Round 6 Review – NPL 4 NSW Men’s
Round 6 of the National Premier Leagues 4 NSW Men’s competition didn’t fail to disappoint with a weekend fulling of thrilling results.
Hurstville FC hit Parramatta FC for six giving the eagles their first loss of the season. Fraser Park put seven past the South Coast Flame, whilst Western NSW shared the spoils with Nepean. Elsewhere UNSW took points off the Jets, Prospect and Camden played out a late thriller whilst Hawkesbury got their first win of the season against Western Rage
Match of the Round
Prospect United SC 2-2 Camden Tigers FC
Prospect and Camden locked horns in an thrilling clash which saw both sides leave it late for a 2-2 draw.
Camden opened up the game the better of the two sides and threatened to score early. Dean Mugridge had a near certain goal denied off the line in the opening minutes after a world-class goal line clearance from Mario Farias.
The Tigers were again denied just moments later, this time from the crossbar after Mugrigde failed to convert on his impressive solo run into the box.
Prospect came into the game towards the backend of the half, Kwangmook Lim’s corner smashed against the bar whilst Thomas Knez’s half volley both gave the Camden defence a wake-up call.
The sides went into halftime goalless, however were determined to walk away with all the points. Bailey Simpson’s missed his chance to put his side into the lead shortly after the break after his shot failed to trouble Farias.
Prospect were gifted the best chance of the match as a miss-hit clearance from Michael O’Rouke fell straight into Rocco Romeo’s feet, with an open goal ahead of him his shot was desperately stopped by the Camden defence.
The flood gates opened in the final twenty minutes of the game, Camden found themselves in dreamland in the 74th minute, after two quick goals from Eric McGuire and Bailey Simpson saw the visitors take a two goal lead.
Prospect refused to give up and answered minutes later with a great team goal finished by Billy Manousiadis giving them a fighter’s chance. In the 81st minute Henry Yau neatly put away his shot on the back of a fantastic solo run to put his side level and throw the game into chaos.
Both sides threw everything they had at each other towards the end resulting in a wild last couple of minutes. They were both forced to settle for the draw in a game that could of easily went either way
Prospect’s captain and keeper Mario Farias was taken off in the dying minutes in what could be a major blow for the team with what looked to be a serious wrist injury.
Match Stats
Prospect United SC : 2 (MANOUSIADIS 77’, YAU 81)
Camden Tigers FC : 2 ( MCGUIRE 72’, SIMPSON 74’)
Parramatta FC 3-0 Nepean FC (Round 3 Catchup)
The Eagles dominated a depleted Nepean side in this midweek matchup. Parramatta came out of the gates flying with two goals in the first twenty minutes courtesy of Ali Dulleh and Zoran Kolundzic.
Nepean were held at bay for large portions of the game and struggled to find their footing. Dulleh netted his second in to give his side a 3-0 lead which they held onto till the final whistle. The Eagles looked impressive across the park as the result never looked in doubt.
Western NSW FC 1-1 Nepean FC
Western NSW raised eyebrows around NPL 4 with an impressive display against Nepean. Ben Welch returned from suspension with a goal to give the visitors a one goal advantage heading into the break.
Ryan Campbell answered back for the hosts with his first goal off the season after returning from injury as Western NSW saw out Nepean for the draw. Both coaches admitted theirs sides had their chances to take it, however both defences were up for the challenge.
Western NSW are off the mark with their first point after a month from hell with a major injury crisis, Nepean also find themselves in the midst of an injury crisis resulting in two disappointing games in the space of a four days.
Fraser Park FC 7-0 South Coast Flame FC
Fraser Park continued their dominant form with 7-0 thrashing of South Coast. The hosts gave the Flame and the rest of NPL 4 a reminder of their blistering form from last year. Heading into the half the hosts maintained a respectable two goal advantage before netting five second half goals to complete the match
Cam Philpot and Anthony Musumeci bagged a brace each, whilst Matteo Pnadolfo, David Adjassou and Daniel Marques rounded out the scoring for Fraser Park. South Coast will want to put this game in the rear view mirror sooner rather than later as they were out-classed by the red-hot Fraser Park outfit.
Hurstville FC 6-0 Parramatta FC
Hurstville clipped the wings of the Eagles with a comprehensive six-goal victory on Saturday. Hurstville started the game on the front-foot, scoring four first half goals. The game shifted early in the first when Michael Rutherford made brilliant save from a penalty to keep his side’s one goal advantage.
From this moment Hurstville ran away with the game, goals from Elvir Catovic, Jesse Gagro, Jacob Ritchie, Caleb Bartier and a double from Anthony Krkovski secured the comprehensive victory. Hurstville skipper Paul Gagro credited his side’s effort all across the park including a superb effort and work-rate from his midfielders and defenders alike.
Newcastle Jets FC 0-0 UNSW FC
The Jets were upset by UNSW as both sides shared the points in a goalless draw. Newcastle’s incredible scoring run was shut down by an phenomenal defensive display from UNSW including again another stellar performance from Conor Winn.
It was the posts that saved both sides on a few occasions, notably in the dying stages of the game as UNSW were denied a winner by the sticks. For the first time this season Newcastle were brought back down to Earth and given an extremely competitive contest from a rejuvenated UNSW side.
Western Rage 1-3 Hawkesbury City FC
Hawkesbury City have turned around their misfortunes with an impressive victory in the final game of the weekend. After managing to have their first training session since the floods Dean Bertenshaw’s men were determined to walk away with a much needed result.
The Rage got ahead early with a Mitchell Whalley goal, however were out-performed by a eager Hawkesbury side who scored three unanswered goals to secure the victory. Daniel Morsillo, Anthony Pedavoli and Marco Turpeinen all found themselves on the scoresheet, gifting their side their first win of the season.
After the turbulent events that have shook the club recently a result like this could be vital in what could be prove to be a further up-hill battle for the Hawks.
By NPL 4 NSW Men’s Writer, Dominic Criniti
