Super League Round 22 Review – Rockdale City Suns Crowned Premiers for 2009
Spirit FC, Sydney University and St George claimed the other finals positions and their season will continue into next weekend.
For Fraser Park, it is goodbye to Super League, at least for the time being, as they just couldn?t quite manage the victory they needed at Macarthur. But for the Rams, the lost points against Fraser Park put paid to their finals hopes.
Juan Chavez of St George finished top scorer, and claimed the Golden Boot with an emphatic four goals against FC Bossy to finish the season on 25 ahead of Troy Eedy of Mount Druitt. Chavez also scored four on the opening day of the season, and while challenged by Eedy all the way, Chavez was never headed.
Rockdale v Central Coast Lightning
The champagne corks were popping at Rockdale after the Suns snared the Premiership with a hard fought 2-0 win over Central Coast. It was the final act in a battle in which both Rockdale and PCYC Parramatta have fought head to head over the past month but today it was the Suns who triumphed.
Cameron Jones set the scene when he scored with a half volley from just outside the box and though Central Coast worked hard, it was unlikely that Rockdale would lose the title from here.
And when Goce Trposki made it 2-0 with a spectacular strike with thirteen minutes left, the celebrations had all but started.
Mile Todorovski, who won the Grand Final with FC Bossy last season, was ecstatic after the win.
?This has exceeded my expectations. It has been very hard work to put together players from three or four clubs and sort them into one team. But we have done it and I am very happy.?
?The season has been like a marathon, twenty two rounds over the six months. And it was a photo finish, just a few goals in it?.
But Rockdale, after last week?s loss to Macarthur, had thought their chance had gone.
?There was big silence after last week?s game. But when we heard that Parramatta had lost too, some were ready to celebrate. But I said there is no time to celebrate, there is still hard work to do?.
For Todorovski, it felt it was time that he was favoured. ?I have lost many times on goal difference. In 2003, I was coach here at Rockdale and we just missed the semis on goal difference. I lost my job?.
?In 2004, when I was at Bossy, we came third on goal difference when equal with two other teams, today is like revenge?.
Rockdale City Lions 2 (Cameron Jones 30?, Goce Trpoksi 77?) v Central Coast Lightning 0
Mount Druitt Rangers v PCYC Parramatta
PCYC Parramatta pushed all the way against Mount Druitt in their last ditched attempt to snatch the title from Rockdale?s grasp.
Parramatta were determined to get a result, and score goals, and completely outplayed the home side, who were still fighting for their Super League lives. Ben Delicata got the ball rolling for the visitors when he struck from just outside the box, neatly scoring in the bottom left within the first ten minutes.
The pressure was maintained and Matthew Clowes got the second just before half time.
But try as they might, Parramatta couldn?t increase the lead after the break, despite creating numerous chances.
But as coach Jason Falzon stated after the game, it was a familiar tale.
?We are creating chance after chance, but we are just not finishing. It has been the same problem for the past four to six weeks, we simply haven?t scored enough goals. While we have lost three of our four strikers in this time, it is still a little disappointing. But we completely outplayed Mount Druitt today, they weren?t in the game?.
While acknowledging that the Premiership was the main focus, PCYC haven?t lost sight of the upcoming finals.
?We won the Club Championship and we feel that we deserve to be rewarded. We will be ready for next week?.
Mount Druitt Town Rangers 0 v PCYC Parramatta 2 (Ben Delicata 6, Matthew Clowes 44?)
Macarthur Rams v Fraser Park
It was do-or?die for Fraser Park as they travelled to Lynwood Park to meet Macarthur Rams in a match which would determine their Super League future.
Nothing less than a win would give Fraser Park any chance of staying up while the Rams needed all three points to ensure themselves of a top five position. So there was all to play for for both sides and it was the visitors who started the better and indeed, took the lead through Alex Smith after twenty five minutes.
This lead gave Fraser Park a lifeline, and with Mount Druitt already behind against PCYC Parramatta Eagles by this time, it was looking good for Fraser.
But the Rams had other ideas and Daniel Fogarty drew the Rams level just after the half hour.
Both teams went hammer and tongs for the remainder of the game, with good chances to both sides. Perhaps the best fell to Fogarty, again, when deep into added time and in acres of space, his attempted lob fell gratefully into the Fraser Park keeper?s hands.
It was a heartbreaking end for both sides as the draw did neither team a favour, with the Rams falling short of the semis while Fraser Park will now drop down to Division One.
Macarthur Rams 1 (Daniel Fogarty 31?) v Fraser Park 1 (Alex Smith 25?)
St George Saints V FC Bossy Liverpool
There was no doubting St George?s intentions as they put FC Bossy to the sword in a 5-0 shellacking. Behind both Macarthur Rams and Sydney University on goal difference prior to the start of play, the Saints were after goals from the outset as they sought that elusive finals position.
Top marksman Juan Chavez, also, was keen to grab the Golden Boot, and he got St George off to a fine start when he netted after thirteen minutes, the bouncing ball deceiving Chad Taylor.
Taylor played a part in the second, bringing down Tanju Balabanel for a penalty just five minutes later. Chavez made no mistake to put the Saints two nil up early.
As Bossy panicked, Balabanel grabbed St George?s third, two minutes after that, and it looked like it could be brutal. But the visitors regathered their composure and David Wilson turned superbly to test Daniel Nash, who tipped the goalbound effort away for a corner.
Taylor too, performed some heroics, denying Chavez but it was never going to be anything other than St George?s day. The sending off to Danny Chiandotto, midway through the second half for deliberate handball as the last defender, only helped the Saints.
Two goals in the last ten minutes, both to Chavez, nailed the score but St George still searched for a sixth, knowing that one more goal would leapfrog them over Sydney Uni. But for some excellent keeping from Taylor, it surely would have come.
In the end, the 5-0 was to prove sufficient, and as the score was confirmed from Lynwood Park, the St George dressing room erupted.
St George 5 (Juan Chavez 14?, 18? pen, 83?, 86?, Tanju Balabanel 20?) v FC Bossy Liverpool
Sydney University v Granville Rage
Sydney University grabbed fourth spot and a home semi final with a tight 1-0 win over Granville Rage.
It was a single goal to Emiliano Vigliante, just after half time, which secured the result but not without a lot of effort on Uni?s part. Granville Rage were certainly up for the task of denying Uni and while their own season may have ended, the Rage were enjoying playing their part in the end of season?s dramas.
As it stood at half time, Uni were in sixth spot and living dangerously, but Vigliante?s goal in the 50th minute got the Students the result they needed, and ultimately deserved.
Sydney University 1 (Emiliano Vigliante 50?) v Granville Rage 0
Northern Tigers v Spirit FC
Spirit FC made sure of third spot with a comfortable 2-0 win away to Northern Tigers, who continued their horror run and must be glad to see the season over.
Spirit?s leading striker, Tim Simpson scored his fifteenth of the season in the first half to take outright third in the Super League scoring charts and Spirit maintained this lead until halftime.
Greek Import Leon Papanicolaou sealed the victory thirteen minutes from time. It has been an impressive season for the team from Christie Park, who have made the finals in their first Super League season.
Northern Tigers 0 v Spirit FC 2 (Tim Simpson 23?, Leon Papanicolaou 77?)
-By Peter Rowney
