As if you needed another reminder, round ten of the Football NSW League One saw the competition at it’s unpredictable best with some surprising results and performances across the long weekend.
In our match of the round, Northern Tigers grabbed another victory at Fraser Park, while elsewhere Mounties Wanderers jumped off the bottom of the table with a seven-goal win. Let’s recap that and more in this Easter weekend review.
Match of the Round: Dunbar Rovers FC 0-1 Northern Tigers FC
Northern Tigers secured a narrow win over Dunbar Rovers at Fraser Park to take them into a top five position after ten rounds.
With two wins in a row and possessing the league’s best defense, the Tigers will be hoping this is the kick-start to the season going forward, Gian Fiorese scored their goal after the hour to give them their second victory at the venue in a week.
In contrast, it was a respectable effort from Dunbar Rovers who showed improvement following their heavy defeat to Rydalmere the week previous. They’ll turn their attention to Macarthur Rams in the cup Tuesday night.
It took a little while for this one to get going with both sides happy to feel each other out early on. Each defense doing a good job at snuffing out opportunities.
The first shot on target coming in the 17th minute for the hosts when Samuel Tzanakes took the ball forward before a tame effort was collected by Elliot Carwardine.
Northern Tigers responding a few minutes later through Charles Abou Serhal who put his shot wide left of the target after Luca Kmet and Dean Evans tried their luck earlier.
However, Dunbar had the first clear cut chance if you like at the other end seconds after that. Daisuke Yamaguchi trying his luck from deep forcing a save low down to the keepers left before Olivier Beltran Woodward couldn’t control the follow up from close range.
White the Tigers best chance till this point came on 36 minutes, Oliver Scott cutting it back to central position from the right, Luca Kmet leaving it for Charles Abou Serhal who skied his effort.
Overall though, it was an even first half with both sides having a few good chances in the opening stanza.
Like the first half, both sides defences were on top in the opening quarter hour of the second half with neither side able to post a notable shot on goal.
That was until the scoring was opened on 64 minutes. The Tigers striking first through Gian Fiorese who found space broke free of his marker from a deep Dean Evans free kick. Fiorese with a composed right footed volley inside the box.
And they nearly doubled the lead soon after, Dean Evans having his shot flash wide of the target after Luca Kmet found him inside.
That seemed to settle down the visitors who created a fair few chances from there through Oliver Scott and Travis Oughtred while exercising effective game management.
Dunbar Rovers had one last flurry around the 88th minute where a series of set pieces saw the visitors put under significant pressure as the hosts pushed for an equaliser.
The hosts will next face fellow league one side Macarthur Rams in the cup, while Northern Tigers turned their attention to Hakoah FC next weekend.
Dunbar Rovers FC 0
Northern Tigers FC 1 (Gian Fiorese 64’)
Hakoah FC 1 (Samuel Young 28’) v Blacktown Spartans FC 1 (Daniel Durkin 92’)
A goal at the death saw Blacktown Spartans take an away point from their clash with Hakoah FC, Friday evening.
It’s the latest of an inconsistent run of results for Hakoah who are yet to secure back-to-back victories in the league. Samuel Young gave them the lead in the first half but they couldn’t hold on conceding in injury time.
Relief is the overall feeling for Blacktown Spartans who came away with a point in injury time, Daniel Durkin with the goal to secure a point away from home. They turn their attention to St George FC in the cup.
It was a classic game of two halves this one, Hakoah FC taking the lead in the opening half after slightly edging proceedings and rewarded with the opener. Samuel Young continuing a positive scoring run with his second in as many weeks.
The second saw the momentum change, with the Spartans becoming more confident with the ball. Having a few notable chances before Daniel Durkin equalised into stoppage points to give them the point.
Mounties Wanderers FC 8 (Jesse Spang 29’ 42’, Ejin Kishimoto 35’ 48’, Andre Takimi 73’, Shun Maeta 80’ 83’, Bruno Pivato 94’) v Macarthur Rams FC 1 (Anthony Proia 55’)
The most unpredictable league in NSW I tell you, Mounties Wanderers jumped off the bottom of the table with a seven-goal victory over Macarthur Rams.
In one of the more incredible victories you will see, Nick Perroca’s side really took their recent frustrations out in a positive way. Jesse Spang, Eijin Kishimoto and Shun Maeta all grabbed a brace while Andre Takimi and Bruno Pivato also found the net in a game to remember.
Macarthur Rams on the other hand will be hoping this is just a freak result. Anthony Proia brought it back to 4-1 but it continued to go wrong from there. They will turn their attention to Dunbar Rovers midweek.
It really clicked for the hosts who took the game by the scruff of the neck and never took their foot off the throttle racing out to a three-goal lead by halftime. Jesse Spang with two of them, Ejin Kishimoto with the other.
