Mens State League 1 Round 20 Review
Granville Rage 2 (A.Dizdaric, C.Bottalico) Inter Lions 0 Balmain FC 0
Hakoah Sydney City East FC 0
Sunday, 10th of August, 2014
Wentworth Park, Ultimo
Referee: Stephen Ellsmore
Assistant Referees: Terry Goodhew, David Goldsmith
Balmain FC: 21.Gavin Wenyon, 27. Domenic Di Mento, 10.Jacob Di Mento, 8.Joel Cook (17.Liam Cole 65’) 29.Valentin Broehl, 6.Danny Noor, 16.Josh Karpes, 14.Lachlan Kerr, 25.Yaw Billy, 7.Rosario Occhipinti, 23.Dominic Arcella
Substitutes Not Used: 114. Martin Kerr, 1.Craig Whitehouse, 19.James Kiosidis, 13.George Iliopoulos 5.Andrew Casali
Yellow Cards: 7.Rosario Occhipinti
Red Cards: Nil
Hakoah Sydney City East FC: 45.Daniel Conway 44. Nathan Bowden-Haase, 39. Michael Randall (14. Gavin Macpherson 80’), 16. Mark McAlane 20. Deklan Gilmartin (3.Robert Ezekiel 61’) (8. Jordan Mundell 11. Neil Jablonski, 9.Lloyd Owusu, 15. Michael katz, 17. Joseph Dingwall, 7. Daan Ranshuijsen
Substitutes Not Used: 38.Dylan Basger, 1.Terry Del Broi, 33.Kevin Lopes
Yellow Cards: 14. Gavin Macpherson
Red Cards: Nil
Then in the 90th minute a screamer from right-back Nicholas Cholerton handed Nepean an unlikely point.
Dulwich Hill FC 2 (J.Villazon, M.Bellouch) Nepean FC 2 (W.Jajaw, N.Cholerton)
Round 20 of the Mens State League 1 competition was highlighted by Hakoah Sydney City East clinching the Club Championship for the 2014 season. Results in other games saw a congested ladder get even tighter as we head into the final two rounds of the regular season.
Round 19 Catch Up v Granville Rage v Inter Lions
Thursday night’s catch up action saw Granville Rage claim a crucial 2-0 victory over Inter Lions.
Two second half goals in the space of minutes to Almir Dizdaric and Cristian Bottalico sealed the three points for the home side.
Balmain Tigers FC v Hakoah Sydney City East FC
The match of the round saw Balmain Tigers and Hakoah play out a tight 0-0 draw on Sunday afternoon.
The opening minutes of the game saw Hakoah put pressure in Balmain’s half as both teams felt their way into the match. Balmain lined up with a five man midfield which saw Domenic Arcella sitting in front of the back four. Hakoah meanwhile played with their usual diamond midfield.
The first real chance of the game fell to Balmain in the 11th minute when a free kick to the back post was put back into the mix by defender Gavin Wenyon and met by Tigers centre back Yaw Billy , only for his thumping header to crash off the bar.
Hakoah’s first chance also came off a set piece in the 23rd minute, with a corner played into the front post being met by captain Neil Jablonski, but his attempted flick shot was saved at the near post by Balmain keeper Lachlan Kerr.
The game turned into a real tight tussle, with both defences well on top and not too many chances being created from open play.
Once again a dangerous situation came from a set piece in the 32nd minute when a Hakoah corner saw centre back Nathan Bowden-Haase find himself a yard of space to meet the ball at the six yard box, but his header went straight into the arms of the Balmain keeper.
Balmain were more than holding their own at this stage, with their centre backs Billy Yao and Josh Karpes keeping Hakoah’s star striker Lloyd Owusu relatively quiet up to this point. Up front Domenic Di Mentos’ pace looked to cause Hakoah’s defence some nervy moments as the midfielder looked the most likely for the Tigers
On the stroke of half time Hakoah nearly hit the lead when Owusu finally found a bit of space on the back post, but the strikers left foot shot blazed over the bar and the two teams went to the break locked at 0-0.
The second half saw an immediate chance fall to Balmain when a searching long ball was met by Domenic Di Mento, with the midfielder sending in a cross to the edge of the box and into the path of Joel Cook, whose goal bound effort was saved well by Hakoah keeper Daniel Conway.
Despite the early chance, the game settled into the same pattern as the first half, with a real arm wrestle developing in the midfield and the bumpy surface not allowing any flowing football or clear cut chances to be created.
Domenic Di Mento again used his pace to get a sight on goal in the 60th minute, but the midfielders low shot was well saved by Hakoah keeper Daniel Conway.
With time ticking on both teams had decent spells of possession as the game became more end-to-end, but the final ball was lacking for both sides and it looked almost certain that it would take only one goal to clinch all three points.
As the legs got weary, a frenzied final ten minutes of the game saw both teams have the best chances to break the deadlock.
It was Hakoah who first tested the nerves in the 82nd minute when a Mark McAlpine cross was met at the back post by Neil Jablonski, but the captain was unable to keep his header down. Second half substitute Gavin Macpherson also tried his luck moments later, but his long range effort was off target.
