State League Two Round 10 Review
But besides a tough 1-1 draw between Chopin Park and Hawkesbury, a 1-1 deadlock between Belmore and Bathurst, and a casual 4-0 romp from Hakoah over Gazy, the water cooler ears were burning with chatter about the abandoned fixture between Luddenham and Nepean, the game called off with Nepean leading 2-0 and with a player advantage on field.
The results see Roosters cuddle up in the top-three bed next to Luddenham and Fairfield, with Hakoah, Prospect and Hawkesbury just behind them. Springwood, Northbridge and Chopin Park are also within range.
There were some indifferent results for division two sides in Waratah Cup action with league strugglers Gazy Lansvale moving into round three of the knockout tournament following a thrilling 2-1 win over Picton Rangers midweek, but Hakoah and Bathurst both lost their elimination fixtures to exit the competition just before the money-back stage. Wanderers, Northbridge, Hawkesbury and Chopin Park play their round two games this week.
No difference between Park and City
It was perhaps fitting that the two teams with the most division two draws this season, Chopin Park Rams and Hawkesbury City, played out a 1-1 draw at Bensons Lane Field on Saturday evening. Little separates the sides on the table and that showed on the field as City?s Paul Cooper cancelled out Marco Kraljevic?s second half opener for the Rams.
The game ebbed and flowed until Marco Kraljevic?s shot on goal deflected off City midfielder Tony Judge and into goal for a 1-0 Chopin Park lead in the 70th minute. But Hawkesbury had invested plenty into the match having hit the post a few times and missed some open targets, so they increased the venom up front and John McCrae provided a neat ball to Paul Cooper to slam into the back of the net for an equaliser. City almost found a winner when Cooper had a shot on target brilliantly saved by the Rams keeper, who also did well to smother McCrae?s follow-up.
As good as Hawkesbury are going this season they would be doing a whole lot better if they?d just tidy up their home affairs, City now held to three draws and a loss at Bensons Lane in 2011. Coach Gary Lewis believes it?s a simple equation of finding a regular scorer. ?We just cannot score? it?s frustrating,? he said. ?[Chopin Park[ are good defensively and they have an experienced goalkeeper, but we always seem to rue the missed opportunities.?
?The boys are desperate to win at home and are conscious of their record, it?s just making it more frustrating trying to get there. One of the problems is that we just don?t have that genuine striker that scores 15-16 goals a season? because we?re creating opportunities and the boys up there are doing a great job, but we need a striker who can score more than the odd goal.?
Chopin Park would also be better positioned than their mid-table debut had they found a definitive goal in any of the five draws they?ve endured this year, but coach Radek Czerwinski was pleased with the result. ?We are still missing players, we?re not having a good run when it comes to availability of the same squad at the moment, but the players coming in are stepping up and performing and still taking points. I couldn?t be any happier with the effort,? he said.
?There is always room for improvement, we?ve definitely had a few too many draws, but I can?t complain about only losing two games out of nine, and we?re not too far from the top-five, so that?s all fine? but it doesn?t where you?re standing after round nine, it matters at the end of round 26. There are still plenty of points to play for.?
Hawkesbury City 1 (Paul Cooper 75m) Chopin Park Rams 1 (Marco Kraljevic 70m)
Reserve grade: Hawkesbury City 3 Chopin Park Rams 1
Belmore draw at Bathurst
A whirlwind of first-half action decided a 1-1 draw between Bathurst ?75 and Belmore Hercules under lights at Alec Lamberton Field on Saturday night. The result didn?t help alleviate either side?s lowly ladder position but it did serve as a good hit-out to get both campaigns back on track after a few wobbly rounds, particularly as Bathurst was bundled out of the Waratah Cup knockout midweek following a 3-0 loss to State League 1 side Schofields Scorpions.
