Vizzari Steers All Stars To Easy Victory
Short of sharpness in the final third, Benfica never really found their form as the home side dominated the match with their solid defence and quick speed in attack.
The visitors did manage to hold out early on despite the constant Allstars pressure led by the inform Tom Rojic, who fired three early shots in the opening minutes. A rare Sydney Benfica attack shortly after was saved in spectacular fashion by Inner West goalkeeper, Maiorana to deny Harley Da Silva from close range before Vizzari made it 1-0 in the 14th minute.
Combining well with Fogarty, Vizzari fired a low hard shot from distance through the legs of the Benfica goalkeeper. With their heads held high, Vizzari turned provider just four minutes later as he provided a pin point through ball for Pace who coolly slotted home from a tight angle.
While Benfica looked to press forward, it was the hosts who went into the break with a spring in their step as Rojic turned quickly before finding the back of the net for a third time thanks to a well weighted pass from Aaron Cimitile.
Although Benfica started the stronger after the break, their finishing was always a step behind as close range shots failed on a number of occasions. The visitors were made to pay as Vizzari produced a cheeky goal after rounding the Benfica goalkeeper before ducking low to tap in with his head. The full court pass from Cimitile to find Vizzari was also nothing short of spectacular.
Looking to spare their blushes, Benfica once again pressed forward only to be denied from poor form up front with Billy Dimitropoulos squandering his one on one chance from close range.
Inner West sealed the victory after Vizzari completed his hat trick from a thunderous free kick before Rojic rounded the Benfica goalkeeper to secure all three points and an easy night for the home side.
Location: Sydney Olympic Park
Inner West All Stars: Maiorana (GK), Rogic, Vizzari, Waddick, Donevski, Pace, Fogarty, Cimitile, Greenway (GK), Pivato, Alpkaya, Ponris,
Scorers: Vizzari 14?, 33?, 42?, Rojic 22?, 47?, Pace 13?
Sydney Benfica: Guerreiro, B. Dimitropoulos, Atkinson, Ongaratto, Pinto, Carneiro, Koutsoufis, Oliveira, Da Silva, P. Dimitropoulos, De Barros, Estevato
Yellow Cards: Fogarty (Inner West), Atkinson (Sydney Benfica)
Dural Win Despite Falling Asleep
Dural beat Enfield Rovers 8-6 and were probably lucky to do so after almost failing to hold onto a six goal lead. ?Our boys went to sleep it seemed and against Enfield, you simply can?t do that,? said Brian Cordington for Dural. Having gone into half time 3-1 up, the Warriors found themselves six goals in front just 10 minutes into the second period before conceding five goals in a matter of minutes. While Enfield moved the ball around well and never gave up, Dural?s speed and movement of the ball combined with their quick counter attacks and clinical finishing just proved too strong.
Sydney City Raid Western Raiders
Despite Sydney City?s number of failed clear cut chances, they managed a solid 4-3 win away from home against Western Raiders. With slippery court conditions, the game was fairly even despite Sydney clearly having more chances and slightly more possession. Their solid defence allowed them to contain the very dangerous Ray Miller who had a superb match in the Raiders direct play approach. ? Ray Miller and Akers, [Western Raiders goalkeeper] were superb on the night, however we took our chances and held the ball well to get the win,? said Sydney City head coach, Jamie.
Quake?s Unity Inspires Win
With the return of head coach Ralph back in charge, Quake united to provide a stunning 7 ? 3 win over the Mascot Vipers. Going down early on in the match after squandering some initial chances, Ralph threw on their youngsters who helped take the hosts 4-1 up into the break. From then on, Quake kept control and kept the visitors frustrated by applying full court press at the right times. It was an inspirational win and one described as putting the ?fire back in the belly? according to Ralph.
– Caetano Lima
