Division One Youth League Round 4 Review

My thanks go to the small group of people who have helped me with reports and goal scorers as it really does add something to The Youth League Report. I could always do with a bit more help so please email me a short (and unbiased) match report including the full names of the goal scorers before 9.30am on Monday mornings – barrydavis52@hotmail.com –  or ring or SMS me on 0451 004 091 after 5.00pm on match days or anytime on Sundays.
While I was at Marconi Stadium on Saturday I ran into a long term mate in the form of Jim Fraser, the former Socceroo goalkeeper who now runs the International Goalkeeping Academy in the Olympic Precinct at Blacktown. He was busy making copious notes on the performances of some of his charges, five of whom were playing in the last three Youth League matches on the day. 
Fraser is passionate about producing top quality goalkeepers and he spends large chunks of his weekends running his very experienced eye over their performances in match situations so he can maximise the effectiveness of his development work.
?Goalkeeping is such a specialised position that they need the very best of attention. Few team coaches have the time or the knowledge to provide the sort of help that the ?keepers need and even fewer clubs can afford to employ a top class goalkeeper coach. That is what my Academy is all about. We take goalkeepers of all standards, from grass-roots to A-League level, and provide the best coaching to help them to develop and refine their skills and their understanding of their role in the game?, Fraser said.
He went on to say, ?The youngsters I am here to watch are all well on their way to having a long term career between the posts and I am looking at the things they do in match play so I can praise those tasks they perform well and then concentrate on any weakness I can identify.?
?I don?t work at individual clubs any more as the facilities we have built at the Academy provide for all the needs of the goalkeepers. We have a combination of grassed and all-weather surfaces, eight full-size goals, loads of specialist equipment and a full equipped gymnasium for the practical work as well as classrooms for the theoretical part of the goalkeeping role.?
?At every level of the game we need to continue to work hard to produce the next generation of goalkeepers who are capable of filling the very large boots left by the past and present goalkeepers at the highest level of the game?, he added.
Club Championship 
Gladesville Ryde Magic bagged a dozen points from their home matches against Nepean while Hakoah?s trip to Hills Brumbies also yielded twelve points for the eastern suburbs outfit.
St George earned twelve points when they visited Balmain East Tigers and Mt Druitt Town Rangers pocketed ten points at home to Hurstville City Minotaurs.
Southern Branch?s home games against Inter Lions added eight points to the south coast club?s tally and Stanmore Hawks took nine points from their home fixture against Camden Tigers.
On Sunday, Northbridge and Springwood United shared the spoils at six points apiece.
Grade 13
Camden Tigers made it four wins from as many matches when they accounted for Stanmore Hawks with a respectable 3-0 scoreline. A dominant first half from Camden was unrewarded with the scores even at the break. Camden continued to press the Stanmore defence in the second half and were finally able to take the lead in the 47^th minute when Jack Harris finished off a great team build-up to slot the ball past the Stanmore ?keeper. This goal inspired the Camden boys and they continued their onslaught on the Stanmore goal. This pressure was again rewarded in the 52^nd minute with a goal to Bradon Clissold from the spot. In the 60^th minute Khit Minh beat the defence with his skill and pace and calmly slotted the ball past the keeper to complete a comprehensive victory for the Tigers.
Gladesville Ryde Magic also posted their fourth consecutive victory with a 2-1 result over Nepean who had not previously tasted defeat.
Hurstville City Minotaurs suffered their first loss for the campaign when they went down 2-1 to Mt Druitt Town Rangers and Southern Branch recorded their third consecutive win, a 2-0 victory over Inter Lions.
Hakoah collected maximum points for the first time when they were 6-1 winners over Hills Brumbies and St George registered their second three-pointer when they came up with a 5-0 result over Balmain East Tigers.
Northbridge were in very good form on the day as they came up with a 5-0 result over Springwood United for their first three-pointer of the season.
In Round 2 catch-up action Hakoah accounted for Hurstville City Minotaurs with a 3-0 result.
Grade 14
Balmain East Tigers continued their unbeaten run with a 2-0 victory over St George who were tasting defeat for the first time while Stanmore Hawks also remained undefeated when they were 3-0 winners ? their fourth clean sheet – over Camden Tigers who were suffering their first loss. Stanmore started the match at great pace and Camden looked to be struggling from the opening whistle. Stanmore’s first goal came in the 14^th minute from S. Georgiou and their first half dominance was confirmed in the 23^rd minute with a goal from A.Kyra. After only four minutes of the second half, Stanmore grabbed their third goal from G.Lazaropolous and the Tigers players appeared shell shocked. Further goals to H.Shaw (41) and I.Kamara (60) saw Stanmore run out convincing 5 – 0 winners.