Bathurst?s Luke Sullivan struck on the half-hour mark against Belmore following some good lead-up play from Brett Osborne but the celebrations were cut short after Hercules responded only a few minutes later through Paul Paras. The home side had a blatant chance to win it when Corey Adair outmuscled a Belmore fullback only to see his shot saved by the Hercules keeper straight back at him, but he could only guide the follow-up attempt narrowly wide of the posts. The scoreline stayed 1-1 at fulltime.
?75 coach Mark Rooke would be a happy chappy if his side could pick up its scoring rate. ?We had the best of them in the second half and missed an open target to win it, but they?re a decent side and a draw in the end is not a bad result. I can?t believe where [Belmore] are sitting in the competition from the way they played. I thought our boys did well to back up from Wednesday night [Waratah Cup loss to Schofields] and it was a credit to both defences. I?m certainly happy to get something out of the game.?
Having played seven of its opening eight games on the road, Belmore coach John Kyriazopoulos knows he just has to get through the next two weeks before he begins a seven-game home run, which means taking points at places like Bathurst is golden. ?We were a little bit unlucky? both sides kept fighting, kept battling, and it was good game in the end. I?m still happy to get a point at Bathurst, that?s always a positive.?
Bathurst ?75 1 (Luke Sullivan 29m) Belmore Hercules 1 (Paul Paras 32m)
Reserve grade: Bathurst ?75 2 Belmore Hercules 1
Northbridge defeat Minotaurs
Northbridge upped the ante in its division two conquest with a 3-1 disposal of last year?s grand finalists Hurstville City Minotaurs at Valentine Sports Park on Saturday night. Hurstville drew first blood when Haissan Morhi beat the offside trap and managed to squeeze it in at an acute angle to take the Minotaurs to a 1-0 halftime lead.
But Joe Haywood?s boys were having none of it and turned the tables with a second-half onslaught sparked by a brilliant strike from Atsushi Yamada and finished off by a Elliot King brace, the diminutive player nudging one home with his head and then dipping his toe onto a cross to make it 3-1 to Northbridge. King is another foreigner in Haywood?s buccaneer brigade but one that fell into his lap, the London semi-pro player just happened to be visiting Australia and was looking for a local team to join. Enter Northbridge.
The win over Hurstville maintains Northbridge?s unbeaten run as hosts and keeps them on top-five backsides in an impressive start to state league competition. ?It?s a new club into the league so we?ll take each game as it comes,? Haywood said. ?We?ve still got people missing every week so each week is like, how?s it going to perform, but we seem to bounce back well as a team.?
?Hurstville are a strong team and they try to get you to play that type of football and we fell for it in the first half, but in the second half we went back to playing the style of football we like to play and that worked out well for us.?
Hurstville coach Peter Sarikakis has endured a terrible start to the 2011 season, second from last with the second worst goal difference and just the one win over bottom side Gazy to their name. Having said that, the Minotaurs have played just twice at home and will cherish being back at Punchbowl Oval in a huge game against Luddenham next Sunday to perhaps launch a season revival.
Northbridge FC 3 (Atsushi Yamada, Eliott King x2) Hurstville City Minotaurs 1 (Haissan Morhi)
Reserve grade: Northbridge FC 1 Hurstville City Minotaurs 1
Roosters pluck Prospect
Roosters FC can show their feathers off round the division two pen following a superb 3-1 win over top-five opponent Prospect United at Hills Sports High on Sunday afternoon. It was the first time anyone?s scored more than one goal against the brick wall of Prospect this season and catapulted Roosters into a top-three position.
The home side scored first when Adem Taslak turned a defender and struck home at the near post on 10-minutes but Roosters had to wait until the hour-mark to put any more breathing space into their lead, Abdulbaki Elveren playing a delightful lob over the Prospect keeper to make it 2-0.
The visitors did manage to pull one goal back when Ahmed Chandab unleashed from range, catching the Roosters keeper off-guard and the speculative strike swirled into goal, with 15 minutes left but Hulisi Orhan put the matter to rest 10 minutes later with a great dummy and shot into goal that gave Roosters a 3-1 win.
