State League One – Round 20 Review
Things are starting to sort themselves out in State League One as the pressure builds in the final weeks of the competition. A couple of midweek matches saw the joint competition leaders, Northbridge and Balmain, both come unstuck, but they then both bounced back with weekend victories to keep hold of spots 1 and 2 on the ladder.
Balmain overcame being an early goal down to defeat Granville Rage, whilst Northbridge beat Nepean to retain first position. Eslewhere, the Hawks kept their fading finals hopes alive with a comfortable victory over the Mariners, Dully brushed aside Inter Lions, Hakoah edged past Prospect United, whilst Camden Tigers upset Gladesville Ryde Magic at Magdala.
We ventured out to see a match that had a massive bearing on the top of the table, and that was the vital rescheduled clash between Granville Rage and Northbridge FC at Garside Park.
Granville Rage – Northbridge FC 3-0
Granville Rage threw their hat well and truly into the ring for title contention when they overpowered Northbridge FC 3-0 in Tuesday’s rescheduled Round 13 clash.
You could feel the tension in the crisp autumn air at Garside Park, Northbridge keen to extend the gap at the top to more than just goal difference, whilst a win to Granville would reel in all three teams above them to within two points of the Rage.
Pocket striker, Ry Hardy, was an omission for Northbridge, whilst Granville had both Daniel Martinez and Calum Hedge starting off the bench, two very handy players indeed to have up your sleeve.
Both sides came flying out of the blocks, the initial half hour full of energetic counter attacks and swift passing movements as the defensive lines were truly tested.
A fourth minute raid down the right hand side – initiated by the overlapping Lee Jones – gave Northbridge an early opportunity, with the loose ball falling invitingly to Michael Cole, and his snapshot was brilliantly parried to safety by the ever alert Carl McMahon in the Granville goal.
Lee Jones then tried his hand at a 25 yard free kick, the shot from Northbridge right back swerving inches wide of the Granville upright.
Tom Bentham was proving a real handful for the Granville defence, his size and sheer strength typical of a big old fashioned number nine, and he was having a ding dong battle with both Manut Yel and Mitchell Luc, the Rage central defenders.
The arm wrestle needed a goal to open up proceedings, and it was Granville who managed to conjure one up in the 32md minute, not against the run of the play but almost.
Zac Watters received the ball at his feet on the edge of the penalty area, with his back to goal. A quick swivel found Watters facing a flat backline, and he duly lifted the ball over the defence for his captain, Dave Harding to run onto. Harding took a touch past the advancing Northbridge keeper, Sean Mulhern, before volleying the ball into an empty net to edge Granville in front.
Harding, in fact, had another pot shot, just five minutes later, chesting the ball down before cracking a volley past the left hand upright from fully 25 yards as Granville started to get on top.
Northbridge never once let up, trying to press their opponents, although at times their players were reading from different scripts as passes went astray with wrong options.
James Collins went ever so close for the ‘Bridge’ just a couple of minutes from half time, his well struck free kick from near the right touchline just kept on bending as it beat all and sundry on its way to slamming against the inside of the left post before being cleared.
Within the space of seven minutes around the half hour mark of the first half, both Tom Bentham and Michael Cole – two of Northbridge’s ‘go to’ men in the final third – received needless cautions for kicking the ball away. As the game wore on, their combined intensity drained given the threat of a red card hanging over their head, and this no doubt influenced Northbridge’s gusto in attack.
Three minutes after the break, Daniel Vukovic picked up a pass from his skipper, David Harding, before attacking the space in front of him down the centre of the park. He unleashed a shot as he closed in on the edge of the penalty area, only for Northbridge keeper, Sean Mulhern, to be equal to the task by diving to his right. Leon Pirrello closed down the rebound but just couldn’t get over the ball to direct it into goal.
On 57 minutes, Vukovic laid off a sweet pass into the path of Peter Pyliotis on the corner of the Northbridge penalty area, and he hit a lovely swerving shot that once again had Mulhern diving full stretch to keep out.
