Round 12 Review – PS4 NPL 3 NSW Men’s
We have a new leader in the 2017 PlayStation®4 National Premier Leagues 3 NSW Men’s competition, with Fraser Park taking over top spot from Rydalmere Lions following the completion of Round Twelve over the weekend.
Fraser Park made light work of Sydney University with a 4-1 result to go top of the PlayStation NPL 3 ladder, Tai Smith scoring a first half hatrick; Rydalmere Lions came unstuck at home, suffering their first loss of the season by the odd goal in three to Dulwich Hill; St George City hit Western NSW Mariners for six on the road at Bathurst on the back of a Juan Chavez hatrick; Hawkesbury City defeated SD Raiders 3-1 at Ernie Smith Reserve; Dunbar Rovers knocked over Inter Lions with a 3-1 scoreline at Hensley Athletic Field on the back of Andrew Doddy’s return to the lineup; and Gladesville Ryde Magic thumped Balmain Tigers 5-1 on Sunday afternoon, with skipper Chris Gaitatzis netting a second half hatrick.
Football NSW ventured to Arlington Oval on the Saturday night to watch the battle between Stanmore Hawks and Granville Rage.
STANMORE HAWKS – GRANVILLE RAGE 1-0
Stanmore Hawks scored close to the hour mark to overcome Granville Rage in an closwely fought arm wrestle at Arlington Oval on Saturday night.
Both teams came in to the match sitting in amongst a host of clubs just below mid table, knowing that three points here would start to push them towards the top half.
Stanmore were without Lloyd Owusu, who had produced an inspirational performance the weekend prior to score both goals in a 2-0 win at Inter Lions.
But you wouldn’t have known he was missing as it was Stanmore who settled the quicker, and they had a few early efforts go close to breaking the deadlock.
Skipper Ian Hillier tried a cheeky chip on 3 minutes from the top of the penalty area, but the ball dropped inches over the cross bar in an early warning sign for Granville.
The Hawks went even closer in the 5th minute, following a swift passing movement that involved a few players. Right fullback, Peter Theodosi, collected the final pass some 25 yards from goal after sneaking in from his position on the right, and he let fly with a rasping shot that cannoned off the outside of the upright.
Granville were struggling to get out of their half in the early period as Stanmore kept their foot on the gas.
In the 10th minute, Stanmore’s Bruce Wilson made some inroads down the left flank before cutting the ball back in to the path of Chris Lynch. Lynch steadied himself near the penalty spot before smacking a volley towards goal, with Granville’s goal keeper, Samuel Bortolazzo, doing exceptionally well to parry the effort.
Then it was the turn of big Sam Awad to venture upfield, the Stanmore central defender’s towering header from a Hillier corner just clearing the Granville cross bar with the Rage on the ropes.
It took a whole twenty minutes for Granville to prise open the Stanmore defence, and Kurt Elborough went close with his glancing header from a Jess Casey free kick, the ball bouncing just past the Stanmore upright.
Elborough went even closer for Granville in the 23rd minute when his swirling cross from the left lobbed over Stanmore’s keeper, Matthew Mckenzie, only to slam down on the top of the bar before being cleared from danger.
Stanmore’s Chris Lynch then sent a diagonal shot across goal from the top of the penalty box after a swift interchange with Michael Toscano on 40 minutes, but the arrow cleared the far upright, much to the relief of the Rage contingent.
Both sides had been very focussed defensively, with neither giving an inch, clearing the fences if they had to rather than taking chances trying to play out.
The game’s only goal came in the 57th minute, and it was exactly what the spectacle needed.
Stanmore’s lively striker, Michael Toscano, chased a through ball into the Granville penalty area, prodding it past the advancing Rage goal keeper, Samuel Bortolazzo.
As the ball trickled towards the goal, it was race on between Toscano and the retreating Granville defender, Stephen Homer. Both players flung themselves at the ball, with Homer blocking Toscano’s effort almost on the goal line.
