State League One Round 10 Review
Some interesting outcomes from the round of football in State League One this weekend, headed by the Balmain Tigers, who have extended their lead at the top of the ladder with a resounding 3-0 triumph against Hawkesbury City.
Prospect United and Northbridge FC both had long overdue victories on the road, Camden Tigers picked up their second three points within a week, whilst Granville Rage and Dulwich Hill shared the spoils in an entertaining 2-2 draw.
Our match of the round took us to Cook Park where the high flying Nepean FC welcomed the visit of the Western NSW Mariners.
Nepean FC – Western NSW Mariners 0 – 0
Western NSW Mariners came to town and returned home to the West with a point following their scoreless draw against Nepean FC on Saturday night at Cook Park, St Marys. Following a reasonably dour first half, the Round Ten clash exploded into life after the half time break with both sides trading blows but neither able to break the deadlock.
Nepean FC have had a good time of it lately and sit near the summit of the State League One competition, a great effort since their promotion from SL2 in 2012, and were hoping to snuff out the visitors and maintain their position on the ladder.
The Mariners made the trek to St Marys in the early afternoon, and were looking to shore up the backline given they had leaked plenty in recent weeks. Defenders Stuart Bromley and Nikki Spice were missing, however, as was the speedy Nick Rutherford up front, but skipper Ricky James Guihot gave his team a rev up in his pre match talk, demanding a more tighter team performance.
Livewire striker, James Christie, had the first real opportunity of the match after six minutes, the Mariners striker stabbing wide after taking possession of a low corner inside the Nepean box and easing past a couple of defenders.
Nepean responded within sixty seconds when Sebastian Camacho squared to Daniel Borg in space on the right hand side of the box, forcing Mariners keeper, Nick Barber, into a reaction save from the Nepean flanker’s low shot.
A 20 yard drive from Western NSW captain, Ricky James Guihot, in the ninth minute flew just past the uprights as the visitors kept up the enthusiasm early. In fact it was Guihot who looked most dangerous during this early period, not only with a couple of long range shots, but with his general work rate across the centre of the park.
Nepean’s central midfield pairing of Terry Pannowitz and Miki Awad were influential in many of their team’s forward moves, with Awad going close himself on 18 minutes, volleying over the crossbar from 20 yards after a neat ‘one-two’ with Dylan Fagan.
Awad was the provider some ten minutes later, pinching possession before slipping a pass into space for Garry Boardman to run onto, but Boardman blasted his angled drive high and wide of the mark.
On 34 minutes it was the turn of Guihot to show tenacity and win possession, not once, but twice, with well timed tackles. Guihot’s square pass found James Christie, who cracked a grass cutter straight at Nepean’s goal keeper, Ryan Trussell.
The Mariners kept on it and were almost rewarded in the 41st minute with a real speculator, Seamus Fitzsimons cutting inside from the right wing before smacking a 30 yard shit that dipped agonizingly over the Nepean cross bar.
The final opportunity of the first stanza fell to Nepean, and it came with less than a minute to play. Daniel Borg did ever so well on the right wing to cut inside one defender and nutmeg another on the way towards the by line, but he elected to shoot instead of squaring the leather to a couple of team mates waiting for the simple tap in, his angled shot flying well over the bar.
Early within the second half both coaches went to the bench to spark up proceedings, and that’s exactly what happened from the hour mark right up until the end of the match as both sides tried valiantly to snatch the three points on offer.
Nepean’s Miki Awad went close with an absolute screamer in the 60th minute from fully 25 yards, with Mariners keeper, Nick Barber, flinging himself to his left to divert the ball for a corner with his finger tips.
Adam Scimone responded for Western NSW in the 63rd minute, racing down the left flank before cutting inside his defender and hitting a low shot that was well saved by Nepean’s custodian, Ryan Trussell.
The play was end to end as both sides threw men forward in numbers on the counter attack, and it looked inevitable that a goal or two would be scored.
