Round 18 Review – State League Men’s
Drama, delight, and despair – the final round of the Men’s State League competition truly had it all.
Camden Tigers (3) vs Nepean FC (1)
As the Tigers took to the field, they were met with a chorus of ferocious chanting and exclamation after a resounding 3-0 win in the under 20s had confirmed their status as Club Champions for 2017.
Hundreds of fans and players gathered at Ron Dine Reserve to celebrate Camden’s coronation, their jubilation juxtaposed with the sunken spirits of the travelling Nepean fans who narrowly missed out on the chance to gain promotion from the Men’s State League competition.
With emotions on both sides threatening to erupt, the game began in explosive fashion.
Nepean looked to settle into their passing rhythm but were constantly foiled by Camden’s relentless press and defensive exuberance.
With so little to separate these two sides on the competition and club championship table, the first goal in this game would be crucial.
And it came courtesy of a Stephen Lloyd thunderbolt.
Just 7 minutes into the match, a misplaced pass from the Nepean defence was pounced upon by a Camden midfielder, who wasted no time feeding the ball into the feet of the towering striker.
Lloyd took control of the bouncing ball and unleashed a devilish volley that flew into the top corner of the net from 25 yards out.
The experienced striker wheeled away towards the vocal home crowd who welcomed him with triumphant cheers.
Buoyed by an early goal, Camden sat back and looked to hurt Nepean with incisive counter attacks.
Nepean looked to spray passes out wide to danger man Clement Waoci, but he was well marshalled by the covering Camden defence.
Despite the early goal, neither side was able to carve out any real goal-scoring opportunities in the first half. As the referees whistle blew for half time, both sides trudged off the field believing if they could translate their combative determination into goals, they would win this game.
And, in almost a repeat of the first half, the home fans were in raptures after another Stephen Lloyd master class.
Lloyd flicked the ball towards Dean Mugridge who hit ‘return to sender’ on the pass that found its way into the path of Lloyd who had continued his run in behind the Nepean defence. Entering the box, Lloyd looked up and saw a gaping whole to the keeper’s left, and like a putt on Happy Gilmore, he sent the ball home.
Camden’s confidence made their 2-0 goal lead look insurmountable and Nepean’s attack looked bereft of ideas as the second half wore on.
And unsurprisingly it was Camden who added their third goal, just 20 minutes from time.
A long throw was headed on at the near post, which found Christian Cevenini waiting dangerously in the six-yard box, who rose highest and looped his header over the keeper and just inside the far post – a set-piece straight out of the Rory Delap and Stoke City handbook.
The clocked ticked persistently towards full-time, as the chorus of ‘Club Champions’ began to ring out through the crowd.
But there was still time for a Nepean consolation.
Clement Waoci, who looked Nepean’s most dangerous attacking outlet all match, latched onto a ball in behind on the left flank. Using his explosive pace, Waoci drove into the box and showed deft touch to place his shot into the corner of the net.
A classy goal; a timely reminder of Nepean’s attacking quality as we approach the semi finals.
Congratulations must go to Camden, who are deserved Club Champions of the Men’s State League competition for 2017. They now look forward to a semi-final clash against premiers Bankstown United next week and a potential Grand Final birth.
Nepean, who have enjoyed a stellar season of their own, finish third in the competition and book a do-or-die battle against in-form Hurstville FC in the first round of the finals next week.
Match Stats
Camden Tigers: Stephen Lloyd x 2, Christian Cevenini
Nepean FC: Clement Waoci
Ron Dine Reserve, Sunday August 13
Camden Tigers: B. Brooker, C. Cevenini, M. Clarke, S. Doherty, M. Green, D. Harris, L. Hastie, R. Hastie, S. Lloyd, D. Mugridge, N. Mugridge, C. Rogers, J. Russell, M. Serone, B. Simpson, B. Szumski
Nepean FC: D. Adjassou, J. Bayubahe, M. Elongo, T. Hamilton, S. Hawthorne, D. Kanaley, S. Ly, C. May, R. Mcgeown, R. Polistina, H. Pronin, S. Sabatho, M. Saeed, J. Senior, C. Waoci, D. Watson
Hurstville City Minotaurs (0) vs Bankstown United (2)
The Premiership trophy for season 2017 belongs to Bankstown United.
A thoroughly professional win in their final match of the season secured the trophy ahead of the clutches of Camden Tigers.
It’s been a season of consistency and professionalism from Claudio Canosa’s side. Rarely extravagant but always accomplished, Bankstown swept an industrious Minotaurs team away with a comfortable 2-0 victory in the last game of the regular season.