The ensuing clearance reached Stanmore’s skipper, Ian Hillier, some 30 yards from goal, and he responded immediately with a long range effort that lobbed over the retreating Granville keeper, Samuel Bortolazzo, before nestling in to the corner of the net.
Granville made some immediate tactical changes, including pushing captain, Patrick Gatt, into the frontline, searching for that elusive equaliser. Granville Rage have drawn more games in the competition than any other side, so confidence was high that they were going to find a goal.
Chris Lynch had a pot shot at goal in the 79th minute, the Stanmore midfielder making space for himself before hitting low shot from the edge of the box straight in to the arms of Bortolazzo in the Granville goal.
Granville’s second half substitute, Nenos Bobo, tried his luck in the 80th minute, hitting a first time volley from 20 yards that Stanmore’s Matthew Mckenzie did well to hold.
Five minutes later and Mckenzie was called upon again to save the Hawks, parrying from close range after Granville’s substitute, Alex Cvetkovic, had cracked a left foot volley on target following a Granville counter attack.
Referee, Khodr Yaghi, brought proceedings to an end shortly after, much to the delight of the home fans.
Both sides showed why they are difficult to break down, with well structured, no-nonsense defences.
Granville Rage looked likely to take something from the match, given their stubbornness across the park. But once they conceded, the Rage seemed devoid of ideas in the front third, and couldn’t muster an equaliser. Jess Casey was industrious in midfield, working hard to get his team going forward, whilst Tobias Elliott-Orr was fierce defensively in a solid performance.
It’s two games on the trot now for Stanmore without conceding a goal, lead by the experience of Sam Awad in central defence and the ever alert keeping of Matthew Mckenzie in goal. Bruce Wilson and Chris Lynch showed real presence and technical ability on either side of skipper Ian Hillier, who again produced a wonder strike to snag the points.
Stanmore Hawks move into 8th spot courtesy of the win and three points, whilst Granville Rage drop to 10th, remaining on 12 points.
PlayStation®4 National Premier Leagues 3 NSW Men’s
Round Twelve
Saturday, May 27, 2017
STANMORE HAWKS 1 (Hillier 57’)
GRANVILLE RAGE 0
Arlington Oval, Dulwich Hill
Referee – Khodr Yaghi
Assistant Referees – Dale Fuda and Kang Il Kim
STANMORE HAWKS; 1.M.McKenzie, 2.S.Awad, 4.C.Bottalico, 7.I.Hillier (capt), 16.C.Kolistasis, 18.C.Lynch, 9.P.Stefadouros, 23.P.Theodosi (5.S.Wills 83’), 8.M.Toscano (10.M.Riganias 70’), 6.D.Ventimiglia, 14.B.Wilson (12.E.Martinez 88’).
Substitutes Not Used – 51.M.Gabriel, 24.J.Van Deh Berg.
Yellow Cards – 8.M.Toscano 43’, 4.C.Bottalico 84’, 14.B.Wilson 88’.
Red Cards – Nil
GRANVILLE RAGE; 7.D.Bortolazzo, 23.S.Bortolazzo, 8.J.Casey, 20.T.Cheung, 12.K.Elborough (15.A.Cvetkovic 70’), 3.T.Elliott-Orr, 18.R.Faulkner, 5.P.Gatt (capt), 6.S.Homer, 13.A.Machado, 19.A.Jelenkerian (11.N.Bobo 49’).
Substitutes Not Used – 20.A.Riccardi, 16.H.Green.
Yellow Cards – 3.T.Elliott-Orr 41’.
Red Cards – Nil
Western NSW Mariners – St George City FA 0-6
St George City FA made sure it would be a positive return trip back to Sydney when they trounced the Western NSW Mariners 6-0 at Proctor Park in Bathurst on Saturday afternoon.
St George were 2-0 up at the break, courtesy of Juan Chavez, and Sean Thomas, with Thomas starting and finishing a move just before half time with a clinical finish.