Roosters coach Musti Akca believed his team was showing plenty of confidence. ?It wasn?t a spectacular game, there weren?t many chances, it was more a game of control and the main thing for us was the three points and that?s we got,? he said. ?I?m confident that we shouldn?t fear any team in the competition. No disrespect to any other team, but if we play the football we do we will be able to take on anyone in the competition.?
Prospect?s second successive loss was no cause for alarm according to coach Tony Caruso. ?We definitely got out-enthused by Roosters on the day. There?s nothing to read into it, it?s only disappointing that we did it after a loss? but definitely no panic stations yet,? he said.
Roosters FC 3 (Adem Taslak 10m, Abdulbaki Elveren 59m, Hulisi Orhan 83m) Prospect United 1 (Ahmed Chandab 75m)
Reserve grade: Roosters FC 0 Prospect United 2
Springwood surprise Wanderers
Springwood United came down from the mountains and plundered Knight Park in a stoic 1-0 win over frontrunners Fairfield Wanderers on Sunday afternoon. The game was decided when Peter Henderson broke down the left early in the second half and laid the ball in for Tim O?Connell to bash into goal to lift Springwood in front.
Both sides were guilty of missing chances, United keeper Geoff Abrahams tipping a half-dozen Fairfield attempts over the crossbar, but in the end Springwood did extremely well to chalk Wanderers up as their first road scalp of the season. It was also United?s first win over Fairfield in three years and kept them camped on the edge of the leaderboard.
?? Geoff Abrahams kept us in the game, and it was kind of exciting,? coach Errol Warwick-Day said. ?But we seem to shoot ourselves in the foot and get results like this against the good teams and then don?t get points against the teams we probably should. It?s a season we?re struggling to get on top of in regards to those results.?
Wanderers coach Leo Maturana felt he probably deserved more from the match. ?Their keeper saved them six times. We dominated and one defending error cost us the game. We played good football but without the price. I?m disappointed but we will keep on fighting,? he said.
Fairfield Wanderers 0 Springwood United 1 (Tim O?Connell 56m)
Reserve grade: Fairfield Wanderers 1 Springwood United 0
Hakoah beat Gazy
Gazy Lansvale may have lost their league game 4-0 to Hakoah at Cherrybrook Park on Sunday afternoon but there are more than signs of a heartbeat at the besieged south-west Sydney club after a stirring 2-1 midweek Waratah Cup victory over Illawarra Premier League side Picton Rangers.
Gazy were able to hold their heads up and celebrate victory for the first time in over a month ? as well as book a spot in the knockout?s third round ? following Ibrahim Hammed?s last gasp match-winner at Cherrybrook Park on Wednesday night, but they were certainly brought back down to earth with a damaging thud at the same ground by Hakoah on Sunday.
D Gilmartin got the ball rolling for the visitors with back-to-back goals inside the opening 10 minutes before Lansvale settled back into the game. But with 15 minutes remaining goals to Neil Jablonski and Rani Rimmer sealed the win for Hakoah, the emphatic victory perhaps carrying a little bit of Wednesday night?s painful 1-0 loss to Illawarra Premier League heavyweights Dandaloo in their Waratah Cup knockout match.
Gazy Lansvale 0 Hakoah 4 (D Gilmartin 3/11m, Neil Jablonski 75m, Rani Rimmer 85m)
Reserve grade: Gazy Lansvale 0 Hakoah 0
Luddenham vs Nepean abandoned
There was high drama at Luddenham Oval with the game between league leaders Luddenham United and new boys Nepean called off after less than half-an-hour after Luddenham defender Steve Andrews dislocated his shoulder in a contest and was unable to be moved until an ambulance could come and take him to hospital. Nepean were leading 2-0 at the time with United a man down following Ivan Bazina?s sixth-minute send-off.