Jason Browne was thrown into the fray by Nepean coach, Adam Malouf, and the sturdy number nine caused havoc as his team mates used him as a target man to great effect. In the 69th minute Browne played a superb ball in behind the retreating WNSW defence into the path of Miki Awad, but just as he was about to pull the trigger, Mariners keeper, Nick Barber came racing out to bravely save at his feet.
Awad was not to be denied and a minute later he picked up a loose ball outside the penalty area, letting fly once more with a drive that was destined for the inside side netting of the goal. But WNSW keeper, Nick Barber, defied destiny with another superb parry to keep his goal intact.
Mariners coach, Andrew Fearnley, responded with a double substitution in the 73rd minute as his troops tired, his team responding by trading blows with the home side in the final minutes of this enthralling encounter.
WNSW striker, James Christie, sped down the right wing in the 74th minute, and sent over a dangerous low cross along the six yard box. Mariners team mate, Adam Scimone, scuffed his shot, but as Nepean’s keeper, Ryan Trussell, went one way, the ball bounced off the legs of Nepean defender, Ryan Colborne, and trickled the other way towards the goal, before Colborne managed to clear the danger.
Like two exhausted boxers in the final round of a boxing bout, the players looked spent as the play went from one end of the field to the other, neither team seemingly content with a point.
Jason Browne was at it again in the 79th minute, putting Sebastian Camacho into a gap and in on goal, but the Nepean’s striker’s low shot was once again blocked by Barber in the WNSW goal.
Terry Pannowitz then had a go from 20 yards for Nepean, but Barber was ever alert in diving full stretch to his left to keep the grass cutter out and defy the home side yet again.
The final opportunity of the match came just before the 90 minute mark, and had all within Cook Park gasping as the away team threatened to take all three points home.
Mariners captain, Ricky James Guihot, worked his way down the left side, turning a defender inside out before hitting a superb measured drive that cannoned off the corner of the cross bar and the post. The rebound fell invitingly to Adam Scimone, and he took a touch before smashing a close range shot that Nepean keeper, Ryan Trussell, did ever so well to tip up and onto the cross bar.
The ball bounced down and out, and Mariners striker, James Christie, just couldn’t get over the high bounce, blasting over the bar under immense pressure from a couple of Nepean players.
Referee Mr Les Foster called time on a great contest, a scoreless draw between two teams who really opened up in the second half and gave the spectators value for money.
Nepean were solid all over, and were well served by both Terry Pannowitz and Miki Awad in the midfield. Pannowitz shows plenty of energy as he works across the park to win his team possession, whilst Awad pulls the strings in the attacking third, setting up chances and almost scoring a number of times from distance. Jason Browne also added plenty up front once he came on in the 60th minute, having a shot blocked with his first touch, and using his frame well as a target man.
The Western NSW Mariners soaked up the pressure at times really well, and could’ve snatched all three points a number of times, especially with that last ditch effort in the final minute. Skipper Ricky James Guihot was pivotal for his team, a real captain’s knock as he worked hard to steal possession and/or break up the home side’s momentum, and Sean Fitzsimons played solidly at right back, strong in the tackle and supportive going forward. But Mariners keeper, Nick Barber, was the hero on the night with a string of superb saves to keep his goal intact, his agility and alertness thwarting Nepean every single time in an inspirational individual performance.
Match Stats
Nepean FC 0
Western NSW Mariners 0
Saturday, June 8, 2013
Cook Park, St Marys
Referee: Mr L Foster
Assistant Referees : Mr Y Shamon and Mr B Xu
Bench: J. Woods, Z. Elrich, W. Angel, V. Rigoli, I. Johnson.NEPEAN FC: 1.R.Trussell (capt), 17.D.Borg (11.A.Walker 55’), 2.S.Camacho, 12.R.Colborne, 7.D.Fagan (9.J.Browne 60’), 10.M.Awad, 6.N.Harnett, 8.T.Pannowitz, 13.N.Pozder (14.J.Hunter 76’), 18.N.Walker, 15.G.Boardman.
