Persistent Blacktown City pip Sutherland at Lily Homes
Played in wet conditions, it was the Sharks who called the shots with the firmer hold on possession, and the better chances, throughout the 90? minutes, however the home side?s persistence and hard work paid off as Luke Austin grabbed an 85? minute winner to ensure the side remains in equal second on the ladder.
The loss for Sutherland leaves the side winless in their last three League matches, though the signs from today?s match certainly suggest a win is only just around the corner for the Seymour Shaw based side.
Blacktown City FC carved out the opening chance of the afternoon following some neat passing out of midfield. Austin?s delivery from the right was partially cleared by the Sharks defence, allowing Yuchi Yamauchi to drive on goal, stinging Nathan Denham?s palms in the process.
The home side kept the foot on the accelerator as Austin delivered a set-piece towards James Monie. The powerful striker used his body well, though was equally well marshalled by Paul Cotte who thwarted any danger.
Sutherland?s reply arrived in the 9? minute, orchestrated superbly by Panni Nikas. The Sharks playmaker showed his fine touch down the left as he beat his marker to deliver a square ball into the path of Hussein Salameh. The right-sided winger saw his effort blasted against a Blacktown City defender.
Salameh and Nikas were at it again moments later, this time the Sharks? number 9 played the provider as Nikas saw his long-range attempt thwarted by some desperate defending by the home side.
Both sides showed great ability to move the ball around despite the slippery surface, credit to the well-organised formations by both coaches, even though clear scoring chances were few and far between.
Matt Gordon was next to step up and show his fine dribbling ability down the left side on 16? minutes. The left-sided midfielder?s slalom attempt saw him beat the challenges of two Blacktown City defenders before his diagonal drive across goal was well-parried by Brody Crane.
At the other end, Monie and Daniel Bragg played an exceptional one-two on the edge of the penalty-area, the latter denied only by some expert defending by Cotte.
On 23? minutes, Roodenburg created the yard of space he needed to unleash on target. The Blacktown City captain picked his spot nicely, however his low-driven effort was well saved by Denham down to his right.
Sutherland got forward in the 27? minute to cause a little stress for Brody Crane. A cross from the right by Michael Stuart found the head of Tyson Rhodes, who remained forward following a corner, though he sent his glancing header wide of the target.
Bragg should have opened the scoring in the 32? minute when he received a neat pass directly on the penalty-spot. A tremendous exchange of passes including both Yamauchi and Miyazawa setup the chance down the right, though Bragg?s first-time effort flashed inches wide of the post.
On 38? minutes, Roodenburg had a chance of his own as he perfectly met a cross from the right. The striker rose nicely to meet the ball with his head, though failed to hit the target with the ball finishing wide of goal.
Sutherland?s Yianni Fragogianis, lining up alongside the Sharks engine in midfield Nick Stavroulakis in midfield today, attempted an audacious chip to catch Crane unawares on 39? minutes. The shot-stopper did well to backtrack and tip the ball over the crossbar.
The Sharks closed the first-half on the front foot creating chances to Nikas and Salameh, though the Blacktown City rearguard kept their shape and thwarted both attempts.
After the break, Blacktown City immediately pressed forward and created a chance for Roodenburg. The striker rose highest to head on goal, though Denham was well positioned to make a routine save.
Sutherland responded again via the feet of Nikas. The playmaker played a sublime through ball to send Chris Price through on goal ? the attacking midfielder?s lunging attempt to divert the ball past Crane failed to find the target.
Nikas again created a chance on 53? minutes when he wiggled his way into some space before blasting his effort over the crossbar, assisted largely by a big deflection.
Blacktown?s best efforts in the front-third arrived via the feet of Miyazawa and Yamauchi, though the two failed to combine with Monie shortly after as the latter was closed down on the byline by Rhodes.
Sutherland Sharks had claims for a penalty ignored as Powell went down inside the penalty-area. The referee was quick to stop play and show the Sutherland player a yellow card for his efforts.
On 61? minutes Stavroulakis tried his luck from distance though his attempt was well saved by Crane.
Sutherland?s pressing game continued as Nikas squandered a big chance. After receiving a square pass inside the penalty-area, Nikas saw his fierce attempt thwarted by the sea of legs in front of him.
Substitute Jim Bakis very nearly made an immediate impact on 69? minutes. His whipped in cross from the right carried a lot of punch and was misread by Zac Cairncross who saw his header diverted over his own crossbar.
On 71? minutes Sutherland were denied the opening goal by a fine Brody Crane save. Bakis? corner delivery to the far post was headed back into the penalty-area as the follow-up attempt was claimed on the goal line by Crane.
Immediately from Crane?s re-start, a swift Blacktown City counterattack saw Yamauchi close in on goal. Using his pace and skill, the attacking midfielder played the ball square into the path of Miyazawa who flashed his diagonal effort across goal, finishing inches wide of Denham?s right-hand post.
