State League Two Grand Final Preview
After the grade-20 match (from 12.30pm) the big boys kick-off at 3pm to cap off 137 games and 26 weeks of entertaining football. Perhaps it?s fair that Premiers Fairfield meet an iconic Hurstville club in the final, but such was the closeness of this year?s competition there could have been several teams in this weekend?s championship decider.
A buoyant Minotaurs will ride a wave of euphoria into the trophy match following a rousing double victory in last week?s preliminary finals. Coach Peter Sarikakis noted the shift in morale and could only hope his injured players recovered in time to make sure of an ideal preparation. ?It won?t be easy, Fairfield Bulls are a good side, but if my boys play to their ability and do what they?re told I?m not worried about anything,? he said.
?We have a bit of a point to prove that we should have won this competition. It wasn?t the best of seasons, but we have nine players in the game who started the year in grade-20, so it has been a great year for development at the club and for the players themselves. For example, my defender Ryan Wearne, who is 16-years-old, will be playing. I like to give young kids a go and this is a good result.?
Sarikakis will want to wrap star striker Michael Di Meglio in cotton wool this week as the man with the Midas touch continues his terrific run. Di Meglio?s brace against Luddenham took his tally to 21 goals for the year ? an amazing accomplishment considering his nearest rivals, Bulls duo Niram Kanoun and Khaled Elkerhani, are seven goals behind him. Hurstville have won every game he has scored in this year (14) and they will be hoping he can keep that incredible record going for just one more match.
Fairfield coach Michael Mamoo won?t be changing a thing ahead of his seventh state league title decider [three wins, three losses] and told Football NSW the grand final was all about the players. ?They built the cake [minor premiership], now it?s up to them to put the icing on it [grand final win] and prove they are the best in the competition. I will basically keep the preparation very simple this week. I?m not going to change any of the systems that we play,? he said.
?Hurstville will be a very competitive side for us; Peter [Sarikakis] will have his players fired up and I will have my boys fired up too. I want them to enjoy this moment, for some of them this is their first grand final. The emotions will be like a roller coaster so we?ll play how we normally do, and that?s patiently. Regardless of what happens this weekend I?m proud of what the boys have achieved this year. Hopefully we?ve achieved the critieria to be promoted to division one but a grand final victory would be a great way to finish the season.?
Fairfield?s rise to glory is an amazing story. Following several years in the doldrums the Bulls were rocked by a slow start to their 2010 campaign and had registered just the solitary win ? including draws against Hawkesbury and Hakoah ? by round eight to languish third from the bottom (only ahead of those two teams mentioned). At that stage they trailed league leaders Roosters by 12 competition points.
But Mamoo held firm with his belief in his side and only eight rounds later they led the competition on the back of a seven-game winning streak. And despite winning just one of their final three games the Bulls held on to win the minor premiership trophy by one point over Wanderers. Still, he will be nervous with team leading scorer Niram Kanoun starting from the bench, at best, with a hamstring injury.
This year?s history between the sides shows Hurstville beat Fairfield 3-1 at Belmore Sports Ground in round 2 before the Bulls returned fire with a 6-2 broadside at Knight Park in round 13. Fairfield then booked themselves a grand final ticket with a penalty shootout victory over Hurstville two weeks ago after the scores were locked at 2-2 after extra-time.
It will certainly be a meeting between two in-form sides: Fairfield have won 10 and Hurstville nine of their last 12 matches and they are the only two teams to have cracked 50 goals this year. Although the game is away from Fairfield the Bulls have an unblemished home record in 2010, winning seven and drawing four of 11 fixtures as home side. But it?s Hurstville who boasts the big-game street-cred, winning seven of 11 fixtures against this year?s top-five teams, while Fairfield have won five of nine top-five match-ups.
Take your pick, flip a coin, and then choose the other side, for this one could go either way!
