Mens State League Two Preliminary Final Review

Rydalmere Lions won a cracking Mens State League Two preliminary final 2-1 against Hurstville FC at Arlington Oval on Saturday evening to knock the 2014 Premiers out of the finals and set up an enticing grand final match-up with Southern Bulls next week.

In a game worthy of a blockbuster the former Super League foes put on a real show of quality football, Rydalmere holding a 1-0 lead until the final seconds when Danny Marjanovic headed Hurstville level off a last-gasp corner and send the match into extra-time – late Lions substitute Diego Andrade making a real name for himself with an absolute screamer from 30 yards out with six minutes to go that pushed Rydalmere ahead a final time.

With only enough room in the grand final for either pre-season favourites Rydalmere or proud premiers Hurstville it was always going to be an epic struggle but all nerves were vanquished after only a few minutes as both sets of players showed great control to settle early and find opportunities at both ends of the pitch.

Rydalmere nailed an opening midway through the term when a neat through-ball from the Lions centre-back sent Amoury Gauthier on his way and the red-hot striker buried his chance (a 12th goal since donning Rydalmere colours 11 weeks ago) to hand his side the ascendancy.

Hurstville weren’t persuaded to lie down and continued with patience, probing behind the Lions defence and chances went begging in front of both goals; but with the clock ticking down it looked like Gauthier’s lone strike would settle the affair until a last-second Paul Gagro corner floated beautifully for Marjanovic to power home his first goal of the season and a belated FC equaliser.

The crowd certainly got full money’s worth because the entertaining match didn’t falter for a second in the bonus round as both sides looked for a decisive blow, and it took a moment of bravado to separate the combatants when Rydalmere coach Tony Basha sent Andrade on in the second half of extra-time with strict instructions to find the winning goal.

He wasn’t let down when Andrade found space well outside the box and let fly with a roller-coaster of a shot that beat the Hurstville keeper, almost broke the back of the net and sent Lions supporters into a frenzy, Rydalmere hanging on for a thrilling 2-1 victory – a seventh win from their past 11 state league meetings with FC.

To be fair the result could’ve gone either way and both teams were worthy of a grand final seat but, incredibly, after going 17 rounds of the competition with just one defeat against their names, premiers Hurstville lost three straight to miss their championship opportunity altogether.

FC coach Steve Zoric applauded both teams and could only raise his eyebrows at Andrade’s statement. “The guy hit an absolute bomb! It dipped and swerved everywhere,” he said.

“But it was a good quality game that swung both ways multiple times and I congratulate them [Lions]. I’m very proud of my boys for winning the premiership and they left everything on the field tonight, so I couldn’t have asked for more.”

“The club hasn’t made the finals for 11 years, since the 1990s I think, and we finished eighth last year after struggling late in the season. To have a great season like this, it was a real pleasure coaching them, and I think this [loss] will make them hungrier next year. We’ll be stronger and better if we can build on this success.”

Rydalmere coach Tony Basha also gushed about the preliminary final showpiece. “It should’ve been televised – it was a spectacle! All the players put on a quality game of football,” he said.

“My boys really bounced back well after they equalised with the last kick of the ball … and when I brought on Diego [Andrade] I told him to get out there and be the hero, and he pulls out this rocket from 30 yards and we went off!”

“I feel a little sorry for Hurstville… they’re really good guys, a good team, and good coach, and they pushed at us all game – it was a heart-attack for the coaches but great for the crowd.”

Hurstville FC 1 (Daniel Marjanovic) Rydalmere Lions 2 (Amoury Gauthier, Diego Andrade)

Grade 20 – Prospect beat Bulls

Prospect United won a messy grade-20 preliminary final 6-0 over Southern Bulls at Arlington Reserve on Saturday afternoon, Bulls finishing the game with just seven players on the field.

The home fans celebrated early when Prospect took full advantage of a fumble from the Bulls keeper to score in the first few minutes but the evenly-matched contest took a dramatic twist just before halftime when Southern lost a player in a last-defender situation to leave Bulls a player short for the rest of the match.

The visitors rallied after the break and showed they were still in it… until United scored more goals and Bulls lost more players to finalise a scrappy ending with four Southern send-offs and a 6-0 Prospect win.

The result sets up an appetising first-versus-second grand final against heavy favourites Rydalmere next week.

Prospect United 6 (Abanoub Michael 2, Fred S 2, Anthony Haddad, Julian Baumbach) Southern Bulls 0

Next week’s Grand Final

The Mens State League Two grand final features Southern Bulls against Rydalmere Lions, while the grade-20 decider is between premiers Rydalmere and Prospect United.

Please check the Football NSW website for ground and time confirmations.

-By Dan De Nardi