10? minutes from the end, Nikas again forced Crane into a save with a powerful drive from an acute angle. The visitors maintained the pressure with Matt Bailey and new signing Nik Tsattalios enterring the fray as Stavroulakis and Fragogianis called all the shots out of the middle.
Blacktown City?s afternoon of persistence and battling paid off 5? minutes from time as Luke Austin snuck in behind the Sharks defenders after the visitors coughed up possession in a dangerous area. The midfielder showed composure and finesse as he snapped at the ball, slotting home past a helpless Nathan Denham.
Sutherland attempted to immediately rectify the situation as Nikas hit a bomb from distance to force Crane into a save on 87? minutes. With the goalkeeper still to get back to his feet, Matt Bailey saw his follow-up attempt from point-blank range parried by the shot-stopper, much to the delight of the home supporters.
Stavroulakis? last-ditch attempt to guide a header from a Bakis free-kick finished over the crossbar following a deflection by a defender as the referee called an end to proceedings.
Following the match, Blacktown City FC coach Mark Crittenden expressed his delight at the result, even though his side was made to work really hard for it:
?I really rate Sutherland highly and I even said it at the start of the season that they would be one of the teams to beat this season, so I am really pleased with getting a win against them,? commented Crittenden.
?Sutherland are one of the best football playing sides in the League, and today I thought they played really well, they were first to everything, making our job a tough one.
?In saying that, I am pleased with my boys for hanging on in there, battling hard to stay in the game and that perseverance paid off in the end for us with the goal.
?We had some determining moments in the match with Zac Cairncross putting his body on the line to make a save, Brody Crane made two fabulous saves in particular and then Luke Austin getting forward and finding the winner ? I am really pleased we managed to grind out the result,? explained the Blacktown City FC coach.
Another impressive stat for the former champions is their ability to score goals late on in matches, something Crittenden puts down to the hard work put in by the players in pre-season:
?We have a very fit squad, and that was important in our pre-season where we worked hard to ensure all the boys could last the season in the best possible condition, and I think this has shown with our goals arriving late on in matches.
?Perhaps in some matches teams have tired as the match gets to the closing stages, though these boys continue to run hard until the final whistle and again today we have reaped reward for this,? Crittenden concluded.
Sutherland Sharks coach Robbie Stanton was visibly disappointed with the result, though contrary to the final two weekends ? the Sharks now on a three match losing streak ? Stanton was pleased with the efforts of his players today.
?We did change a few things from our game plan to make some adjustments, though we kept the same mentality and approach, though in the end we come out of the match defeated after having dominated the match,? explained Stanton.
?We had the greater share of possession, the better chances ? and we didn?t really concede anything to Blacktown ? though we didn?t get the goals and that is how football goes sometimes.
?Different to the past two weeks, I have to say that I am happy with the way the team played today, the boys really gave a massive effort and losing a match playing the football we want to play is not as disappointing as losing a match without actually expressing the football we have been striving to play for the past two seasons.?
The Sharks loss sees them start to lose sight of the top teams, though in a competition where the League ladder is very compact, there is still time for the side to bounce back:
?In football you must take the chances that are presented to you, so we need to ensure we get this right and also keep playing our game.
?We will need to pick it up over the next few weeks as we want to remain in the hunt for finals football this season,? Stanton ended.
Both teams will be playing each other once more on Wednesday as they battle for a spot in the latter stages of the Waratah Cup at Seymour Shaw in the quarter-final clash at Miranda.
Blacktown City FC 1 (Luke Austin 85?)
Sutherland Sharks 0
Sunday 3rd June, 2012
Lily Homes Stadium, Seven Hills
Referee: Adam Susz
Assistant Referees: Sarah Ho and Thomas Lee
Fourth Official: Gareth Williams
Blacktown City FC: 1.Brody Crane; 3.Ryo Watanabe, 6.Matt Lewis, 4.Travis Major, 8.Daniel Bragg (12.David Cain 66?), 16.Luke Austin, 7.Luke Roodenburg (C), 19.Zac Cairncross, 9.Ryuji Miyazawa, 10.James Monie (13.Kieran Paull 78?), 11.Yuchi Yamauchi (17.Dylan Vorster 75?)
Substitutes Not Used: 20.Lucas Turnbull
Yellow Cards: Nil
Red Cards: Nil
Sutherland Sharks: 1.Nathan Denham; 3.Tyson Rhodes, 4.Yianni Fragogianis, 5.Paul Cotte, 6.Matthew Gordon, 8.Chris Price (13.Niko Tsattalios 78?), 9.Hussein Salameh (7.Jim Bakis 67?), 14.Nick Stavroulakis (C), 18.Michael Stuart, 19.Blake Powell (10.Matt Bailey 78?), 23.Panni Nikas
Substitutes Not Used: 22.Simon Jaegar, 12.Hayden Morton
Yellow Cards: Blake Powell 60?, Yianni Fragogianis 76?
Red Cards: Nil
Player Ratings:
3 ? Panni Nikas (SS)
2 ? Brody Crane (BCFC)
1 ? Nick Stavroulakis (SS)
-By Joseph Carlucci