A tight first half ended with scores locked at 0-0 before an early flurry of goals from Sean Robertson and Andrew Lazarou sealed the game for United.
The Minotaurs responded bravely, carving several chances for themselves, but on each occasion lacked the quality to finish their opportunities.
As the referee brought an end to the match, Bankstown’s celebrations began in full swing. The premiership trophy is a just reward for the persistence and class shown by United all season.
Whilst happy to celebrate their premiership victory, Claudio Canosa was quick to shift his attention to their Grand Final qualifying final next week against Camden.
For the Minotaurs and their General, Peter Sarikakas, plans for 2018 have already begun. With a strong junior base coming through the club, the future is bright for this historic club and we eagerly await their return next season.
Hurstville FC (2) vs Prospect United (1)
They’ve achieved the unthinkable.
A 3-1 defeat to Camden in Round 13 had Hurstville FC sitting six points outside the top four.
With games against UNSW, Nepean and Prospect to come, many predicted a season of mid-table mediocrity for Hurstville FC this season.
But an incredible run of five straight wins, rounded off with an impressive 2-1 victory over Prospect, has seen Hurstville FC qualify for the finals in fourth spot.
Even with their impressive run, Hurstville could not afford to relax in this final season match, knowing any slip up would open the door for UNSW to steal a finals’ place.
And with so much on the line, Hurstville could not have wished for a better start, opening the scoring on just 10 minutes through Rocco Luca after some nice build up play from Paul Gagro.
Holding a 1-0 lead as the second half began, Hurstville searched desperately for a second goal that would secure their top four qualification.
And that goal arrived thanks to the trusted left boot of Henry Kamleitner after exquisite build up play from Luca who was the star of the show after returning from injury.
Prospect, unlucky to not be in contention for a top four spot themselves, pushed hard in search of a way back into the game.
And with just 10 minutes remaining, they deservingly found the break through goal.
The momentum shifted palpably in favour of the home side and Prospect went agonisingly close to a dramatic equaliser that would have seen Hurstville FC crash out of the top four.
Despite their efforts, Hurstville FC held on for a crucial three points that secures their place in the finals series and sees them match up against Nepean FC in the first knockout game of the season.
FC Gazy Auburn (3) vs Wagga City Wanderers (2)
With all the drama at the top of the table, you could be forgiven for forgetting that the destination of this season’s wooden spoon was up for grabs as FC Gazy battled with Wagga City.
FC Gazy’s only win of the season came in the reverse fixture earlier this season, when they made the long trip to Wagga.
And they were buoyed by the fact that they could avoid the dreaded wooden spoon if they could complete the double over their cellar dweller rivals.
Clearly motivated by that fact, FC Gazy burst out of the blocks, racing to a 3-0 lead inside the first half.
Helped by a missed penalty from Wagga, FC Gazy entered the dressing rooms at half time know they were 45 mins away from moving off the bottom of the table – a feat they hadn’t achieved since Round 4.
With just 15 minutes to go, Wagga City scored a quick fire double to breathe new life into the match, but it was too little too late as FC Gazy held on to move off the bottom of the table and hand Wagga the wooden spoon to take with them on their long journey home.
Western Condors (1) vs UNSW (5)
So near and yet so far for UNSW this season.
A miracle run of 8 wins in a row had UNSW dreaming of premiership glory, but their stuttering from in the last 5 rounds of the season has cost them a precious top four spot
Knowing their finals place was dependent on Hurstville’s result against Prospect, UNSW had hopeful eyes and ears on the developments in that match as they tried to keep their end of the bargain up by beating Condors.
UNSW raced to a 2-1 lead inside the opening 45 minutes but their joy was short lived when news that Hurstville had a 2-0 lead over Prospect filtered through.
A key part of UNSW’s remarkable unbeaten run earlier in the season was their attacking prowess. In recent times, their attack has stifled and stuttered, failing to convert the many chances created in a match.
However the second half of this match reminded UNSW fans and, unfortunately Western Condors, just how potent their attack can be.
Goals flew in with unceasing pace like jabs from the gloves of Floyd Mayweather, as UNSW notched up a comprehensive 5-1 victory.
As the full-time whistle blew, UNSW’s celebrations were muted as they waited for news of Hurstville’s result to filter through.
Their refrained ecstasy quickly turned to misery as UNSW learned that Hurstville claimed all three points against Prospect and in doing so, cemented their spot in the finals at the expense of a valiant UNSW side.
-By Ryan Latty
