Super League Wrap Round 10
With the wet weather causing the postponement of St George?s match with FC Bossy, the opportunity was there for either Sydney University or Northern Tigers to leapfrog to third spot and it was the Tigers who took that advantage defeating Uni 3-1.
The conditions also saw Central Coast v Macarthur Rams washed out, but Fraser Park couldn?t get the result they needed to move away from the Coast, going down to Dulwich Hill.
Spirit got back to winning ways after a barren month, overpowering Mount Druitt 3-0 away.
Match of the Round
Granville Rage v Parramatta Eagles
There may have been no goals but there was plenty of action at Garside Park as Granville Rage and Parramatta Eagles went head to head in this top of the table clash.
The near neighbours, with strong playing links across the two clubs, put up a great spectacle and this was one game where the lack of goals did not diminish from the match in the slightest.
The three yellow cards given within the first twenty minutes gives some indication of the needle in this match and the determination of both sides to gain the ascendancy in the competition ladder was clear.
With top spot up for grabs, there was no lack of effort and Granville?s three strikers in Kris Holbrook, Nenos Bobo and Fred Graham made sure that Parramatta had to remain alert at all times. The sharpness and speed of the front three were always a danger but the Eagles backline, with the best defensive record in the league, generally held the upper hand, at least in the first half.
Chances were minimal in the first forty five minutes as both sides looked to gain the edge and neither Jason Holmes for the Rage nor Anthony Costa for the Eagles were really called upon. The best chance for a goal in the opening half was just prior to the break when Nick Tantalos went tantalisingly close with a header which just cleared the bar.
But if the first half was a midfield tussle, the opportunities came thick and fast at the beginning of the second.
Bobo had a shot from distance which skewed wide and then Holbrook had a great chance to put the Rage in front but for a brilliant save from Costa, who dived down low to his right.
Parramatta retaliated with a chance of their own, with Chris Camilleri shooting over, after some desperate Rage defending. Then Bobo, again, after clearing Costa, shot agonisingly wide. All this within the first ten minutes of the second half.
It looked like one goal would do it in this match, both teams certainly trying their best to get on the scoresheet, and the chances were there.
A strong well directed Pat Cappuccio cross from the right was met by the head of Bobo but again Costa came to the rescue. The Granville players though insisted that the ball had been cleared away by a handball, but their protests were in vain.
A little later Graham, working well down the left, set up Bobo only for the shot to go over. It was clearly not going to be Bobo?s night.
Parramatta finished with a late flurry, their best chance being a Camilleri piledriver from a direct free kick, forcing Holmes to scramble across goal to make the save.
But despite the lack of goals, it was an enthralling fixture, with both sides giving it their all. The drive and enthusiasm in this derby showed that local pride still counts.
But despite the point against the league leaders, Granville?s Nick Porrecca was a little disappointed.
?I thought we had the better chances, especially in the second half. We played with the three up front even though Fred Graham was ill before the game and wasn?t 100%. I certainly was going for the win, to go at them, and would rather play that way than sit back?.
?I was a little bit disappointed that the handball wasn?t noticed and also when Kris Holbrook was pulled back. But both teams played well and, at the end of the day, it was about two teams trying to play?.
Brian Dene realised that the front three were the danger for Granville.
?I thought we shut down the strikers well, they were certainly their dangers. But I though we handled the game well. It was a real tough hitout as we always knew it would be?.
?We did miss Daniel Fogarty though, with his pace. He may be back next week, still unsure at this stage?.
When asked whether Ben Delicata?s replacement was due to injury, Dene cleared up that quickly.
?Ben was just getting cramps. He hadn?t played in four weeks or so but he is fine?.
If anyone was in any doubt about the reasons for Parramatta impressive season so far, there seems a simple explanation.
?All in all, we just work really hard. There is a great attitude amongst the boys and they all do the graft. Maybe there are some teams that just don?t work as hard as us as I am sure that some teams would have folded under the pressure that Granville put us under.?
Match Stats
Granville Rage 0 v Parramatta Eagles 0
22 May 2010
Garside Park
Referee: Sandro Perticarini
Assts: Greg Clarke and Phil Archer
Granville Rage: 1. Jason Holmes 4. Maurice Aliberti (3. David Comiti 90?) 5. Mauricio Islas 6. Joe Cartisaro 7. David Harding (8. Philip Pyliotis 88?) 9. Kris Holbrook 10. Fred Graham 11. Nenos Bobo 13. Daniel Carrozzo 14. Christian Bottalico 18. Pat Cappuccio.
Subs not used: 2. Jonathan Ekehov 16. Calum Hedge 17. Nathan Rivera
Yellow Cards: Mauricio Islas, David Harding, Philip Pyliotis, Christian Bottalico
Parramatta Eagles: 1. Anthony Costa 2. Chris McDonald 3. Daniel Borg 5. Patrick Gatt 6. Nick Tantalos 7. Shayne Ardle (14. Mitchell Duke 68?) 8. Matthew Clowes 10. Chris Camilleri 11. Kutaiba Elrich (17. Marjan Novotni 88?) 15. Ben Delicata (8. Brian Soane 78?) 16. Craig Jacob.
