Wolves howl over Manly United
The South Coast Wolves notched up its first IGA NPL NSW Mens 1 victory for 2014 after hammering Manly United 6-1 at WIN Stadium in what were cold and wintery conditions in the South.
The game started rather sporadically with plenty of headers and long balls.
An early through ball in the 4′ minute from Darcy Madden left little to be desired. In the opening minutes both sides saw moments of ardour, although Manly’s passes were the more concise.
While Christopher Payne was trying to initiate a break for the Manly side, Zac Mackenzie in the midfield for South Coast Wolves was coherent and he debilitated Manly’s attack consistently.
The 18‘ minute resulted in a missed opportunity from the Wolves who were in the box but somehow the ball did not find the back of the net.
In the 22’ minute, Manly’s Dom Ferguson made an impressive play to Brendan Cholakian after a quick throw-in but their play was quickly dismantled. Wolves retrieved the ball and the ball was laid through to Zucco in the box but he was unable to finish.
After Zucco missed the target, the ball fell to Samuel Matthews who put the Wolves in front 1-0 in the 23 minute.
Manly’s passing became dishevelled in the first half but they managed to gain some momentum towards the end of the first 45.
Scott Balderson for Manly was a standout with a presence all over the field. His pace was felt by the Wolves defence. A corner in the 35’ resulted in a right-foot off target attempt from club captain Graeme Forbes; the first time Manly has threatened the South Coast defence.
The start of the second was strong for the Wolves with a shot from Zucco in the 46’ minute.
A cross by Chris Price finds Ricky Zucco who headed the ball in the back of the net; giving the South Coast Wolves some much needed encouragement after their disappointing start to the season.
In the second half Manly United’s energy began to lift when multiple corners for the side resulted in some promising chances, including one ball by Cholakian that hit the crossbar.
This followed an impressive strike on target, also from Cholakian, that was well saved by Collison. A mistake by Robinson in the 66’ resulted in a penalty for Manly and Cholakian finally got the goal he had been vying for all game.
Zucco was substituted in the 70′ minute and was replaced by Jordan Murray. Jordan immediately scored for the Wolves to make it 3-1 for the home side.
He reaffirmed his position in the 86’ minute with another goal for a Wolves side unrecognisable from their early season efforts.
In four minutes two more goals were scored for the South Coast Wolves firstly by Peter Simonoski, after a great run down the middle, and then by Matthew Bailey in the 90’ minute to cement the Wolves’ first win of the season in emphatic fashion.
Wolves new man in charge Nahuel Arrarte said after the game: "Fantastic attitude, I’m proud of the team.
"It is a great credit to the boys after a difficult start to the season."
Manly’s goalkeeper Dylan Mitchell said: "It was a defensive nightmare for us."
"Six of them were preventable goals, three of them in the past five minutes.
"They were clinical, but we just didn’t turn up."
Match Stats
South Coast Wolves 6 (Matthews 23’, Zucco 49’, Murray 70’, 86’, Simonoski 88’, Bailey 90’)
Manly United 1 (Cholakian 66’ pen)
Saturday May 3, 2014
WIN Stadium, Wollongong
Referee: James Lewis
Assistant Referees: Sarah Ho and Nathan Wotton
Fourth Official: Adam Vainauskas
South Coast Wolves: 1. Daniel Collison; 2. Jack Keating, 4. Michael Robinson, 5. James Baldacchino, 6. Zachary Mackenzie, 7. Chris Price (Mitchell Del Turco 79’), 8. Matthew Bailey, 9. Peter Simonoski, 10. Ricky Zucco 25. (Jordan Murray 69’), 15. Darcy Madden, 22. Samuel Matthews
Substitutes not used: 30. Thomas Hamilton, 21. Samuel Jacob 25. Jordan Murray, 3. Christopher Nathaniel
Yellow Cards: Ricky Zucco 29’
Red Cards: Nil
Manly United: 1. Dylan Mitchell; 4. Graeme Forbes, 5. Joshua Lawson, 6. Josh Ward, 7. Scott Balderson, 8. Daniel Grant, 9. Christopher Payne, 10. Brendan Cholakian, 12. Dominic Ferguson (13. Masakatsu Tanaka), 16. Jed Prater, 23 Daniel Drakopoulos (11. Roberto Speranza 60’)
Substitutes not used: 20. Tonu Liiband, 21. Patrick Weir, 22. Jack Green,
Yellow Cards: Graeme Forbes
Red Cards: Nil
Player Ratings:
3 – Peter Simonoski (SCW)
2 – Samuel Matthews (SCW)
1 – Graeme Forbes (MU)
– By Georgia Swinton, National Premier Leagues NSW Mens 1 Reporter, at WIN Stadium