Grade-20 State League Two Grand Final preview
The division two grand final has an appetising entr?e on the menu when grade-20 ?Goliaths? Fairfield Bulls face a daring Hurstville City Minotaurs outfit (12.30pm kick-off) to decide the reserves champion. And just like the first grade match, this is a trophy that both sides have earned the right to claim.
It is hard to pick against a Fairfield unit that went unbeaten for 15 rounds to finish the season with just that one loss (to Gazy), a mind-blowing nine competition points ahead of second-placed Wanderers. The young Bulls scored a staggering 59 goals (conceding a miserly 19) to completely annihilate all in their path on the way to a well-deserved minor premiership. They then booked themselves a grand final position with a hard-fought 3-2 win over Wanderers in the major semi-final two weeks ago. They have been the competition?s benchmark for the entire year.
Hurstville, like their first grade counterparts, did it the tough way. For one, they had to dodge a final round bullet as one of six teams fighting for three playoff spots. They smashed Bathurst 3-0 to steal third place (just like the Minotaurs first graders) but were then smashed by Wanderers 3-0 in the first week of the finals to be consigned the knockout path. Hurstville rebounded with a thrilling penalty shootout victory over Belmore in the elimination semi-final two weeks ago and followed up with a terrific 3-1 reversal over Wanderers in Sunday?s preliminary final to book their place alongside Fairfield in the final.
Hurstville were also one of the more effective teams against Fairfield during the year, pushing the Bulls all the way in a 3-2 loss in round 2 before holding the minor premiers to a 1-1 draw at Knight Park in their round 13 clash. The Minotaurs also claimed grade-20?s second best goal difference (plus-18) behind the Bulls, so the horns are certainly sharp on both sides of the paddock.
Man with the Golden Boot
Barring a blitz of Bulls goals in Sunday?s first grade final there should be a clear cut winner of division two?s Golden Boot award, Michael Di Meglio?s 21 strikes for Hurstville standing well ahead of the pack. Di Meglio has shown all-round skill and great temperament to spearhead the Minotaurs attack in 2010, scoring in every one of his team?s 14 victories. In fact, they have only lost one game with his name on the scoresheet (against Belmore in round 20), an imposing contribution for any one player.
Chasing Di Meglio all season, however, were three of Fairfield?s best, Niram Kanoun (14), Khaled Elkerhani (13) and Alaa Ali Khan (9), who will be going all out to tip the goalscoring balance back in their favour in this Sunday?s grand final.
Division two players who have scored five or more goals this year:
21 goals: Michael Di Meglio (Hurstville),
14: Niram Kanoun (Fairfield),
13: Khaled Elkerhani (Fairfield),
11: Ercan Topal (Roosters), Michael Amed (Gazy),
10: Elias Navarrete (Wanderers), Huso Merdanovic (Gazy),
9: Alaa Ali Khan (Fairfield),
8: Bryan Campbell (Springwood), George Illiopoulos (Belmore), James Christie (Bathurst), Jarred Portegies (Bathurst),
7: Mauricio Sanchez (Wanderers), Michael Wood (Luddenham), Peter Henderson (Springwood), Paul Curjak (Prospect), Luis Freitas (Prospect),
6: Angelo Vagenas (Hurstville), Angelo Martino (Luddenham), Ian Peti (Wanderers), Rob Portelli (Prospect), Joliyan Berhko (Gazy), Edwin George (Hawkesbury), Josh Morgenstern (Hakoah),
5: Emmanuel Papageorgiou (Hurstville), Daniel Farre (Luddenham), Ahmed Khan (Wanderers), Paul Paras (Belmore), Kelston George (Hawkesbury),
State League Division 2 Grand Final day
The 2010 division two grand finals will be held at Jensen Park on Sunday afternoon, September 19.
First grade: Fairfield Bulls vs Hurstville City Minotaurs (3pm)
Grade-20: Fairfield Bulls vs Hurstville City Minotaurs (12.30pm)
-By Daniel De Nardi
