State League Two Round 3 Review

If eyebrows weren’t already raised then eyes popped out of heads in round three of Football NSW State League Two.
While Hurstville FC live a memorable week, topping the table with a 4-0 win over University of NSW ahead of their fourth-round Waratah Cup match, title favourites Rydalmere Lions are scratching heads after a second successive defeat (1-2 to Western Condors), Hurstville City Minotaurs left it late in a dramatic 2-2 draw with Prospect United, and Southern Bulls remained unbeaten by beating Enfield Rovers 4-1. Southern Branch had the bye.
Round 3
Rydalmere Lions 1 (Mojtaba Mohebbee) Western Condors 2 (Chris Katarmandis, Joel Dunajcik)
Hurstville FC 4 (Stuart Meney 2, Henry Kamleitner, Patrick Lloyd) University of NSW 0
Hurstville City Minotaurs 2 (Max Floresta, Ruben Viglino) Prospect United 2 (Sasa Ki Yuji, Michael Wood)
Enfield Rovers 1 (Damian Jankovic) Southern Bulls 4 (Goran Ljuboja 2, John Fahmi, Jason Garrido)
Grade 20
Rydalmere Lions 5 Western Condors 1
Hurstville FC 1 University of NSW 1
Hurstville City Minotaurs 0 Prospect United 1
Enfield Rovers Southern Bulls
Hurstville bring down Uni
Hurstville FC soundly beat University of NSW 4-0 at David Phillips Field on Saturday afternoon, three second half goals sending FC to the top of the table.
Hurstville started strongly but a missed penalty and string of missed opportunities kept Uni in the contest – a Stuart Meney double and goals to Henry Kamleitner and Patrick Lloyd helping turn a tight 1-0 halftime edge into a resounding 4-0 victory after Uni were forced to run the last 20 minutes with 10 men on the field, coach Tom Belcher having made his three replacements when striker George Georgamlis pulled a hamstring.
Incredibly it was the fourth 4-0 scoreline in a row between the two sides and just the second Hurstville win in 11 meetings, although coach Steve Zoric thought the result could’ve been sewn up a lot earlier.
“I’m happy with the boys and the result but we could’ve wrapped it up earlier and made it easier for ourselves,” he said. “It’s good to do this well early on but now it’s about managing the players and not getting complacent.”
“They’re a good bunch of blokes, self-motivated, and they’ve come to the club knowing we were forming a strong squad. And it’s working out that way with players who want to do well and can adapt to game plans quickly.”
Uni coach Tom Belcher has probably tasted better Easter chocolate. “I’ve had better days; I’m still trying to wrap my head around it,” he said. “It didn’t help being a player down at the end and I’m learning too, and it’s just our second game together against a team that’s been together for a long time. The spark was missing from us but we stepped up a gear in the second half.”
Uni and Hurstville drew 1-1 in their grade-20 encounter.
Condors claw Lions
Western Condors soared to a breath-taking 2-1 win over bewildered Rydalmere Lions at Rydalmere Park on Saturday afternoon, stamping their season start in emphatic fashion as the pre-season favourites were left licking their wounds from a second straight loss.
Rydalmere began briskly but found themselves a goal behind when Erhan Mutluol cut back for Chris Katarmandis to finish off against the run of play, but Mojtaba Mohebbee ensured the teams stayed level at halftime with a solid header just before the break.
With time ticking down Condors threw men forward for a freekick near halfway, Stipe Jezercic got a good run and Michael Lalik faked his shot on a square-ball into the six-yard box as stopper Joel Dunajcik slammed home for a rare but enthralling goal.
The win gave Condors a first-up win and atoned a little for last year’s gut-wrenching preliminary final loss to Lions.
The smile on Western coach Erick Anabalon would’ve made the Easter bunny blush. “I’m pretty happy, it’s always good to get three points against a tough team in a tough game,” he said.
“We made it difficult for them to crack us; we were poorer in possession but defensively we were quite solid. It wasn’t a pretty game but the boys showed a lot of heart and were really committed to getting a result and punched home a win at the end.”
“Everyone played well but Joel [Dunajcik] played a brilliant game for us… he made a crucial tackle at the back that stopped a chance at goal and then five minutes later scored the winner.
“Everyone is there, and it’s just a matter of executing what you practice in training. The boys will take a lot from this [a win against Rydalmere] and believe we are a contender.”
Lions coach Tony Basha seemed a little caged after a third straight defeat (including their midweek Waratah Cup 0-4 loss to Spirit FC). “We were horrible, mate,” he said. “We dominated possession early on but lost our way, our shape, and the ball far too easily. We were missing a few players and had some young ones out there but that‘s still not an excuse; they were just hungrier.”
