FNSW Futsal Premier League Preview
An outstanding 2013/14 Football NSW Futsa Premier League summer culminates this Saturday with all the action and drama of grand final day at Dural Sports & Leisure Centre.
Eight elite clubs unraveled an enthralling four months of competition but it was Inner West Magic who claimed the prestigious club championship, its eighth of a dominant nine years in the state’s top flight league.
Somewhat surprisingly newcomers Mountain Majik pushed their established Sydney rivals out of the way to finish second behind Inner West on the ladder, ahead of Campbelltown and Dural.
Quake claimed three of the nine premierships on offer (Open Women, 16 Boys & 12 Boys), while two each went to the Warriors (Open Men, Youth Men) and Mascot Vipers (16 Girls, 14 Boys), and one each to Mountain Majik (14 Girls) and Inner West (12 Girls).
All nine premiers reached this weekend’s trophy matches and six different clubs feature teams at the deciders, Campbelltown boasting the most grand finalists (5), ahead of Magic (4), Vipers (3), Majik (3), Warriors (2) and Enfield Rovers (1).
Quake should certainly heed last year’s grand final day to understand how disappointment is entwined with joy after Inner West lost all five deciders it contested in 2013.
Magic club coach Matteo Maiorana has been through so many of these moments that nothing would surprise him anymore, but he’s absolutely thrilled Magic will again play in almost half the premier league finals.
“Our turnover of players each year is minimal so we maintain a good stability throughout the season,” he said of yet another club championship. “Four teams in the grand final is still a very good effort.”
Campbelltown manager Carlos Martinez applauded his club’s efforts. “Third in the club championship and now five grand finalists – there will be plenty of purple around what will hopefully be a great day for Quake,” he said.
“We’ve got four out of five men’s teams in the grand finals which is unusual. We’ve relied on our girls in the past now it’s the boys’ turn to contribute. The right philosophy at the club has helped set all this up and I wish them all the best.”
Mascot club president Zvi Ben David is also delighted to feature in three grand finals after what turned out to be a frustrating summer for its senior outfits.
“It’s our worst year in terms of grand final stages but the younger ages have done very well for the club, and there are a few surprises,” he said.
“This is a real building year for the club and we’re always trying to build teams. Hanging on to players can be difficult but we’re here to develop good players and we’re very proud of those who have moved on to bigger and better things.”
2014 Football NSW Futsal Premier League
Club championship
Inner West (244), Mountain Majik (216), Campbelltown (209), Dural (198) , Mascot (188)
Premiers
Campbelltown (3), Dural (2), Mascot (2), Mountain Majik (1), Inner West (1)
Semi-finalists
Inner West (7), Campbelltown (6), Mountain Majik (6), Dural (5), Mascot (4), Enfield (3), Phoenix (3), Boomerangs (2)
Grand finalists
Campbelltown (5), Inner West Magic (4), Mascot Vipers (3), Majik (3), Dural (2), Enfield Rovers (1)
Good luck to all teams, here’s how the day will pan out:
12 Boys – 10am
Campbelltown Quake (1) vs Mountain Majik (3)
Ladder: Campbelltown (31), Inner West (28), Mountain Majik (22), Boomerangs (22)
Major semi-final: Campbelltown 3-1 Inner West
Minor semi-final: Boomerangs 1-2 Mountain Majik
Preliminary final: Inner West 1-2 Mountain Majik
Round 1 result: Mountain Majik 3-1 Campbelltown
Round 8 result: Campbelltown 3-1 Mountain Majik
It’s no surprise Campbelltown 12 Boys feature in the championship game after a stellar season saw it outfox Inner West to the premiership line, but Mountain Majik’s young guns showed true mettle to hold off a gallant Boomerangs in the elimination semi-final 2-1 and then get the better of Inner West in a nailbiting 2-1 preliminary final win to advance to a grand final they should carry every confidence into. Majik and Quake traded 3-1 home wins throughout summer and if the junior Mountaineers can contain Quake lasers Adrian Neoklis and Angelo Kalamvokis (both 18 goals) they could yet spring one more shock.
2013 winners: Enfield Rovers 1-0 Inner West Magic
12 Girls – 11am
Inner West Magic (1) vs Mountain Majik (2)
Ladder: Inner West (39), Mountain Majik (36), Dural (29), Campbelltown (23)
Major semi-final: Inner West 3-1 Mountain Majik
Minor semi-final: Dural Warriors 3-0 Campbelltown
Preliminary final: Mountain Majik 2-0 Dural Warriors
Round 5 result: Inner West 3-2 Mountain Majik
Round 12 result: Mountain Majik 6-4 Inner West
Inner West claimed a tooth-and-nail 12 Girls premiership earning 39 of a possible 42 points (the highest total of any premier league grade) yet finishing a solitary win in front of Mountain Magic – and it’s a salivating prospect to see these two closely matched teams in the decider! Magic held on for a thrilling 3-2 round-five home victory only to have Majik come from 1-2 down at halftime to win 6-4 in the return fixture. Both sides have scored over 70 goals this season and watch out for a showdown between Mountaineer Alyssa Rose (21 goals) and her Inner West counterpart Madeleine Kowalenko (19).