Balmain also had their chance to snatch the points when striker Rosario Occhipinti had two good chances within a minute. The first opportunity saw the striker waste a good chance inside the six yard box when he was unable to connect to a great cross from Valentine Broehl with the goal at his mercy. Moments later he had an even better chance to hand his side the victory when he rounded the keeper, but he couldn’t keep his shot down and instead saw it go agonizingly over the bar.
The final attempt to find a winner came for Hakoah in stoppage time when a cross from the left hand side cleared over everyone except Neil Jablonski, who managed to control the ball and hit a low and hard drive headed for goal, only to be prevented by a last ditch block on the line by Balmain defender Gavin Wenyon as the referee blew for full time shortly after.
The draw was enough for Hakoah to clinch the Club Championship, as other results went their way during the day. The point meanwhile sees Balmain stay ever so close to the 5th spot on the ladder with the Tigers only two points away from Dulwich Hill.
Best on ground for Balmain were the centre back pairing of Josh Karpes and Yaw Billy, with both players impenetrable in the heart of the defence and showing steel and strength to keep Balmain’s goal intact. Domenic Di Mento also had a good afternoon, with the winger’s pace and tenacity causing problems for Hakoah’s defence throughout the 90 minutes.
Balmain coach Joe Di Giulio shared his thoughts after the game, “It was a very tight game, we had some good chances in the last 20 minutes. Overall I think we played well and we took it to them, but they are a quality team”.
For Hakoah there were scenes of joy as the results from the other grounds filtered in and confirmed they had won the Club Championship for season 2014. Strong performances on the afternoon came from centre back Nathan Bowden-Haase, who marshalled his defence well throughout the 90 minutes and always looked a threat off the set piece, while Captain Neil Jablonski battled all afternoon and looked the most likely to break the deadlock for Hakoah.
Hakoah coach Mark Robinson reflected on the game, “It was a strange sort of game, I think we did well in patches but we couldn’t convert our chances.” On winning the Club Championship he added, “We’ve strived for it from the beginning of the season and I always thought we could get there. It’s not about the names on paper it’s about what you put in in training and in games, and full credit goes to the boys and the coaching staff”.
Match Stats
Western NSW Mariners FC v Stanmore Hawks
Western NSW Mariners and Stanmore Hawks ended all square with a 1-1 draw on Saturday night.
The game got off to a fast start with Stanmore taking an early lead when Neil Philippou converted from the penalty spot after Thibault Marchal had been brought down in the box.
But the Mariners grew into the game as the half went on and drew level in the 30th minute, Chris New-Tolley cutting in from the left and hitting a brilliant strike past the Stanmore keeper.
A tight second half saw both teams try to find a winner, with the Mariners shading the clear cut chances on goal, but in the end both teams had to settle for a point a piece.
Western NSW Mariners FC 1 (C. New-Tolley) Stanmore Hawks 1 (N.Philippou)
Dulwich Hill FC v Nepean FC
Late drama at Arlington Oval saw Dulwich Hill and Nepean FC play out a 2-2 draw.
A James Villazon strike gave Dulwich Hill a 1-0 half time lead, before Malik Bellouch made it 2-0 to the home side in the second half.
The home was in control and side looked to be heading for a victory, but Nepean have shown plenty of spirt in the last few weeks and got themselves back in the game when Wiltar Jajaw struck from the penalty spot after striker Jason Browne was brought down to earn a penalty.
Gladesville Ryde Magic v Camden Tigers
A stalemate at Magdala Park saw Gladesville and Camden Tigers play out a 0-0 draw.
Under tough conditions, neither team could find a way through, with Gladesville goal keeper Kiriakos Tohouroglou making a number of stunning saves to keep Camden at bay.
The point was enough for Gladesville to move into second spot on the ladder, while Camden continue to pick up crucial points late in the season.
Gladesville Ryde Magic 0 Camden Tigers 0
Northbridge FC v Granville Rage
Granville Rage claimed a big scalp on Sunday afternoon with a 2-1 victory over Northbridge FC.
Northbridge started brightly and led early with a James Collins header putting the home side in front.
But Granville Rage recovered from the early set back and David Harding put the away side on level terms. Rage then hit the front with Almir Dizdaric putting the away side up 2-1 after finishing neatly from the six yard box.
The second half saw Northbridge put plenty of pressure on the Granville goal, but the Rage held firm to claim all three points.
Northbridge FC 1 (J.Collins) Granville Rage 2 (D.Harding, A.Dizdaric)
Inter Lions SC v Hawkesbury City SC
Hawkesbury kept their season alive with a 3-1 victory over Inter Lions on Sunday night.
James Mawein and Michael Mccrory gave the away side a 2-0 lead at half time, before James Mawein got his double with a penalty in the second half putting the Hawks well in control at 3-0.
A late consolation to Inter saw the game end 3-1.
Inter Lions SC 1 Hawkesbury City SC 3 (J.Mawein x2, M.Mccrory)
– By Diego Munoz