“We definitely need more training under our belt. It’s still early days but the season is only 18 games so every one will count. With the reserves winning again, maybe I should put the whole 20s team into first grade,” Basha finally grinned.
As the man said, Rydalmere were well in control in youth grade and cruised to a 5-1 win over Condors to chalk up win number two with just Prospect ahead of them on the table.
Minotaurs level with Prospect
Hurstville City Minotaurs scored deep into injury time to steal a 2-2 with Prospect United in a gripping showdown at St George Stadium on Saturday evening.
Prospect opened the scoring midway through the half through a well-taken Michael Wood chance, Ruben Viglino equalising for Hurstville just after halftime only for Sasa Ki Yuji to restore United’s lead within minutes and set up an exciting final dash to the line.
As the extra minutes clicked over Minotaurs stopper Max Floresta raced up to connect on a cross that split the points for both sides at 2-2, and what a rivalry this is becoming as both sides enjoy four wins apiece and now two draws from 10 division two meetings (42 goals produced).
City coach Peter Sarikakis praised his troops resilience but knew there was work ahead of them. “I would’ve preferred a win but it was okay,” he said.
“We had many chances in the first half, and we had Paul Paras and Sam Mehana out, so under the circumstances they showed good spirit and didn’t give up… but there’s still a lot of improvement in the team.”
Prospect coach Tony Caruso cut an onion for all sorts of reasons. “The day started off badly as the condition of this once-great stadium nearly brought a tear to my eye, and then the disappointment of the result also nearly brought a tear to my eye.”
“The boys played really well on a difficult pitch, especially as the opposition had stacked the midfield and worked hard, but that’s football isn’t it.
“As a club we’re doing well at this stage of the competition [grade-20s unbeaten on top] and I hope we can maintain that. We’re due for another win but it’s going to be a weird competition with everyone out there to win.”
Prospect’s youth side managed to hold onto their 1-0 halftime lead until fulltime, their third straight win to front the competition.
Bulls charge Rovers
Southern Bulls made it two wins and nine goals in two games following an exciting 4-1 win against Enfield Rovers on a glorious public holiday Monday afternoon at Garside Park.
The visitors were without Leigh Gunn (overseas coaching the Philippines youth side) but team-mates John Fahmi and Goran Ljuboja got the ball rolling with quickfire goals that surged Southern 2-0 ahead inside the opening 10 minutes.
Enfield returned fire when Julian Borgiani dinked the ball over the top for Damian Jankovic to go one-on-one with the Bulls keeper and make it 2-1 in a frenetic opening period, and Jason Garrido restored Southern’s buffer with a well-taken chance on the stroke of halftime. 
Both sides had second-half opportunities and Ljuboja compiled his brace with a Bulls fourth late in injury time, consigning Rovers to a third straight loss to start the season.
Bulls coach Ramsin Shamon enjoyed a sunshiny day with his unbeaten side.
"It was a great start from us, we were on fire but then we let them back into the game," he said. "It was free-flowing and more goals could’ve been scored… we’re looking pretty good at this stage."
Enfield coach Andrew Montgomery has had his hand forced after another less than convincing display.
"It was schoolboy errors and sloppy defending that gifted them their goals," he said. "We’re playing good football but silly, silly mistakes means changes need to be made."
Next week’s games 
Football NSW State League 2 round four pits Hurstville City Minotaurs against University of NSW at St George Stadium on Saturday evening (5pm), and Prospect United meet Southern Bulls at William Lawson Reserve on Saturday night (7pm). On Sunday afternoon Enfield Rovers face Rydalmere Lions at Garside Park while Southern Branch host ladder-toppers Hurstville FC at South Nowra Football Complex (both at 3pm).
Waratah Cup
But it’s all the best of luck as Hurstville FC take on big guns South Coast Wolves (IGA NPL NSW Mens 1) in their huge fourth-round Waratah Cup clash at Hooka Creek Park, Berkeley, on Wednesday night, April 23 (7pm).
Hurstville’s just the second state league two club to make it to round four in more than six years and in itself is a massive accomplishment… but another favourable midweek result will splash division two in uncharted dreamy waters (in true knockout fashion) – just within reach of a national FFA Cup invitation.
Whatever passionate rivalries exist in this beautiful game, Hurstville’s position and opportunity is a fantastic representation of the capacity and capability of state league two and one to be congratulated whatever the result.
Send messages of support to hurstvillefc@yahoo.com.
-By Dan De Nardi