Round 26 – National Premier Leagues 3 NSW Men’s Reviews

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The National Premier Leagues 3 NSW Men’s competition proper is done and dusted, and the final ladder positions have been finalised following a frenzied and dramatic completion of Round 26.

Congratulations to St George City FA, who have won the 1st grade Premiership title by five points with a final total of 59, whilst Hawkesbury City snared second spot on the competition ladder, finishing their campaign on 54.

With the Top Six Finals Series commencing next week, both St George City FA and Hawkesbury City have earned the right to have the week off, as they await their respective Semi Final opponents in two weeks’ time.

Gladesville Ryde Magic finished in 3rd spot, SD Raiders in 4th, and Bankstown City in 5th, all three clubs ending up exactly as they were, going in to the final round.

The 6th and final spot to contest the Top Six has been taken by Dunbar Rovers, who held off the challenge of Sydney University, with both sides drawing their final competition match to finish 6th and 7th on the ladder respectively.

More about the Top Six Finals Series in next week’s midweek Preview, but for now, let’s take a closer look at how the season finished up for each of the 14 clubs as we review Round 26.

Sydney University’s finals aspirations ended at Marconi Stadium when they were held to a 3-3 draw against SD Raiders, with the one point insufficient to close the gap to 6th placed Dunbar Rovers; Hawkesbury City retained 2nd spot in the final wash up when they defeated Bankstown City 2-0 in a tight affair at David Bertenshaw Field; Gladesville Ryde Magic made light work of Fraser Park, winning 13-1 at Christie Park, with Michael Gaitatzis netting six goals to snare the competition’s Golden Boot; Premiers, St George City FA, muscled their way in to the Finals Series with a 5-0 drubbing of Granville Rage at Garside Park; Stanmore Hawks grabbed all three points on the road with a 3-1 win in Orange against the Western NSW Mariners; Inter Lions ended their season on a positive note with a 4-1 drubbing of Camden Tigers in Marrickville.

FNSW ventured out to Arlington Oval to see if the visitors, Dunbar Rovers, could hold off Dulwich Hill in a bid to keep their Finals hopes intact.

MATCH OF THE ROUND

DULWICH HILL – DUNBAR ROVERS 1-1

Dunbar Rovers grabbed a 1-1 draw at Arlington Oval on Sunday afternoon against Dulwich Hill in what was a tense and cagey affair throughout.

The one point was sufficient for Dunbar Rovers to maintain 6th spot on the ladder given the 3-3 draw at Marconi Stadium between SD Raiders and Sydney University, and hence, Dunbar will take their place in next week’s Elimination final.

The match had an emotional touch to it as it marked the retirement of two of Dulwich Hill’s favourite sons – keeper, Michael Frost, and Carlo Musumeci, who donned the captain’s armband for the afternoon.

Not wanting to rely on any result at Marconi Stadium, Dunbar started on the front foot, and Ryan Shaughnessy almost calmed the visitor’s nerves as early as the 3rd minute.

A long throw in found itself bouncing towards the back stick, and quick as you like, Shaughnessy swivelled and hit a snapshot that was superbly cleared off the line by Dully defender, James Duvcevski.

Rovers were at it again on 10 minutes, with skipper, Andrew Doddy, clipping a delightful ball in to space for Henry Kamleitner to run onto. The winger cut a beautiful pass back in to the path of Shaughnessy, whose first time angled drive was well parried by Michael Frost in the Dully goal.

Andrew Doddy has a reputation for the spectacular, in the 27th minute produced an audacious lob from the right touchline that had Frost scrambling backwards in the Dully goal as the ball cleared the cross bar.

Dunbar were well and truly on top at this stage, and Shughnessy was in the thick of it, his low strike in the 34th minute requiring a clever save by Dully custodian, Frost, who was keeping his side in the contest at this stage.

In fact, Dulwich Hill defenders, Nikola Stanojevic and James Duvcevski, were called upon within quick succession to produce last ditch tackles just as a Dunbar player was about to pull the trigger from inside the penalty area.

Just as the match was heading towards a half time stalemate, Dulwich Hill produced three quick fire attacks, of which the third provided the opening goal.

Gosue Sama split the Dunbar defence with a superb pass in the 44th minute which Henry Wells raced onto, and the right winger’s angled drive was well parried by Dunbar’s keeper, Terry Dal Broi, who had had very little to do by this stage.