2013 winners: Dural Warriors 1-0 Inner West Magic
14 Boys – 12pm
Mascot Vipers (1) vs Inner West Magic (2)
Ladder: Mascot (35), Inner West (34), Enfield (30), Mountain Majik (18)
Major semi-final: Mascot Vipers 6-2 Inner West
Minor semi-final: Enfield Rovers 5-4 Mountain Majik
Preliminary final: Inner West 2-1 Enfield Rovers
Round 4 result: Mascot Vipers 7-5 Inner West
Round 11 result: Inner West 3-3 Mascot Vipers
Mascot Vipers pipped Inner West for the 14 Boys premiership title by one point, and considering their round-11 encounter finished 3-3 (after Magic led 1-0 at halftime) it’s the harshest of reminders of how each chance matters. Vipers scored an outrageous 87 goals from their 14 regular season games (including a freescoring 7-5 round-four win over Inner West) and claimed three of the top-four scorers to show a real potency up front this season, but what would sting most is Vipers’ convincing 5-1 win over Magic in the same age group last year.
2013 winners: Mascot Vipers 5-1 Inner West Magic
14 Girls – 1pm
Mountain Majik (1) vs Inner West Magic (3)
Ladder: Mountain Majik (34), Dural (33), Inner West (30), Mascot (25)
Major semi-final: Mountain Majik 3-1 Dural Warriors
Minor semi-final: Inner West 3-1 Mascot Vipers
Preliminary final: Dural Warriors 0-3 Inner West
Round 5 result: Inner West 1-3 Mountain Majik (0-1 ht)
Round 12 result: Mountain Majik 4-6 Inner West (2-5 ht)
A highly competitive 14 Girls season – the top-four teams scored over 60 goals each – saw Majik front Warriors for the premiership by just one point, but it was Magic’s steady rise, beating Mascot 3-1 and then Dural 3-0 to grab a grand final berth that may have the Mountaineers a tad concerned. Majik beat Magic 3-1 on the road in round-five only to have Inner West turn the tables in the second fixture, winning well 6-4, and the fact Magic lost the same fixture last season has this year’s contest creeping with suspense.
2013 winners: Mascot Vipers 6-2 Inner West Magic
16 Boys – 2pm
Campbelltown Quake (1) vs Mascot Vipers (3)
Ladder: Campbelltown (34), Mountain Majik (25), Mascot (25), Phoenix (25)
Major semi-final: Campbelltown 5-3 Mountain Majik
Minor semi-final: Mascot Vipers 6-3 Phoenix
Preliminary final: Mountain Majik 2-2 Mascot Vipers
Round 5 result: Mascot Vipers 6-5 Campbelltown
Round 12 result: Campbelltown 6-3 Mascot Vipers
Boy oh boy, what an adrenaline rush the 16 Boys final should be! Campbelltown cruised to the premiership leaving Majik, Vipers and Phoenix locked on points well behind them. The ‘Snakelets’ eliminated Phoenix 6-3 and then struck down Mountaineers 10-9 in a thrilling preliminary-final penalty shootout (after Majik led 2-0 at halftime, the game finishing 2-2) and Mascot gains plenty of solace from knowing they came from behind to beat Quake 6-5 in round five and were 1-1 at halftime at Campbelltown (before losing 6-3) to know they have good measure of their grand final opponents.
2013 winners: Boomerangs 2-1 Enfield Rovers
16 Girls – 3pm
Mascot Vipers (1) vs Inner West Magic (2)
Ladder: Mascot (34), Inner West (33), Phoenix (24), Enfield (21)
Major semi-final: Mascot Vipers 3-1 Inner West
Minor semi-final: Phoenix 4-2 Enfield Rovers
Preliminary final: Inner West 1-0 Phoenix
Round 4 result: Mascot Vipers 0-5 Inner West
Round 11 result: Inner West 1-1 Mascot Vipers
It’s a beautiful match-up of offensive prowess versus defensive fortitude when Mascot Vipers play Inner West in the 16 Girls grand final. Vipers struck a league-best 56 goals over summer while Magic only leaked 13 times in 14 games to finish a mere point behind Mascot on the premiership ladder – a long way ahead of the rest of the competition. Inner West wiped Vipers 5-0 on the road and then played out a tense 1-1 round-11 draw in the next meeting to underline that this game could go either way. History is on Mascot’s side having won last year’s corresponding game 1-0 over Enfield.
