Hakoah edge out gritty Parramatta FC
Hakoah Sydney City East edged out a spirited Parramatta FC side 1-0 at Hensley Athletic Field on Saturday, with a free kick midway through the second half settling the match.
After dominating the opening period of the PlayStation®4 National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s clash without a breakthrough, Dean Bereveskos put the hosts into a deserved lead in the 74th minute with a free kick which was initially flagged for offside by the linesman, handing Parramatta FC their 14th straight defeat.
Hakoah took hold of the match quickly but took some time before mounting the first notable attack on goal, with Anthony Frangie popping up at the back post to head wide seven minutes after the kickoff.
Frangie would have been frustrated at missing what appeared a simple chance and looked to make amends soon after, cutting inside from the wing and curling a dangerous shot towards the far post. Aleksander Lekoski was next to go close for Hakoah, flicking a header over the crossbar midway through the half, before Parramatta FC’s Adrian Cocaro tested Anthony Bouzanis with a snapshot which the goalkeeper touched over for a corner.
Frangie was again at the centre of the action when he snatched at a ball which fell to him in the box, but Stefan Giglio was on hand to make a sharp save. The half petered out somewhat as Parramatta FC found their feet, but despite some impressive attacking play, particularly through Marcus Donatiello, Bouzanis was left untroubled in the Hakoah goal.
The second half began as the first ended, the cold night perhaps responsible in part for the slow start. A series of stoppages for injuries served to interrupt momentum even further, and it wasn’t until the hour mark that either team had registered another attempt on goal; usual suspect Frangie drilling a low shot towards the back post which Giglio did well to push away.
Donatiello lit up the match with a thrilling move deserving of a goal, skipping through the midfield at breakneck speed and playing a clever one-two before the play broke down, as Dean Bereveskos let out his frustrations up the other end with an optimistic shot from distance.
Man of the moment Bereveskos was typically determined to make his mark on the match, and did so in the 74th minute with a free kick which bounced just ahead of the goalkeeper and skipped inside the far post. The linesman raised his flag for offside against Bradley Walker, however the referee deemed that the defender hadn’t interfered with play, and awarded the goal after a long consultation with his assistant.
Parramatta FC should have drawn level during a goalmouth scramble which saw two quick shots deflected off Hakoah defenders, but were ultimately left clinging to their one-goal deficit as Hakoah searched for the killer blow; Aleksander Lekoski and Frangie both wasting chances to close the match out in its final few moments.
“We had to make a few changes, with our FFA Cup match going to extra time during the week,” said Hakoah’s player coach Gavin Rae (himself out of the team this week).
“But it was a good chance to have a look at some young guys.
“I thought they did okay. It’s a win – we can certainly perform better, but it’s a win.”
“We had five 17-year olds out there tonight,” said Parramatta FC’s Marshall Soper, “We’ve got so many players playing their first match for the club, but they don’t look like it. That performance is encouraging – the players are devastated with the end result, but that’s a good thing.
“We’re making steady progress, without question – off the field, we are making good progress. There were some great individual performances, and it was a good, solid team performance as well.”
Match Stats
Hakoah Sydney City East FC 1 (Bereveskos 74′)
Parramatta FC 0
Saturday 29 July 2017, at Hensley Athletic Field
Referee: S. Lucas
Assistant referees: P. Teleki and O. Lawton
4th official: L. Ledden
Hakoah Sydney City East FC: 15. BEREVESKOS Dean, 5. BLUMBERG Dylan, 1. BOUZANIS Anthony, 10. DE JONG Andre, 6. DRAPER Cameron, 14. FRANGIE Anthony, 16. GREEN Oliver, 36. JONES Lee, 40. KOUTA Michael, 7. LEKOSKI Aleksander, 17. SWEET Gideon
Subs: 45. FIGUEIRA Michael, 33. SHADDOCK Connor, 4. WALKER Bradley, 30. ELDRIDGE Connor, 18. JONES Harry
Yellow Cards: N/A
Red Cards: N/A
Parramatta FC: 7. BLAKELEY Ryan, 18. COCARO Adrian, 12. DONATIELLO Marcus, 20. GALBRAITH Hamish, 1. GIGLIO Stefan, 8. HASANZADAH Ahmad, 10. KONTOS Johnny, 6. LITTLEFIELD Joshua, 15. PRISUDA Zeke, 5. SAMBA Yuya, 3. TSIOULOS Nathan
Subs: 9. PANAYI George, 2. ABOUCHAAYA Camil, 19. ELLUL Dylan
Yellow Cards: Galbraith 69′, Tsioulos 77′
Red Cards: N/A
-By PlayStation®4 National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s reporter Max Grieve