Substitutes Not Used: 25.R.O’Connor, 20.M.Miladinski.
Yellow Cards: Nil
Red Cards: Nil
WESTERN NSW MARINERS: 28.N.Barber, 33.C.Adair, 8.A.Christie, 9.J.Christie, 17.B.Osborne (2.M.Corben 50’), 11.A.Scimone, 20.J.Hotham (14.M.Rooke 73’), 6.B.Collins, 4.S.Fitzsimons (16.D.Logan 73’), 23.R.J.Guihot (capt), 18.K.McCall.
Substitutes Not Used: 25.B.Deaton, 27.D.Lane.
Yellow Cards: Nil
Red Cards: Nil
STATE LEAGUE ONE ROUND TEN REVIEW
Balmain Tigers extended their lead at the top of the State League One competition at Wentworth Park on Sunday afternoon, completing a comprehensive 3-0 victory over a depleted Hawkesbury City SC.
The game was billed as the match of the round with the teams in first and third place coming into this clash, but the Hawks took the field severely depleted with numerous first teamers missing, specifically captain Gavin Hartge and experienced striker Todd Macrae.
Balmain scored a couple of goals on the half hour mark that enabled them to take a stranglehold on the game.
Gavin Wenyon got a touch to Jacob Di Mento’s corner in the 28th minute to give the Tigers the lead, and Rosario Occhipinti made it 2-0 in the 35th when he converted a one-on-one opportunity after latching onto Domenic Di Mento’s through ball.
Occhipinti grabbed his brace by scoring in the final minute of play to hand Balmain a 3-0 triumph, with the subsequent three points putting the club in outright first place on 20 points, leaving Hawkesbury City on 16 points in 3rd spot.
Granville Rage and Dulwich Hill played out an entertaining 2-2 draw in a fiercely contested match at Garside Park on Sunday afternoon.
In a match that produced half a dozen cautions, the Rage lead at the half time break courtesy of a first half spot kick, converted by central defender, Manut Yel.
Dully changed a few things around tactically after the break, and duly equalized through their top goal scorer, Carlos Villazon.
But Granville were awarded their second spot kick of the match with about ten minutes remaining, and this time the experienced Phil Pyliotis did the honours, converting and seemingly giving the Rage a winning lead.
Dulwich Hill weren’t finished however, equalizing in the final moments through Frank Calcagno, giving both sides a share of the spoils.
Sunday afternoon saw Gladesville-Ryde Magic take on Prospect United at Magdala Reserve with both teams struggling to gain consistency over recent weeks and, no doubt, coaches from both camps eager to claim the three points on offer in order to build some momentum nearing the end of the first round of the competition.
Magic started the brighter, failing to capitalize on a couple of early opportunities. Gladesville’s Mitchell Smith had the home fans out of their seats on 5 minutes with an intelligent dribbling run into the box which was finally nullified at the last minute by Prospect’s cover defence, whilst in the 10th minute, a long defensive clearance from Aaron Khan put Samir Eshani through on goal but the striker shot just wide of the right-hand upright as the cover arrived.
Prospect took a while to find their rhythm but eventually ramped up their efforts to challenge at the other end. Left winger Jiho Katsumasa created a fabulous opportunity with an incisive run down the left flank in the 20th minute. His pinpoint cross almost found his captain, Gus Orcajo, steaming in at the far post but eventually the ball glided across the goalmouth untouched.
Later in the half Orcajo found himself at the end of some good lead-up work from his team and wriggled free in the box, but his stinging shot went straight at the Gladesville keeper, Kiriakos Tohouroglou, who snaffled the prize with ease.
Meanwhile Prospect’s keeper, Michael Steell, was keeping busy at the other end. Firstly, touching a cheeky free-kick from Gladesville’s Yavuz Ecinki over the bar in the 24th minute, and then denying Alaa Ali Khan in the 44th minute by breaking off his line to smother an attempted shot with the midfielder bearing down on goal.
