The Youth League Report (Premier Youth League) Finals Series Review round 2

The football produced under these do-or-die circumstances was superb and a real tribute to the skill and application of the teams involved despite the fact that the ever-increasing wind strength threatened to reek havoc.
We will now gather together at Marconi Stadium on this coming Saturday for the 2009 Grand Finals and judging by the quality of play we have seen over the course of this season, each and every game promises to produce something very special.
Preliminary Finals
Grade 13
Wollongong FC had won the first round game against Blacktown City Demons with a very solid 5-1 result but the Demons recovered from that setback to win the second round clash 1-0.
This time there was very little between the teams as they went at each other from the very first whistle. Wollongong found the net early on but the goal was ruled out for off-side and then the Demons scored a goal that counted through K. Ly in the 12^th minute.
Wollongong went in search of an equaliser while the Blacktown were looking for a way to add to their lead and the defences at both ends held firm under the pressure. Wollongong had an excellent chance to even the scores when they were awarded a penalty kick. However, when two attackers encroached into the penalty area the kick was retaken unsuccessfully.
The very last lick of the game produced the equaliser Wollongong needed and Blacktown dreaded when a strike from A. Calver found the mark and so extra time was required to settle the issue.
It was here that the lads from the south coast came to the fore when Calver gave Wollongong a 2-1 lead and then T. McDonald extended the lead to 3-1 with a converted penalty kick six minutes into the second period.
That was enough to give Wollongong the second spot in the Grand Final where they will meet Sydney Olympic while Blacktown have bowed out of the finals after distinguishing themselves with several outstanding performance including this game.
Grade 14
When they met in the first round of the competition Blacktown City Demons were 1-0 winners over Sutherland Sharks but then the Sharks took the second round points with a 1-0 win of their own. The team had met in the Preliminary Semi Final and the Sharks were 2-1 winners on that occasion.
As expected, this was titanic struggle from beginning to end with both teams realising that this was a high risk encounter from which only one of them could emerge victorious. The result was a highly entertaining match with the action flowing smoothly from one end to the other.
The Sharks made a breakthrough just before the interval thanks to a strike from N. Olsen but that was far from enough to change the pattern of play as the teams continued to throw everything they had at each other but neither defence would yield.
Try as they might, and they certainly gave plenty, Blacktown could not manufacture the goal they needed to even up the score and while they have bowed out of the finals, their valiant efforts will long be remembered. Meanwhile, the Sharks have progressed to next week?s Grand Final where they will meet Marconi Stallions.
Grade 15
At the end of the first round clash between Manly United and Marconi Stallions the scoreboard showed that the honours were shared as the score was 2-2 but then Manly took all the second round points with a 2-0 success.
Everyone expected this to be a very tight game and that is exactly what was delivered by these two fine teams. The first half provided entertainment-plus as they teams tried and tried again to break each other down but there were no goals scored in the first half.
The second half produced more of the same as the they went at each other as if there would be no tomorrow. The breakthrough finally came in the 57^th minute when J. McGing found the back of the net for the Stallions but that was a trigger that caused both sides to up the ante in terms of skill and commitment, each hoping to score for clearly different reasons.
Alas, there were no more goals and so Marconi have moved into the Grand Final where they will face Blacktown City Demons while Manly have completed their commitments to the finals with considerable pride.
Grade 16
Blacktown City Demons seemed to have the wood on Sydney Olympic over the course of the season as they had won the first round encounter with a 1-0 scoreline and then they went on the claim the second round points with a 3-2 win.
The first half of this encounter was as tight as a game could possibly be as the teams gave a fine exhibition of attacking play that produced chances at both ends of the ground.
Blacktown drew first blood thanks to a 32^nd minute goal from D. Nestorovic and that was the score when play resumed after the half-time break. Olympic gave everything they had but they were unable to penetrate the well organised Demons defence.
The Demons extended their lead to 2-0 when J. Mason found the net and then the same player made it 3-0 when he netted again in the 62^nd minute.
Olympic gave the very best they had and they must be very proud of their efforts but it was to be Blacktown?s day as they earned the second spot in the Grand final where they will meet Wollongong FC.
Grade 18
When they have met Manly United this season, Blacktown City Demons seems to have done very well for themselves as they earned the first round points with a 3-0 result and they then posted a 1-0 victory in the second round.
Playing with what seemed like a gale force wind at their backs throughout the first half, Blacktown had the best of the game and while they created a heap of chances, they could not find the back of the net. Manly found the going very tough in the prevailing conditions but they managed to hold on very well indeed.
Manly gained the upper hand in terms of territory and ball possession in the early stages of the second half and they were rewarded with a goal from J. Cimino in the 52^nd minute.
While Manly went in search of a second goal that would probably have sealed the game for them, Blacktown rolled up their sleeves to juggle the joint tasks of defending well and trying to find an equaliser.
The longer the game went, the more likely it seemed that the Demons would find an equaliser as they cultured short passing style held them to make important inroads. They came very close but they were consistently denied by a combination of the frame of the goal, goal-line clearances and some excellent goalkeeping.
When the final whistle sounded Manly still had their 1-0 lead and that was enough to take them into the Grand Final where they will play against Wollongong FC.  Blacktown left the field and the finals series to the sound of some well deserved applause after an extraordinary game of football.
-By Barry Davis