Round 6 Review – NPL 3 NSW Men’s
What a weekend of football round 6 in the NPL 3 NSW Men’s competition ended up being as goals were the theme.
An epic weekend of football took shape as Ramanan Siva reviewed each match up’s.
Dulwich Hill FC – Rydalmere Lions FC 1-2
Rydalmere maintained their unbeaten start to the season but were made to work hard for three points against Dulwich Hill at Arlington Oval.
The league leaders stamped their authority early, bossing possession and winning a number of corners but were unable to take advantage of their superiority.
Dully held the Lions at bay and took the lead against the run of play when Peter Crevani curled a 25 yard free kick into the top corner midway through the first half.
Dulwich Hill created chances before the inevitable Lions equaliser. Nicky Trimble headed home after Dully were unable to clear a Lee Jones free kick before half time.
Rydalmere dominated the second half but a Dully shot cleared off the line, early in the second half, reminded the vistors of the threat posed by their host on the counter attack. Chances came and went for the Lions who were thwarted by excellent goalkeeping and wasteful finishing.
Rydalmere’s avalanche of corners finally broke Dully’s resistance but it took something special – Lee Jones scored direct from a corner to seal three points for the Lions.
The result, coupled with the Berries draw, extends Rydalmere’s lead at the top of the table to five points. Dulwich Hill drop to 10th, having picked up two points from their last five games.
Dunbar Rovers FC – Stanmore Hawks FC 3-2
Dunbar Rovers overcame Stanmore Hawks in a five goal thriller on a cold and windy evening at Heffron Park.
Dunbar opened the scoring on 15 minutes when Todd Bamber intercepted a backpass and kept his cool to slot past the keeper. Andrew Alvarenga doubled Rovers lead five minutes late with a neat finish in the bottom left hand corner.
Stanmore pulled a goal back before half time when Connor Quilligan spotted left back Angus Chance’s overlapping run. Chance took the pass in his stride and found the right hand corner on 38 minutes.
Dunbar restored their two goal advantage mid way through the second half. Aram Tayebi came off the bench to meet a Conor Earley cross in the 71st minute for his fifth goal of the season.
The Hawks managed a consolation goal with the last kick of the game as Chance and Quilligan combined again. This time Chance turned provider, his cut back neatly finished by Qulligan.
The win takes Dunbar level on points with Stanmore who have now lost two in a row after a bright start to the season.
A frustrating week for the Hawks was compounded by news that captain Jovan Blagojevic will be unavailable for the remainder of the season.
A tactical reshuffle will see Marko Filipovic take his place up front.
Macarthur Rams – Bankstown United 3-2
Macarthur Rams have pulled themselves out of a slump with a 3-2 victory against Bankstown United at Lynwood Park.
The match started brightly for Bankstown as Mitch Edmunds fed Mitch Cross for his 50th goal for the club.
Macarthur refused to roll over and were soon back in the contest. A composed period of possession was rewarded by a first half brace for Dean Mugridge.
Blake Brooker’s rocket from 25 yards in the 60th minute put the Rams in control. Full of confidence, Macarthur created several opportunities to extend their lead but poor finishing let them down.
Macarthur would rue those missed chances when Bankstown were awarded a penalty in the 85th minute. Cross completed his brace from the penalty spot to trigger a frantic final five minutes as Bankstown went in search of an equaliser but Macarthur held on to record their first victory since July. The win moves the Rams to six points alongside Bankstown United.
Sydney University SFC – Canterbury Bankstown FC 1-1
Sydney University and Canterbury Bankstown shared the points at the University Football Ground.
Sydney University’s inability to put the ball in the back of the net continued as they missed a chance to take the lead from 6 yards.
A scrappy first half, in which both teams were careless in possession, was brought to life by a moment of magic to open the scoring on 25 minutes. Canterbury Bankstown broke down the left, moving the ball to Jake Bradshaw who hit a curling shot which Daniel Axford tipped onto the bar. Brent Flavin was first to react to the rebound with a flying header to put the Berries into the lead.
Sydney University bounced back in the second half, Jack Lapi’s header from a deep cross levelling the score on 70 minutes. Both teams went searching for a winner but ran out of time.
The visitors injury riddled squad were left frustrated while Sydney University’s first point of the season can’t prevent them from dropping to the bottom of the table.
The search for their first win of the season continues.
Central Coast United FC – Inter Lions FC 4-0
Central Coast United lifted themselves off the foot of the table with a comprehensive 4-0 win over Inter Lions at Valentine Sports Park.
The Pirates welcomed back four first grade players and got off to a flying start as 16 year old Mason Wells opened the scoring inside two minutes. The left back was expertly found by Daniel McFarlane’s defence splitting pass before applying the finish for his third goal of the season. Alex Arbelo added a second on 15 minutes to leave Inter reeling.
The Lions regrouped at half time and came out firing for the second period, pressing man on man to prevent Central Coast from playing out from the back. Both teams created opportunities but excellent goalkeeping kept the score at 2-0.
Inter’s high intensity tactics took its toll and Central Coast took advantage. Late goals to Nathan Huntley and Cade Mapu added gloss to the Pirates first win of the season. Inter will hope to welcome back three first grade players including leading scorer Nico Paras for next week’s clash with Dunbar Rovers.
Bankstown City FC – Gladesville Ryde Magic 5-0
In the Sunday afternoon game, Bankstown City moved into third place on the table after a comprehensive 5-0 win against Gladesville Ryde Magic at Jensen Park.
This fixture produced five goals in both encounters last season and lived up to expectations again.
Both teams created chances in an open first half but it was the Lions who took the lead on the stroke of half time. A goal mouth scramble from a corner was eventually settled by left back Asel Dehsabzi’s first goal of the season.
Bankstown City doubled their lead two minutes into the second period. Nikola Todoroski picked up the ball out wide before delivering a perfect cross for Christos Tomaras to slot past Joel Anscomb.
Gladesville Ryde settled and created opportunities but could not convert while leaving themselves open to Bankstown City’s incisive attacks.
Bankstown City took control when Tomaras grabbed his second of the game with a 25 yard strike after Magic failed to close him down.
By now the Lions were rampant, Jonathan Grozdanovski made his way up the right wing and found Todoroski at the far post to make it 3-0 in the 80th minute. The striker’s movement was too much for Magic to handle as he completed his brace in the last minute. Chris Triantis played a lovely ball over the Magic defence to Todoroski, who finished the one on one to complete a satisfying day’s work for the Red and Black.
The Lions leap over Stanmore into third place on 12 points while Magic remain sixth.
By Ramanan Siva