Within a minute, Dully produced a square passing movement that any rugby league would’ve been proud of, with the leather going across the park from right to left, moving from Gosue Sama to Robbie Deasy before landing at the feet of Carlo Musumeci, whose snapshot was brilliantly parried for a corner by the ever alert Dal Broi in the Dunbar goal.

But Dully were not to be denied, and from the ensuing corner, Robbie Deasy sent over a  wicked ball that Harry Browell met at the near post, sending his header in to the back of the Dunbar net, much to the delight of the Dully crowd.

Despite dominating the opening stanza, Dunbar Rovers returned from the break knowing they simply had to up the ante if they were to keep their season alive.

Striker, Yoel Silvestre, had numerous attempts in a determined first half, his efforts only just clearing the cross bar each time as he sent Dulwich Hill ominous warning of his intent.

Dully did not heed the warning, and Silvestre made them pay in the 52nd minute, latching on to a through ball by Ryan Shaughnessy to strike past the advancing Dully keeper, Michael Frost, restoring parity at 1-1.

Unbelievably, Dulwich Hill replied within sixty seconds, earning themselves a penalty after Henry Wells’ speed was too much for Terry Dal Broi, the Dunbar keeper clipping Wells as he advanced off his goal line.

Sean Burke took his time as he sized up his kick, but his firm strike was brilliantly tipped around the post by Dal Broi as the Dunbar keeper made amends for his error.

Then it was Michael Frost to show his brilliance at the other end in the Dully goal, the evergreen shot stopper first blocking a point blank effort by Dunbar’s Henry Kamleitner, before diving to his right to divert a low drive by Yoel Silvestre moments later.

Both teams were at it hammer and tongs as they both chased the victory, with Gosue Sama next to go close for Dulwich, his 64th minute header from Carlo Musumeci’s cross bouncing inches wide of the Dunbar upright.

Dulwich Hill went close once again in the 75th minute, with Harry Browell producing a deft flick from a Henry Wells cross that was well saved down low by Terry Dal Broi in the Dunbar goal.

Dully’s Gosue Sama then hammered a volley inches over the Dunbar cross bar after a ball fell invitingly to the striker just inside the penalty area, whilst Dully substitute, Daniel Krkovski, did likewise in the 84th minute when it looked easier to score.

Henry Kamleitner almost stole it for Dunbar in the 86th minute with a flick header, but Dully’s Nikola Stanojevic was on hand to clear the danger off the line.

For the late huff and puff, neither side could muster a second goal, and both sides resigned themselves to sharing a point each in an entertaining last round affair.

The point sees Dulwich Hill finish 9th on the competition ladder on 31 points, a disappointing season by the club’s usual standards, but they will no doubt rebuild over the summer and be back in 2019 bigger and better than ever.

Congratulations to both Michael Frost and Carlo Musumeci on stellar careers, the game will be less without them, and we wish them all the best in retirement.

For Dunbar Rovers, the point was enough to consolidate 6th place on the competition ladder on 44 points, and they will return next weekend in a do-or-die Elimination final.

Match Stats

National Premier Leagues 3 NSW Men’s

Round Twenty Six

Sunday, September 2, 2018

Arlington Oval, Dulwich Hill

DULWICH HILL 1 (Browell 45’ + 1’)

DUNBAR ROVERS 1 (Silvestre 52’)

Referee – Adrian Brett

Assistant Referees – Deryn Knott and Paul Faithful

DULWICH HILL; 1.M.Frost 2.J.Duvcevski, 3.E.Bardsley, 23.H.Browell, 13.S.Burke, 9.R.Deasy, 62.D.Deep-Jones (37.Daniel Krkovski 59’), 7.H.Wells, 10.G.Sama,14.N.Stanojevic,16.C.Musumeci (capt) (36.Dean Krkovski 88’).

Substitutes Not Used – 25.D.Larmour, 39.F.Terranova, 70.J.Conaghan.

Yellow Cards – 13.S.Burke 65’, 37.Daniel Krkovski 84’.