Mt Druitt Town Rangers produced a 1-0 success over Hurstville City Minotaurs and Hakoah came up with a 4-2 result when they faced Hills Brumbies.
Southern Branch and Inter Lions battled it out for a 2-2 draw while Nepean came up with the first win, a 3-1 result over Gladesville Ryde Magic and on Sunday the match between Northbridge and Springwood United ended at 1-1.
In Round 2 catch-up action Hakoah accounted for Hurstville City Minotaurs with a 2-0 result.
Grade 15
Mt Druitt Town Rangers took their unbeaten sequence to four matches when they were 3-1 winners over Hurstville City Minotaurs while Southern Branch dropped points for the first time when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Inter Lions.
St George?s success continued when they registered a 1-0 victory over Balmain East Tigers and Stanmore Hawks posted a very solid 5-0 result when they met Camden Tigers. Stanmore opened the scoring in the 10^th mnute with a goal to J.Moroney following a defensive error from the Tigers. The game then swung from end to end until another Tigers? defensive error in the 23^rd minute saw J.Todorovski beat the keeper to put Stanmore 2 – 0 up. Just prior to the break, Camden lost a player to a second yellow booking and would play the remainder of the game one player short. Stanmore opened the second half strongly and scored again in the 41^st minute through B.Krishna. The extra player would prove to be too much for the Tigers to handle and goals to I.Kamara (56) and A.Scott (60) saw Stanmore?s lead jump to five goals. An incident towards the end of the match saw another Camden player and two Stanmore players shown red cards. The game finished with both teams having only nine players but Stanmore were deserved winners.
Hakoah broke their losing streak with a 3-0 success over Hills Brumbies while Gladesville Ryde Magic produced a solid 4-0 result from their match against Nepean and on Sunday the match between Northbridge and Springwood United finished at 1-1.
Grade 16
Stanmore Hawks made it four wins from as many matches when they accounted for Camden Tigers with a 2-1 scoreline. The two teams battled hard from the opening whistle and Stanmore jumped to an early lead in the eighth minute with a great finish from P.Yannopoulos. The Tigers created some great chances but were unable to bother the scoreboard attendant due to poor finishing and some great saves from the Stanmore keeper. Only three minutes into the second half, Nick Holmes finally put one into the Stanmore net and it was ?game on?. Both teams continued to create further chances but could not deliver the knockout blow. It was left to P.Yannopoulos to take his chance scoring his second goal for the match in the 59^th minute, earning the Hawks a deserved 2-1 victory.
Mt Druitt Town Rangers and Hurstville City Minotaurs fought it out to share the points with a 1-1 draw while Southern Branch registered their first win of the season with a 1-0 result over Inter Lions.
St George were much too good for Balmain East Tigers as the Saints recorded a very handy 4-0 result and Hakoah took their unbeaten sequence to three matches with a 5-0 scoreline over Hills Brumbies.
Gladesville Ryde Magic bounced back from last week?s loss to post a stunning 5-0 result when they faced Nepean while the clash between Northbridge and Springwood United was a 1-1 draw at the final whistle.
Grade 18
Camden Tigers recorded their third consecutive win when they were 3-2 winners over the previously unbeaten Stanmore Hawks.  The opening ten minutes saw the Tigers dominate field position and possession. It was left to Ben Knobel to open the scoring for the Tigers in the 18^th minute when he beat the Stanmore ?keeper with a sharp strike on goal. Only two minutes later, Knobel grabbed his second after a good build up from the Tigers midfield. The game looked to be settled in the 56^th minute when Dean Stepien scored the third for the Tigers. From the kick off, Kosta Ahliodiotis took a cheeky shot from his own side of halfway, catching the Camden ?keeper off his line and it was then 3 – 1 to the Tigers. This goal lifted the Hawks and in the 60^th minute Chris Kapreonos scored to put the Hawks were back in the game. The Tigers coach reacted with some defensive changes and fresh legs and this was enough to see the Tigers hang on for a 3-2 victory.
Unbeaten Hurstville City Minotaurs produced a very strong 6-1 result when they faced Mt Druitt Town Rangers and Inter Lions produced the goods when they were 5-0 winners over Southern Branch.
St George were a bit too strong for Balmain East Tigers as the Saints came up with a 7-2 success while Hills Brumbies edged out Hakoah with a 1-0 final scoreline.
Gladesville Ryde Magic stunned Nepean when they came up with a 5-1 victory and on Sunday Springwood United shaded Northbridge with a 2-1 result.
 -By Barry Davis