Younis scoring continues as Bonnyrigg demolish Sutherland
A dead-ball double from the in-form Robbie Younis either side of Mitchell Long?s stunning finish earned all three points for the hosts as their youthful backline did exceptionally well to keep Sutherland at bay throughout the match.
The former A-League striker?s brace took him to five goals (3 penalties) in two competitive appearances for his new side as the striker further backed his tag as an early favourite for the golden boot.
Long showed the first attacking intent of the match, darting toward the edge of the box before rifling a goal bound effort into the back of Alexander Canak. The deflection bounced harmlessly wide for a goal kick.
Long repeated the feat moments later, only to be fouled on the edge of the area by Panni Nikas.
Younis duly punished the visiting side for the foul, dispatching a glorious curled free-kick into the top corner to open the scoring and take his tally to four goals for the season.
Sutherland came close to hitting back on the quarter hour mark as Pat Savour?s cross was flicked goalward by Matt Bailey; however Nikodin Matic was equal to the task, well positioned to hold the shot.
Younis, who proved a constant threat throughout the match, sought to double his tally soon after, blazing over from 25-yards before sending a dipping effort from the edge of the box into Simon Jaeger?s safe hands.
Tynan Diaz got himself in on the action minutes later, taking advantage of Matt Gordon?s missed defensive header to get a shot off on goal only to be denied by Hayden Morton?s timely block at the near post.
George Souris came to the rescue soon after, making a block of his own on the half hour mark to deny Long?s smart effort shortly before Alexander Canak drove an effort high and wide from outside the area.
The away side looked to claw their way back into the match, putting together a series of well structured attacks late in the opening half; however the host?s resolute defending kept them at bay, limiting them to long range shots and half chances which were either wayward or easily held by Matic as Bonnyrigg held their 1-0 lead going into the interval.
The second-half kicked off in lively fashion with Sutherland midfielder Nick Stavroulakis drawing an early save from Matic before Bo Ken Chun?s powerful long rang effort swerved just wide.
Bonnyrigg gave themselves some breathing space on 50? minutes as Long played a smart one-two with Chun, using the momentum of Chun?s layoff to unleash a magnificent shot past Jaeger to double his side?s advantage.
The goal was no less than the enigmatic midfielder deserved after his tireless first half display.
Jaeger kept his side in the match soon after, darting off his line to pluck the ball from Younis? feet as the striker ran onto a well-weighted through ball.
Nikas twice went close to pulling a goal back for Sutherland, drawing a low save out of Matic before lobbing wide after Chris Price beat Matic to a long ball out of the Sutherland half.
Younis was handed the chance to put his side three goals to the good on 77? minutes after Long was brought down by substitute Paul Cotte in the box, and the in-form striker took full advantage.
Jaeger dove to his right as Younis coolly stroked the ball straight down the centre to wrap up the scoring and extend his tally to five goals in two matches.
Sutherland pressed for a late consolation, but was kept scoreless as Matic held shots from Bailey and Price while Stavroulakis and Nikas fired wide and high respectively.
The visitors also gave Bonnyrigg a couple of late scares with goalmouth scrambles; however the hosts kept Sutherland out to maintain their clean sheet and secure an impressive victory.
Sutherland Sharks coach Robbie Stanton was understandably disheartened by the defeat, believing that the result was no less than his side deserved with after a flat performance:
?I had an inclination during the week that it wasn?t going to be a good game for us,? said Stanton.
?We looked flat and out of sorts and our attitude wasn?t right for the build up to this game.
?We didn?t really deserve to get anything out of the game to be honest.
?There were times we showed a little bit but there was too much missing from too many players.
?In the end we lost to a team that was just more determined to get the three points.?
With the match now behind them, Stanton stated his desire to bounce back in the next match to get their season straight back on track:
?The sun will rise tomorrow and we?ll start again,? said Stanton.
?We head back home next week to try and get three points, but we need to turn things around in the next three sessions with a better approach to training and hopefully this will be a good wake up call.?
Bonnyrigg White Eagles coach Brian Brown was delighted with the win, crediting his players with an impressive performance against tough opposition:
?Very happy with that; to win 3-0 over Sutherland I?m ecstatic with that victory,? said Brown.
?It probably wasn?t our most polished performance but the effort the guys put in meant they (Sutherland) didn?t cause us too much problem in the final third.
?We?ve had a lot young players that have come into the team this year and they?ve done really well.
?Our aim tonight was not to concede any goals because I always feel we will score, and they achieved that.?
Brown also stated his delight with the continued goalscoring feats of Robbie Younis while also taking time to praise man-of-the-match Mitchell Long for his efforts throughout the ninety minutes:
?He?s frightening ? if Robbie hadn?t got injured in pre-season and we had him really fit it?s frightening how good he could be,? praised Brown.
?I just hope he keeps doing what he?s been doing.
?Also Mitchell Long has been sensational for us, the guy works his socks off and I thought he was outstanding for us tonight as well,? Brown concluded.
Match Stats
Bonnyrigg White Eagles 3 (Robbie Younis 7?, 77? (pen), Mitchell Long 50?)
Sutherland Sharks 0
Saturday April 7th, 2011
Bonnyrigg Sports Centre, Bonnyrigg
Referee: Kevin Peddie
Assistant Referees: J Gitas and Sam Grasso
Fourth Official: M Weiner
Bonnyrigg White Eagles: 33.Nikodin Matic; 7.Tynan Diaz (32.Jay D?Elia 86?), 13.Nikola Stanojevic, 21.Bo Ken Chun, 10.Jordan Simpson (17.Jordan Crighton 67?), 2.Alex Mansueto (15.Luka Dukic 81?), 5.Chris Tadrosse, 4.David Vrankovic, 8.Alexander Canak, 9.Robbie Younis, 23.Mitchell Long
Substitutes Not Used: 20.Andrew Bazi, 1.Ben McNamara
Yellow Cards: Nikodin Matic 67?
Red Cards: Nil
Sutherland Sharks: 22.Simon Jaeger; 2.George Souris, 6.Matt Gordon, 8.Chris Price, 9.Hussein Salameh (5.Paul Cotte 56?), 10.Matt Bailey, 12.Hayden Morton, 14.Nick Stavroulakis, 17.Pat Savour (29.Chris Naumoff 56?), 18.Michael Stuart, 23.Panni Nikas
Substitutes Not Used: 7.Jim Bakis, 16.Klim Gjoreski. 1.Nathan Denham
Yellow Cards: Nick Stavroulakis 45?. Pat Savour 49?
Red Cards: Nil
Player Ratings:
3 ? Mitchell Long (BWE)
2 ? Robbie Younis (BWE)
1 ? George Souris (SS)
-By Michael Shoolman