Granville could smell the kill and had Northbridge back pedalling, the ball carrier with plenty of options as runners moved into space constantly. Harding went close on 61 minutes with a curling shot that only just cleared the crossbar after being played in by Pyliotis, whilst Northbridge custodian, Sean Mulhern, saved point blank from Zac Watters just three minutes later.
Northbridge did manage to put together a brilliant move in the 66th minute, a series of crisp passes in the attacking third seeing Ricky Woodward lay the ball into the path of Mitchell Lensink, but he skied his shot from the edge of the area.
Even though the Rage were edging the arm wrestle territorially, they really need a second goal to pull away from their opponents, and it finally came on 74 minutes. The evergreen Dave Harding was having a super game in the middle of the park, a maestro conducting his orchestra, and he deservedly grabbed his and his side’s second goal, volleying home unmarked from just inside the box when a corner ricocheted into his path.
Within two minutes it was all over bar the shouting, when Daniel Vukovic and Calum Hedge exchanged passes on the edge of the Northbridge penalty area, with Hedge unselfishly squaring for Daniel Bortolazzo to side foot home from right in front, in the process giving Granville an unassailable 3-0 lead.
Northbridge are the sort of side who never give up, and just keep on coming at you, for the entire ninety minutes. Kevin Baker even hit the crossbar late on from a corner as they tried valiantly to salvage something from the match, but it wasn’t to be their day as the Rage just wanted it more. Lee Jones was his usual rampaging self at right back, Mulhern did his best between the sticks to keep the score down.
The three points has now put the Rage firmly in with a shout for the title itself, let alone a finals spot, putting them within three points of the top three. The defence held firm with Manut Yel and Mitchell Luc in the guts, skipper Dave Harding was a standout, pulling the strings from the centre of the park, whilst the rest of the side were energetic with supportive runs throughout.
Match Stats
Granville Rage 3 (David Harding 32’ / 74’, Daniel Bortolazzo 76’)
Northbridge FC 0
Tuesday, 12th of August, 2013
Garside Park, Granville
Referee: Mr David Christie
Assistant Referees: Mr John Lalic and Mr Ken Sharp
Granville Rage : 1.Carl McMahon, 17.Daniel Bortoloazzo, 7.David Harding (capt), 19.Rafid Hermiz, 4.Kushaba Kushaba, 14.Mitchell Luc (3.Cameron McKinnon 83’), 18.Leon Pirrello (16.Calum Hedge 69’), 8.Phillip Pyliotis, 12.Daniel Vukovic, 13.Zachary Watters (10.Daniel Martinez 81’), 9.Manut Yel.
Substitutes Not Used: 22.Michael Giancotti, 5.Sebastian Kalos.
Yellow Cards: 9.Manut Yel 29’, 14.Mitchell Luc 64’.
Red Cards: Nil
Northbridge FC : 99.Sean Mulhern, 4.Kevin Baker (19.Phillip Myall 83’), 16.Thomas Bentham, 8.Michael Cole, 14.James Collins (11.Jun Arima 76’), 3.Sean Eardley, 28.Alexander Hatzinikolaou, 36.Lee Jones, 10.Mitchell Lensink, 24.Andrew McGrouther (22.Keiran Hall 74’), 6.Ricky Woodward (capt).
Substitutes Not Used: 95.Angus Cameron, 13.Jay Wynter.
Yellow Cards: 16.Thomas Bentham 24’ , 8.Michael Cole 31’.
Red Cards: Nil
Rescheduled Match – Round 17
Balmain SC – Hakoah Sydney City East 1-2
Hakoah Sydney City East made a play for the fifth semi final spot on Thursday night, defeating the high flying Balmain Tigers at Hensley Athletic Field in a rescheduled Round 17 encounter.
Mark McAlpine was the star of the Hakoah show in a commanding team performance, scoring twice just after the break in the 47th and 52nd minutes to give his side the ascendancy.