However, Steell was powerless to stop Gladesville scoring in the 38th minute when another pinpoint clearance from Aaron Khan found Samir Eshani at full stretch. The striker did well to out-pace the defence before unleashing an unstoppable drive from 12 metres that rocketed into the back of the net.
The initial stages of the second half were relatively lack-lustre with both sides struggling to maintain possession or create any real opportunities. It was not until the 70th minute that the game came to life with Gladesville’s Ecinki cleverly playing a through ball to speedster Eshani who again outsped the defence, only to shoot straight at Steell in the Prospect goal rather
than use the support players around him.
Additionally, Alaa Ali Khan’s surging run in the 74th minute almost brought Gladesville a goal but his left foot drive at the end of a 40 metre dribble ballooned over the bar, much to the relief of the
Prospect defence.
These close shaves served to spark up the Prospect attack and salvation was to come for them in the 75th minute when the industrious mid-fielder Tom Simpson launched a pile-driver from 24 metres that took a deflection on the edge of the box and smashed into the top corner of the goal. It was an excellent effort that the hard-working number 7 fully deserved after having a number of similar efforts blocked earlier in the match.
At 1-1 neither side was willing to pack up shop and settle for a point. Both teams pushed forward at every opportunity, intent on grabbing the advantage. The best chances came for Gladesville in the 77th minute when a Cameron Newton free-kick was eventually headed into the goal by Mitchell Smith only for the referee to award a free-kick against the home team for an earlier
infringement.
For Prospect the effervescent Ben Lam found some space down the leftwing in the 85th minute before whipping in dangerous cross to the far post only for young Daniel Brooker to volley over the bar from 7 metres with the goal at his mercy.
But Brooker was to have the glory in the final moments of the game as he finished off a flowing counter attack to wrestle the advantage to the visitors and grab the points at the death.
It was in the 91st minute that Gladesville had 9 men in the Prospect penalty area awaiting a free-kick to be swung in from the right by Yavuz Ecinki for a final assault at the opposition’s goal. But a quick clearance by Prospect and a fast break down the left had the retreating Gladesville defence fully stretched. Prospect smoothly switched the ball from Lam on the left through a series of pinpoint passes that eventually released the unmarked Brooker down the right channel
and in on goal. This time Brooker finished with aplomb driving the ball into the net from 8 metres, much to the delight of the travelling fans.
The three points propels Prospect above Magic and into 8th position on 12 points, leaving Gladesville on 11 points in 10th spot.
The Hakoah Sydney City East juggernaut came to a stuttering halt on Sunday evening at Hensley Athletic Field, with Northbridge FC taking all three points in a 2-0 victory.
Hakoah had climbed up the SL1 competition ladder recently with three consecutive wins, scoring ten goals on the way into the top five.
But Northbridge FC have underachieved somewhat, compared to their own standards, and were up for it this time around.
Lee Jones scored a brace to spearhead his side to victory, both from set pieces, converting a penalty in the first half, and scoring direct from a free kick after the break.
The loss sees Hakoah remain on 15 points in 5th spot, whilst Northbridge are one spot behind and have climbed to 14 points.
In the final match of Round Ten on Sunday evening, Camden Tigers made it six points in five days with a 2-1 away victory over Inter Lions at The Crest Athletic Centre.
After holding the fort for the remaining 25 minutes against Balmain Tigers on Tuesday evening to record their first three pointer of the season, the Tigers took the lead on 27 minutes against Inter when central defender, Stephen Tomasich, netted.
Aaron Cimitile equalized for Inter just before half time when he converted a penalty, but Camden edged themselves in front four minutes after half time with a goal to Thomas Finocchiaro.
Inter’s quest to retrieve something from the match was not helped when Patrick Pace was red carded in the 55th minute for his second bookable offence, both cards received within ten minutes either side of half time, and they eventually succumbed to a home defeat.
-By Frank Speranza
