagles this year, Brown had no hesitation in saying Paul Cotte.
?He has been the best player in the competition in my mind,? he said.
?I could not speak higher of him because he is as good as anyone I have seen.?
Match Stats
West Sydney Berries 0
Bonnyrigg White Eagles 0
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Lidcombe Oval, Lidcombe.
Referee: Adam Weir
Assistant Referees: Scott Edelirs and Gareth Askham
Fourth Official: Stephen Luca
Crowd: 350 Approx.
Bonnyrigg White Eagles: 1.Nenad Vekic; 2.Paul Cotte, 3.Graeme Forbes, 4.David Gullo, 9.Vlado Kurtuma (11.Almir Dizdaric 45?), 12.Andre Gumprecht, 15.Steven Bozinovski, 17.Milorad Simonovic, 14.Domenic Cutri, 6.Ilkay Gurbuz (7.Aleksander Draca 68?), 20.Milan Zoric, (19.Marko Miljkovic 86?)
Substitutes Not Used: 5.Mark D?Alessandro, 8.Daniel Willougby
Yellow Cards: Milan Zoric 84?
Red Cards: Nil
West Sydney Berries: 1.Hamish McClean; 2.Marjan Novotni, 3.Omar Saadi, 5.Daniel Clifford, 6.Jack Sobczyk, 11.Aheleas Kotsopoulos, 16.Kosta Lagoudakis (31.Shayne Morissey 83?), 17.Chris Gaitatzis (23.Stefan De Jesus 75?), 10.John Tsironis (14.Liam Austin 84?), 19.Dimitri Zakilas, 15.Ryan Jones
Substitutes Not Used: 22.T.Allen, 12.Stefan Donevski
Yellow Cards: Nil
Red Cards: Nil
-By Michael Chammas