Even though the league’s top scorer, Rosario Occhipinti, scored his 14th goal of the campaign to give Balmain a lifeline, the Tigers couldn’t muster up an equaliser, and suffered their third defeat of the season, leaving them equal first on 35 points going into the weekend’s fixtures.
The victory sees Hakoah Sydney City East climb away from the three team quagmire beneath them, consolidating fifth position and extending the gap to four by moving to 30 points on the ladder.
Round Twenty Review
Hawkesbury City – Western NSW Mariners 3-0
Hawkesbury City made light work of the Western NSW Mariners on Saturday afternoon at Bensons Lane, winning 3-0 to keep their 2013 finals hopes alive.
Veteran striker, Todd Macrae, who has had an interrupted season with injury, was the hero for the Hawks with a brace of goals, one in each half, the first beating Mariner’s keeper, Nick Barber in a one on one, and the second a predatory follow up and finish.
Evan Daglis wrapped up proceedings on 80 minutes, slotting home after dribbling through the Mariner’s defensive line into the box, rounding off a resounding victory for the Hawks.
The three points sees Hawkesbury climb to 29 points on the ladder, in sixth spot, keeping the heat on fifth placed Hakoah Sydney City East, who are on 33 points.
Granville Rage – Balmain Tigers 1-3
Balmain Tigers bounced back to form on Saturday afternoon at Garside Park, accounting for Granville Rage by 3-1.
Both sides were leg weary somewhat after midweek clashes, although Granville had an additional two days rest given they played on Tuesday whilst Balmain played on Thursday.
But it was Rage who were out of the blocks like lightning, with Zac Watters speeding on to a through ball before slotting home when faced with a one-on-one with Balmain custodian, Chris Leontios.
The Tigers responded on 7 minutes, with Will Donato creating space on the left before unleashing a powerful shot that was saved by Rage keeper, Carl McMahon.
Two minutes later Balmain had their equaliser, when skipper Tommy Hyde thumped the ball home following a Liam Cole corner.
Balmain kept their foot on the pedal and edged themselves in front after 16 minutes. Will Donato challenged Carl McMahon in the Granville goal to a high bouncing ball, which initially beat the both of them, before gathering the leather and placing it into the net amidst the controversial cries of the Rage faithful.
Both keepers kept each of their respective teams in the game during a second half battle, before Balmain completed the victory on 78 minutes.
A long ball out of defence by Oliver Babington found Will Donato in space, and his trickery proved too hot to handle for the Rage defence, racing into the penalty box and squaring to Domenic Di Mento who wrapped up the afternoon’s proceedings.
The loss sees Granville retain 4th spot on the ladder on 33 points, whilst Balmain move to 38 points, still second on goal difference behind Northbridge.
Gladesville Ryde Magic – Camden Tigers 1-2
Sunday afternoon’s encounter at Magdala Park was a somewhat lacklustre affair from both Gladesville Ryde Magic and Camden Tigers, with errant passing and poor possession play featuring far too often throughout. As the match wore on, however, it was the Tigers who managed to lift their game with a mix of desire and effort to eventually run out 2-1 winners.
Camden had the first real opportunity, and it came on 20 minutes, with Leigh Brown finishing a good move down the right with a stinging shot on target, but the ball was well held by the Magic keeper, Andrew Guirgis.
On 25 minutes it was the turn of the Magic, with Gladesville’s Yavuz Ekinci releasing Mitchell Smith down the right wing where the young flyer strode to the by-line before delivering a low cross into the 6-yard box. Some desperate Camden defending eventually saw the bobbling ball cleared to safety. However, within 5 minutes Gladesville conjured up the same move with Smith dribbing around two players on the right edge of the box before delivering the same low cross. This time striker Majid Eslami stepped up to finish with a tap-in on the far post for goal number six for the campaign.
It was a mere 5 minutes later that Camden produced the equaliser. After a swift movement down the right, a long throw-in across the penalty area was allowed to bounce across the Magic’s goalmouth. Camden’s wide striker Grant Mackechnie needed no further invitation as he stole in on the far post to level the scores for the visitors.