2013 winners: Mascot Vipers 1-0 Enfield Rovers
Youth Men – 4pm
Dural Warriors (1) vs Campbelltown Quake (2)
Ladder: Dural (25), Campbelltown (24), Phoenix (22), Inner West (21)
Major semi-final: Dural Warriors 0-1 Campbelltown
Minor semi-final: Phoenix 2-2 Inner West
Preliminary final: Dural Warriors 2-1 Inner West
Round 7 result: Campbelltown 1-2 Dural Warriors
Round 14 result: Dural Warriors 2-2 Campbelltown
Just 11 points separated top from bottom in a jaw-dropping Youth Men competition. No team won more than half their games and three draws in the final round punctuated how close the battle was. In the end Dural won a tight premiership with just 24 points (from a possible 42) and face nearest rivals Campbelltown in the decider. Quake upset Dural 2-1 in a tense major semi-final leaving Warriors to edge Inner West 2-1 in the preliminary final and set up a grand final rematch. Dural beat Campbelltown 2-1 on the regular season road and came back to draw 2-2 in round-14 to add even more fuel to the fire.
2013 winners: Dural Warriors 2-1 Phoenix Futsal Club
Open Women – 5pm
Campbelltown Quake (1) vs Enfield Rovers (2)
Ladder: Campbelltown (34), Enfield (25), Mountain Majik (24), Dural (22)
Major semi-final: Campbelltown 4-1 Enfield Rovers
Minor semi-final: Mountain Majik 2-0 Dural Warriors
Preliminary final: Enfield Rovers 3-3 Mountain Majik
Round 3 result: Campbelltown 3-2 Enfield Rovers
Round 10 result: Enfield Rovers 1-2 Campbelltown
Campbelltown Quake finished well in front of Enfield Rovers on the Open Women table (nine points the biggest top-two gap in premier league) to make this appear well and truly like a blatant David versus Goliath face-off, but the fact Quake were embroiled in two successive one-goal victories over a stubborn Enfield during the regular season (3-2 and 2-1) should make them more than a little apprehensive heading into this weekend’s trophy game. And though Campbelltown suffered a narrow 2-1 defeat to Mascot in the same fixture last year it’s also Enfield’s only grand final aspirant – interesting times indeed!
2013 winners: Mascot Vipers 2-1 Campbelltown Quake
Open Men’s Football NSW Futsal Premier League grand final
Dural Warriors (1) vs Campbelltown Quake (3)
Ladder: Dural (32), Boomerangs (28), Campbelltown (28), Inner West (24)
Major semi-final: Dural Warriors 7-0 Boomerangs
Minor semi-final: Campbelltown 4-1 Inner West
Preliminary final: Boomerangs 1-5 Campbelltown
Round 7 result: Campbelltown 3-3 Dural Warriors
Round 14 result: Dural Warriors 3-5 Campbelltown
2013 winners: Dural Warriors 3-2 Inner West Magic
It’s the premier league’s two most in-form teams battling it out for the 2013/14 Open Men’s title as defending champions Dural Warriors meet a red-hot Campbelltown Quake.
Back-to-back champions Dural are gunning for unprecedented premier league success against a Campbelltown side hoping to take over the pride – and you couldn’t ask for a better build-up!
Warriors are the benchmark of Australian club Futsal with state and national arrows bolstering an already brimming quiver. They set several records this summer (12 league games unbeaten, 10 straight wins at Dural, 12-goal highest game score, biggest winning margin, 12-1 against Majik) and will certainly head into the game as heavy favourites.
BUT… as good as the Warriors are, they haven’t beaten Campbelltown this summer! Quake led them 3-1 at the break at Minto before the teams finished a heart-attack game 3-3, and the ‘Purples” trampled on several groundbreaking Dural runs to win 5-3 at the leisure centre in a final round doozy to signature all’s fair in love and war!
Campbelltown have lost just one of the past 12 games to take great form into the championship match and manager Carlos Martinez is as cool as a Mexican cumber.
“We know what we have to do to win on Saturday. We more than understand this will be our biggest challenge yet. Dural have been the benchmark but we have the players and confidence; everyone knows their roles and everyone’s primed for a big one,” he said.
“We’re happy to be the underdogs and I’m really looking forward to seeing the current two best coaches [Simon Keith vs Rob Varela] going head-to-head. They’re both smart guys, very tactical, and this should be incredible to watch!”
Warriors mentor Varela agreed. “Campbelltown are on a big roll and whoever runs out the best this weekend deserves to win this title,” he said.
“It’s a one-off game so the past doesn’t matter. People can think we’re the ‘Yahtzee’ of the competition, but we still have to play well to win it – the score starts at 0-0, but we’re confident of a good result.”
-By Dan De Nardi