The game was minutes old when Bazina?s penalty area infringement, tripping up a Nepean forward from on the ground, brought a swift red card from the referee and a converted penalty to gift the visitors an early lead, and a player advantage. Minutes later and a Nepean shot on target was only partially saved by Luddenham keeper Bojan Radmillo and the rebound knocked in for a shock 2-0 lead. But the eye-raising match was abandoned after the painful injury to Andrews and will be replayed at a later date.
Nepean coach Carlos Camacho was furious. ?I wish all the best to this player?s recovery but you should play what?s left of the game,? he said. ?We?ve been so unlucky this year and the rule is not good for football because the game could still have been played. There?s nothing in it for the opposition either [a replayed game] as, if they went on to win the replay of this fixture, it?s a shallow victory. I believe every opportunity should?ve been given for football to be played.?
?The way we were playing today we kicked off with much more confidence. We are hitting our straps and this will be another push for me as a coach to turn the season around. I?m more than pleased with the way we are playing, it?s very attacking. It?s a shame with the three points today but the boys will use this to keep in mind that we can match it with the good teams. My job is to use this energy in a positive way and propel our season forward.?
Luddenham coach Andrew Montgomery was also disappointed to see the game called off but understood the decision was made in light of the player?s medical situation. ?We were a man down and still dominating the game, but the game being abandoned was all about the health of Stevie more than anything. The game has to be replayed.?
Round 10 scores
Hawkesbury City 1 (Paul Cooper 75m) Chopin Park Rams 1 (Marco Kraljevic 70m)
Bathurst ?75 1 (Luke Sullivan 29m) Belmore Hercules 1 (Paul Paras 32m)
Northbridge FC 3 (Atsushi Yamada, Eliott King x2) Hurstville City Minotaurs 1 (Haissan Morhi)
Gazy Lansvale 0 Hakoah 4 (D Gilmartin 3/11m, Neil Jablonski 75m, Rani Rimmer 85m)
Fairfield Wanderers 0 Springwood United 1 (Tim O?Connell 56m)
Roosters FC 3 (Adem Taslak 10m, Abdulbaki Elveren 59m, Hulisi Orhan 83m) Prospect United 1 (Ahmed Chandab 75m)
Luddenham United Nepean FC postponed
Reserve grade:
Hawkesbury City 3 Chopin Park Rams 1
Bathurst ?75 2 Belmore Hercules 1
Northbridge FC 1 Hurstville City Minotaurs 1
Gazy Lansvale 0 Hakoah 0
Luddenham United 2 Nepean FC 1
Fairfield Wanderers 1 Springwood United 0
Roosters FC 0 Prospect United 2
Waratah Cup:
Bathurst ?75 0 Schofields Scorpions 3
Gazy Lansvale 2 Picton Rangers 1
Hakoah 0 Dandaloo 1
Next week?s games
Round 11 of NSW division two kicks off with Nepean hosting Wanderers at Cook Park, St Marys, on Saturday afternoon (3pm), followed by a Saturday evening fixture between Prospect and Hawkesbury at William Lawson Reserve (5pm), before two Saturday night matches featuring Springwood and Roosters at Summerhayes Park, and Hakoah and Bathurst at Alec Lamberton Field (both games at 7pm). On Sunday afternoon (first grade from 3pm), Hurstville clash with Luddenham at Punchbowl Oval, Belmore face Northbridge at Blick Oval, and the Rams welcome Gazy Lansvale to Chopin Park.
There are still more Waratah Cup matches to be played this week to complete round two of the knockout competition. On Tuesday night (May 10) Fairfield Wanderers tackle unbeaten Super League outfit Northern Tigers at Knight Park (7.15pm kick-off). It will be a busy Wednesday night (May 11) when Northbridge FC battle fellow northern districts club, Super League leaders Spirit FC in a Christie Park blockbuster (7.15pm kick-off), and there will also be a double-header at Bensons Lane Field when Hawkesbury City host Northern Beaches association team Collaroy Cromer (6.30pm kickoff), followed by Chopin Park Rams versus Gladesville-Hornsby association representatives Eastwood-St Andrews (8.15pm).
-By Daniel De Nardi