The second half began with Camden pushing two early half-chances over the cross-bar after some good crosses by, firstly, Grant Mackechnie to striker Blake Armstrong, and another incisive ball from wide on the left by the energetic front runner, John McPhillips, this time to midfielder, Dean Mackechnie.
Another good run by McPhillps down the left flank saw him deliver a threatening cross that was again allowed to bounce across the penalty area by the Gladesville defence. Camden’s hard working midfielder Chris York arrived down the right channel and made no mistake with the gilt-edged opportunity, burying the ball from 7 metres to put the visitors in front.
Gladesville managed to create a number of chances during the second half but were unable to convert, and despite a frantic final 10 minute frenzy of all-out attack, the Magic failed to bother the scoreboard again and Camden held on for a valuable victory.
The loss leaves Gladesville Ryde in a real spot of bother to try and make the finals, leaving Magic in 7th position on 26 points and seven points outside the top five. Three points to Camden means the Tigers move to 18 points, one above Inter Lions, and more importantly, five ahead of bottom placed Western NSW Mariners.
Northbridge FC – Nepean FC 4-2
Northbridge FC maintained top spot in the State League One competition ladder on Sunday afternoon at Northbridge Oval following their 4-2 triumph over a gallant Nepean FC.
Following their disappointing 0-3 reverse midweek against Granville Rage, Northbridge bounced back in the best possible way, leading throughout before clinching the three points late on.
Michael Cole put Northbridge in front, before Nepean equalised via a Sebastian Camacho header from a Terry Pannowitz corner.
Josh Hunter spurned a couple of great opportunities for Nepean before the ‘Bridge’ grabbed the game by the scruff with two goals prior to the half time break.
Ry Hardy made it 2-1 before big Tom Bentham extended the home team’s lead, converting after a great forward run from Jamie Collins.
Nepean gave a decent account of themselves early on after the break, with both Miki Awad and Camacho hitting the woodwork.
Northbridge keeper, Sean Mulhern, then conceded a penalty by fouling Ajak Deng, and Pannowitz duly converted to reduce the deficit.
Northbridge coach, Joe Hayward, then went to his bench in search of renewed energy, and the home side found another gear, finishing off the scoring late on with Ry Hardy’s second goal.
The loss sees Nepean remain in 8th spot on 26 points, whilst Northbridge have moved to 38 points, retaining first spot over Balmain on goal difference.
Hakoah Sydney City East – Prospect United 1-0
Hakoah Sydney City East made it six points in four days when they accounted for Prospect United by a solitary goal in Sunday evening’s match at Hensley Athletic Field.
Backing up after a brilliant three points against Balmain on Thursday night, Hakoah took the narrow win and well-and-truly consolidated their top five spot, ending Prospect’s finals’ hopes for this season in the process.
The victory sees Hakoah climb to fourth spot on the ladder on 33 points, ahead of Granville on goal difference, with both teams four points ahead of Hawkesbury City heading into the final weeks of the competition.
Inter Lions – Dulwich Hill 0-3
Dulwich Hill overcame Inter Lions 3-0 in the late Sunday evening clash at the Crest Athletic Centre, setting up what potentially could be a title decider on Thursday evening when they play Balmain in a rescheduled catch up game.
Inter Lions were no match for Dully on the night, who dominated territorially before taking a 35th minute lead, Anthony Musumeci firing into the far corner from the edge of the Inter penalty area after Steve Hrysanthos had laid the ball into his path.
James Villazon extended Dully’s lead within a minute of the break, slamming a shot in front just inside the box.
Inter threw caution to the wind and pushed men forward, but were caught with a sucker punch, Chris Pinto drawing Inter keeper, Roberto Maiorana, before squaring for Musumeci to tap in his second and Dully’s third of the night.
Inter Lions drop a spot to 11th after the loss with Camden climbing above them, whilst Dully move to 37 points, keeping the heat on Northbridge and Balmain who are one point above them.