Red Cards – Nil

DUNBAR ROVERS; 1.T.Dal Broi, 8.A.Doddy (capt), 3.J.Hampson, 9.N.Holton, 11.H.Kamleitner, 2.M.Karagiannis, 16.R.Mendes (5.C.Welham 69’), 23.P.Orgad, 10.R.Shaughnessy, 17.Y.Silvestre (14.A.Crane 79’, 4.G.Swartz.

Substitutes Not Used – 19.B.Karpin, 111.B.Wrigley.

Yellow Cards – 17.Y.Silvestre 29’, 9.N.Holton 77’/82’.

Red Cards – 9.N.Holton 82’.

SD Raiders – Sydney University 3-3

Sydney University’s season came to an end at Marconi Stadium on Sunday, but not before they gave the SD Raiders a run for their money following an entertaining 3-3 draw.

The point means the ‘students’ end their campaign on 42 points in 7th spot, agonisingly just 2 points adrift of 6th placed Dunbar Rovers and a semi final berth.

Sydney Uni started on the front foot with early chances falling to both Scott Tonkin and Conor Quilligan, but the teams remained locked at 0-0 until half time.

Five minutes into the second period and the Raiders broke the deadlock.

A miscued clearance fell to James Raiti and he struck a missile from 35 yards for a spectacular opening goal.

One quickly became two when the Raiders winger, Daniel Bittar, found himself clean through and he slotted it home past Uni keeper, Charlie Fanner.

Sydney Uni looked all but done at this stage but clawed their way back in to the contest following a foul on Michael Loupis inside the penalty area. Scott Tonkin converted the resultant spot kick to reduce the deficit to 1-2.

News had made it through to Marconi Stadium that Dunbar Rovers were 0-1 down at Dulwich Hill, and suddenly, the momentum had swung and Sydney Uni snared an equaliser moments later.

Michael Loupis swung a delightful free kick into the Raiders’ penalty box and Jovan Blagojevic produced a deft flick to make it 2-2.

However the Raiders responded with a prompt counter attack, with a final ball played over the top of the Sydney Uni defence seized upon by Raiders as they slotted it home to give the Raiders a 3-2 lead.

Knowing they had to win to have any chance of making the finals, Sydney University kept at it and were rewarded when another whipped free kick by Michael Loupis was turned home by Scott Tonkin to make it 3-3.

With Dulwich Hill and Dunbar at 1-1, Uni knew one more goal would be enough for finals football, but despite engineering a few half chances in the dying seconds, it just wasn’t to be for the students and the final whistle brought an agonising end to their season despite their surge up the ladder in the second half of the season.

The draw and subsequent point for the Raiders keeps them in 4th position on the ladder on 47 points, and they can now prepare for an Elimination final next weekend.

Hawkesbury City – Bankstown City 2-0

Hawkesbury City ended a very positive campaign by consolidating 2nd position on the ladder after a 2-0 triumph over Bankstown City Lions at David Bertenshaw Field on Sunday.

The game was evenly balanced until the 45th minute, when Bankstown City were reduced to 10 men following the dismissal of Ante Markovic.

Hawkesbury kept at it with the arm wrestle, and eventually found the lead when Daniel Morsillo came off the bench to net in the 80th minute, his 16th goal of the season.

Ryan Wilson wrapped up proceedings in the final minute of play, giving the Hawks a 2-0 win that takes them to 54 points and 2nd position on the ladder. As a result, Hawkesbury City have earned themselves the weekend off and will wait for a Semi Final battle in two weeks time for a spot in this year’s Grand Final.

Bankstown City were 5th going in to the match, and have finished the season that way on 46 points, and can now look forward to an Elimination final next weekend.

Gladesville Ryde Magic – Fraser Park 13-1

Gladesville Ryde Magic made a mockery of the contest at Christie Park on Sunday afternoon, demolishing a dismal Fraser Park 13-1 in a one-sided affair.

Congratulations on a personal level to Gladesville’s sharpshooter, Michael Gaitatzis, who netted a double hatrick on the day, with the six goals taking him to 35 for the campaign and earning him the coveted Golden Boot award for the NPL 3 NSW Men’s competition.

Michael Gaitatzis got it going early on with a long range drive in to the top corner, before brother, Chris, doubled the advantage shortly afterwards after beating the Fraser keeper in a  one-on-one duel.