Western NSW Mariners were missing three of their regulars through suspension, and simply couldn’t handle the visitors’ domination, especially after half time.
Sam Messam was fouled inside the box for a penalty shortly after the break, with Juan Chavez converting for 3-0, before Messam got in on the act moments later with a low strike to make it 4-0.
St George City didn’t relent, and it was soon 5-0, with James Spanoudakis squaring unselfishly for Juan Chavez to tap home for the striker’s well deserved hatrick.
Mudrek Abaid finished off proceedings in the final minutes, collecting the scraps to slot home after a Spanoudakis effort was parried in to his path.
The win and subsequent three points keeps St George City in 3rd spot, but they climb to 23 points, four points ahead of 4th placed Dulwich Hill.
SD Raiders – Hawkesbury City 1-3
Hawkesbury City returned to winning ways on Saturday night, taking home the three points following a 3-1 triumph over SD Raiders at Ernie Smith Reserve.
Kosta Zarafetas got things going for Hawkesbury when he flicked in a volley off a corner in the 6th minute.
Mark D’Alessandro came to the Raiders’ rescue on a couple of occasions with last ditch tackles to deny the Hawks leading scorer, Santiago Pallares Palomeque.
John Fahmi equalised for SD Raiders early on after the break, and the home side then picked up the ante in search for a second goal, dominating possession from there on in.
But Hawkesbury City soaked up the pressure, and killed off the game with two late goals.
Rodney Cormack edged the Hawks in front on 85 minutes, before James Mawein grabbed their third goal in the final minute to make it 3-1 to the visitors.
The win and three points sees Hawkesbury City hurdle the Raiders and move in to 6th spot on 18 points, two points ahead of their match day opponents.
It may well have been that the SD Raiders had one eye on their huge Westfield FFA Cup Round 7 encounter against current league leaders in the PS4 NPL NSW Men’s competition APIA Leichhardt Tigers on Tuesday which will be live streamed on the PS4 NPL NSW Facebook page with coverage starting at 7:30pm.
Fraser Park – Sydney University 4-1
Fraser Park went top of the PlayStation®4 National Premier Leagues 3 NSW Men’s competition following their comprehensive 4-1 win over Sydney University on Saturday night.
Tai Smith was the hero for Fraser Park, netting a first half hatrick to lay the platform for the team’s win on the day.
Smith opened proceedings on 15 minutes, making a run all the way into the box before slotting the ball under Uni goal keeper, Carl McMahon.
Smith doubled his side’s advantage in the 40th minute, heading home at the back stick following an inswinging Peter Crevani corner.
The pair were at it again on the stroke of half time, with Tai Smith meeting a Crevani cross, and volleying home from inside the box to make it 3-0 at the break.
Adrian Porcu pulled a goal back for Sydney University early in the second half when his free kick took a slight deflection on the way past Chris Becerra in the Fraser Park goal, but it was all the ‘students’ could muster on the night.
Ben Vidaic completed the scoring on the night, slamming home from a Tai Smith cross to make the final score 4-1 to Fraser Park.
Dunbar Rovers – Inter Lions 3-1
Dunbar Rovers won their first match in four weeks when they overcame Inter Lions 3-1 at Hensley Athletic Field on Saturday night.
It was a special night for the Rovers, welcoming back prodigal sons, Stephen Deasy in goal, and Andrew Doddy in the centre of the park. Both were influential performers for Dunbar in 2016, leading the club to the finals series, and they wasted no time in steering the team to victory against Inter Lions.
Dunbar started with purpose, and looked dangerous on both flanks, with both Ryan Shaughnessy on the left and Bradley Karpin on the right.
Rovers opened the scoring on 40 minutes. Andrew Doddy produced a crossfield ball to find Brad Karpin on the right side of the box, and his first time volley fell into the path of Tod Bamber who slotted home from the edge of the six yard box.
Dunbar doubled their lead after half time in the 49th minute, via Hezio Carvalho Silva, who whipped in a shot from the left that flew across Inter’s keeper, Yianni Soulios, and into the right hand corner of the net.