Subs not used: 18. Louis Duchese rgk Oliver Lovell
Yellow Cards: Kutaiba Elrich, Craig Jacob
Dulwich Hill v Fraser Park
As they did against Sydney Uni two weeks ago, Fraser Park held a half time lead but were over run by Dulwich Hill in the second period to go down by three goals to one at Arlington Oval.
Alex Smith took advantage of a defensive mix up to give Fraser Park the lead in the 21st minute, striking low into the bottom corner. They held the lead until the break but Dully equalised a quarter of an hour after half time, following a long throw in. Norman Tome?s throw was flicked on by Jay Lucas resulting in Ben Burrows sweeping the ball home from four yards.
The tactic worked so well, Dully tried it again with a similar result. But this time, the long throw was met in a challenge between Ante Juric and Lucas, with Juric ultimately being straight red carded for the challenge, an elbow to the face of Lucas. Lucas stepped up to put Dulwich Hill ahead from the spot.
The goal of the game though, came from the boot of Raphael Bove. After Dully broke down the left, Bove received the ball and after one touch to steady himself, let fly with a missile from thirty yards, still rising as it hit the top right of the net.
The win moved Dulwich Hill onto fourteen points, with seven of those having come in just the past three games, a point not lost on coach Mark Strachan.
?We have doubled our tally in the past three weeks but it is something I thought was possible once the injured players started to return. What is also pleasing is that we have come from behind too in each of those three games, including last week?s epic against Spirit?.
?Even though we were a goal down at half time, we always thought we could come back, especially as it was only the one goal, which seemed easy by comparison [to last week].
?But Fraser Park did make it difficult for us and with it also being the first Portuguese derby between the two clubs in four years, it was always going to be hard fought?.
Once again, keeper Michael Frost was one of the standouts.
?Frost was simply outstanding and he is in super, super form. Jose Mendes was outstanding for us in defence as well,? he concluded.
Dulwich Hill 3 (Ben Burrows 62?, Jay Lucas pen 81?, Raphael Bove 92?) v Fraser Park 1 (Alex Smith 21?)
Northern Tigers v Sydney University
With their third win in a row, Northern Tigers jumped to outright third after defeating Sydney Uni 3-1 at Mills Park.
It was Uni though who took the lead, Martin Havern turning well to strike and put the Students? noses in front. But the lead wasn?t to last long, Tom Geekie scoring against his old club right on the half time whistle to send the teams in even at 1-1.
It was a tough and physical encounter, something to be expected in a match between two teams vying for top honours.
In the end, it was the Tigers who gained the upper hand in this battle.
Within moments of coming on Max Glanville scored for the Tigers, a shot at the near post squeezing in. Then Glanville got his second and secured the points, after getting to the ball first after a corner.
?It was very pleasing to win?, stated Jason Eager. ?It is our third win in a row and the boys are starting to get some belief. We are performing very well and getting the results now?.
?The pace of Max Glanville did the job especially as I thought some of the players were starting to get tired?.
Despite the 1-3 reverse, John Caruana thought the result was not a fair indication of the game.
?It was a very tight affair particularly in the first half. It was what I expected and really thought before the game that this would be a 1-0 win or a 1-0 loss, maybe a draw. I don?t believe that they were 3-1 better today?.
?Again, we are just making too many silly errors and they are costing us goals. We took an extra touch for their first, then we probably should have done better with their other two?.
?But all credit to the Tigers. They are certainly on a roll at the moment.?
Sydney University 1 (Martin Havern 45?) v Northern Tigers 3 (Tom Geekie 45+?, Max Glanvile 63?, 69?) at Mills Park
Mount Druitt Town v Spirit FC
Spirit FC got back in the winning groove with a comprehensive victory over last start winners Mount Druitt.
The visitors never looked in danger against a disappointing Rangers side who had performed strongly last weekend.
The league?s leading striker, Ben Gough, got his ninth of the season to put Spirit a goal to the good which is how remained until halftime.
Tim Simpson doubled the lead in the 66th minute before Evan Daglis sealed the result nicely with just two minutes to go.
Gilbert Yalda couldn?t explain the drop in performance, when compared to last week.
?We performed at only 30%-40% this week and we didn?t get out of first gear. Admittedly we did have a goal disallowed for offside which may have made it 1-1, but really, we didn?t deserve a point?.
?There are no excuses, we were just asleep today?.
Mount Druitt Town Rangers 0 v Spirit FC 3 (Ben Gough 23?, Tim Simpson 66?, Evan Daglis 88?)
-By Peter Rowney