Michael Gaitatzis made it 3-0 within minutes with a clinical strike, before Chris Tomaras got in on the act after finding himself alone inside the penalty area.

Michael Gaitatzis then netted his hatrick after good lead up play by youngster Nicholas Ioannides, before two more goals by Tomaras not only gave him his hatrick, but provided Gladesville Ryde Magic with a healthy and insurmountable 7-0 half time lead.

Gladesville didn’t let up and went on with it after the break, with John Martinez finding the mark, Adrien Jolly grabbing a brace, and Michael Gaitatzis managing a second half hatrick to take his tally to 6 goals for the match.

The loss was a miserable way to end the season for Fraser Park, conceding 4 goals shy of the century as they finished bottom of both the first grade and club championship tables.

Gladesville Ryde Magic cracked the 50 point barrier with the win, the three points taking them to 52 in total as they finish the campaign in 3rd spot, and they can look forward to finals football next weekend.

Granville Rage – St George City FA 0-5

2018 Premiers, St George City FA, could afford to rest a few key players and were still able to manufacture a 5-0 away drubbing of Granville Rage at Garside Park.

St George City FA lead 1-0 at the break, and after a tight tussle early in the second stanza, netted four goals late on to record a morale boosting win leading in to the Final Series.

James Spanoudakis helped himself to a brace of goals, Alvaro Malmierca also found the net,  whilst Geoffry Lino and Riley Thomson-King both came off the bench to round off the scoring.

Despite a great run of form late on in the season, the loss means Granville Rage finish the year in 10th position on 30 points.

The win and subsequent three points means St George City FA end the campaign on 59 points in 1st position, 5 points ahead of their nearest rivals, Hawkesbury City, and can also boast the competition’s best attack (79 goals) and best defence (23 goals).

St George City FA can now take a well-earned rest next week as the Finals Series begin, and they can look forward to a Semi Final the week after which gives them an opportunity to qualify for this year’s Grand Final.

WNSW Mariners – Stanmore Hawks 1-3

Stanmore Hawks made sure the trek back from Orange would be a joyous one after taking all three points in a 3-1 win over the Western NSW Mariners at Sir Jack Brabham Park.

The Hawks took a 2-0 half time lead through Sam Awad and Heo Wookbum, and never looked like rescinding their advantage.

Even though Kenny McCall pulled a goal back via the penalty spot for his 9th goal of the season, an own goal from Nikki Spice made it 3-1 to Stanmore, and they held on from there to register the victory.

The loss sees the Mariners finish a dismal season in 13th spot on 14 points, whilst Stanmore Hawks finished the season position above in 12th, with the three points moving them to 25.

Inter Lions – Camden Tigers 4-1

Inter Lions ended the season on a high note with a 4-1 drubbing of Camden Tigers at Fraser Park in Marrickville.

Nathan Scicchitano got things going for Inter on 11 minutes, before Julian Rinaldi doubled the home side’s advantage in the 38th, a lead they held until the break.

Stephen Lloyd reduced the deficit after half time when he scored in the 49th minute, but Camden Tigers just couldn’t muster an equaliser, and in fact, conceded twice more.

Experienced marksman, Juan Chavez, made it 3-1 in the 56th minute, before Rinaldi bagged his brace with an 88th minute strike to round off proceedings at 4-1 to Inter Lions.

For Camden Tigers, there were plenty of positives after being promoted from State League in 2017, and they can hold their heads up high after ending the campaign in 8th spot on 36 points.

The win and subsequent three points means Inter Lions end up 25 points, and they finish the competition proper in 11th position on the ladder.

Footnote – Thank You

In order to provide accurate details of results, goal scorers, and incidents, this journalist simply cannot be at each of the 7 NPL 3 venues each weekend, and relies on accessing a range of resources other than being able to attend one match, including online and social media sources.

I have been able to utilise a range of individuals in my National Premier Leagues 3 NSW Mens network, who have been reliable, honest and consistent in providing me with accurate and prompt data which has enabled me to construct weekly reports full of detail and context.

I simply cannot have eyes across seven venues, so without these individuals, I could not have produced the thorough reports on a weekly basis, so a huge amount of gratitude to each of you – and you all know who you are – thank you for your reliability and support, for putting your club on the map, and on a bigger picture, continuing to support this exciting National Premier Leagues 3 NSW Men’s competition.