Ryan Shaughnessy put the game beyond Inter’s reach when he lobbed Soulios in the Inter goal on the hour mark, making it 3-0 and sending the home fans in to raptures.
Inter Lions did manage a late consolation goal, and it came via Daniel Fogarty, who slotted past Dunbar goalkeeper, Stephen Deasy, after facing him in a one-on-one situation.
Three points for Dunbar Rovers sees them climb to eleventh spot on 12 points, one spot ahead of Inter Lions on goal difference.
Rydalmere Lions – Dulwich Hill 1-2
Dulwich Hill’s sprung a surprise of sorts at Rydalmere Park on Saturday evening when they overcame the previously undefeated league leaders, Rydalmere Lions, by 2-1.
Backing up from their midweek Westfield FFA Cup exit, Dulwich Hill took an early lead when Tommy Bentham volleyed home at the near post after connecting with a Luke Giverin cross.
The goal seemed to spark Rydalmere Lions in to action, and the home side came at Dulwich Hill on all cylinders.
Rydalmere eventually got the equaliser they so craved, and it was Amaury Gauthier who did the honours with a well struck low drive in the second half.
The Lions threw men forward in search of that elusive winner, but were caught out with a Dully counter attack in the 86th minute.
Harrick Sinpraseuth, the Rydalmere goal keeper, did well to parry Bentham’s initial effort when facing the Dully striker in a one-on-one, but Luke Giverin was following through, and he netted the rebound to give Dulwich Hill the victory.
Dully climb to 4th spot courtesy of the win, and are now on 19 points, whilst Rydalmere Lions remain on 31 points, dropping to second behind the league’s new leaders, Fraser Park.
Gladesville Ryde Magic – Balmain Tigers 5-1
Gladesville Ryde Magic have been threatening to explode for a few weeks now, and it was Balmain Tigers that ended up on the receiving end of the blast, Magic winning 5-1 at Magdala Park on Sunday afternoon.
It was a scoreless opening forty five minutes, but not through a lack of trying from both teams.
Balmain’s Rosario Occhipinti got on the end of a Dario Vujovic cross on 9 minutes, but his outstretched left foot could only divert the ball wide.
Occhipinti was at it again in the 22nd minute, but under pressure from Magic custodian, Kyriakos Tohouroglou, he sliced his angled effort wide of the mark.
Gladesville responded in the 32nd minute when Heo Wookbum raced on to a Michael Sada through ball, before cutting it back for Chris Gaitatzis to strike low, but Balmain’s keeper, Pat Ferrara, was up to the task.
Whatever was in the water at half time, it worked for Gladesville Ryde Magic, because they came out like a team possessed, scoring within minutes of the restart.
Balmain’s keeper, Pat Ferrara, parried an effort from Heo Wookbum, but Chris Tomaras was johnny-on-the-spot to drive home the rebound and give Magic the lead.
Gladesville skipper, Chris Gaitatzis got in on the act minutes later with a shot from outside the penalty area, the ball hitting the roof of the net on its way to giving Magic a 2-0 lead.
Chris Tomaras then put Majid Eslami into space down the line, and the winger cut it back for Chris Gaitatzis to net his second goal of the afternoon and Gladesville’s third.
Whilst Balmain deteriorated, Gladesville Ryde Magic turned the screws, and this time it was Chris Tomaras who grabbed his second of the afternoon, picking up another rebound from yet another Wookbum shot that was parried, before striking it home to make it 4-0.
With both of the two Chris’s putting on a show, it was no surprise that they were both involved in Gladesville’s fifth and final goal, with Chris Gaitatzis grabbing his hatrick after seizing on a rebound from a Chris Tomaras effort that was parried by Ferrara.
Domenic Grasso pulled back a late goal for Balmain from the penalty spot, but it was way too little, way too late, and Magic picked up a very welcome three points, only their 3rd of the season, which has seen then move to 9th spot on the ladder on 14 points.