The floodgates then well and truly opened with Kishimoto grabbing his brace after the resumption before Andre Takimi, Shun Maeta and Bruno Pivato joined in on the party.
Both these sides are in action in the cup midweek before Mounties face Bankstown City and Macarthur host Inter Lions respectively.
Inter Lions FC 2 (Oliver Green 27’, Vincent Fedele 80’) v Canterbury Bankstown FC 1 (Brendon Mandizvidza 52’)
Striking late, Inter Lions made it three victories in a row with a win over Canterbury Bankstown at Majors Bay Reserve.
After their nervy start to the season, the Lions now find themselves in the crowded mid-table after 10 weeks. Oliver Green gave them a first half lead before Vincent Fedele scored the eventual winner with ten minutes left.
A narrow defeat for Canterbury Bankstown, they were good value in the second half despite being down to ten for over 50 minutes. Brendon Mandizvidza equalised before the hour mark but a late Inter goal consigned them to defeat.
After a frantic start to the fixture, Inter struck the first blow from a set piece. Finding the net through Oliver Green who would lose his marker before finishing inside the area.
The goal seemed to kick the visitors into gear as they stepped up the intensity and they looked to have grabbed an equaliser only for it to be overruled for offside.
Momentum changed with a red card soon after with the visitors reduced to ten through a last man challenge.
However, the Berries showed their resilience scoring the next goal through Brendon Mandizvidza seven minutes into the second half.
Introducing fresh faces paid off for the team with a man advantage though, with the pairing of Daniel Georgievski and Vincent Fedele paying off, both involved in the winner. Georgievski with the cross finding Fedele to finish for the winner.
The win sees Inter Lions move to 9th on the table while Canterbury Bankstown sit a point above them in 5th.
Bonnyrigg White Eagles FC 3 (Aaron Peterson 3’, Emmanuel Gonzalez 33’, Ryan Attard 37‘) v Central Coast United 0
A strong first half performance saw Bonnyrigg White Eagles take the chocolates from their fixture against Central Coast United.
It marks the end of a good week for the hosts who have gained seven points in a week after a midweek win over Rydalmere Lions. Emmanuel Gonzalez opened the scoring before Ryan Attard and Aaron Peterson both found the net before the break.
After a tough first half, Central Coast United responded well after the break. Also, in cup action on Monday, they’ll be hoping it’s a turning point moving forward.
As mentioned, the first half saw the game become a one-sided affair, Aaron Peterson opening the scoring in the 7th minute before another few good chances followed.
The hosts really capitalising on their dominance after the half hour, Ryan Attard and Emmanuel Gonzalez adding another couple of goals.
The second half was a noticeable difference though with Central Coast United showing a noticeable resilience not shown in the opening half.
Bonnyrigg White Eagles have a cup game midweek before their trip to St George FC next weekend, while Central Coast United make the trip to SD Raiders next Saturday night.
Hills United FC 1 (Thomas Makko 75’) v Dulwich Hill FC 0
Hills United kept their remarkable defensive run going with a victory over Dulwich Hill FC at Landen Stadium.
Indeed, you have to go back over 400 minutes for the last time Luke Casserly’s side conceded in the league which has been a solid foundation for success, Thomas Makko the lone goal scorer in this one.
After separating ways with Paris Sviicich midweek, Dulwich Hill showed they can match it with the best with this result. They’ll turn their attention to the Spirit tomorrow night in the Cup.
This game settled into a pattern early with Hills United controlling a lot of the possession however they were unable to take advantage of it with notable shots on goal.
As such, the game was decided on a couple of moments in the second half. The first a moment of magic from young Thomas Makko who scored after a wonderful solo run inside his own half to give the hosts the lead.
The second a penalty for the visitors, which was hooked wide of the target with two minutes of regulation remaining.
Hills United next face Blacktown Spartans in the cup, while Dulwich Hill ‘host’ a midweek cup tie against NWS Spirit at VSP.
St George FC 3 (Jay Mcgowan 17’, Anthony Morabito 65’, Shunta Nakamura 80’) v Rydalmere Lions FC 2 (Matthew West 23’, Alistair Mckie 46’)
St George FC had to dig deep to overcome Rydalmere Lions at Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre, Saturday night.
Returning to winning ways after losing their streak last weekend. St George FC had to come from behind in the second half with Jay Mcgowan, Anthony Morabito and an eventual winner from Shunta Nakamura.
Rydalmere Lions brought a shock factor to the match surprising their hosts with their approach. They took a narrow lead into the break, Matthew West and Alistair Mckie their goal scorers.
The first half was an even affair with Rydalmere Lions perhaps edging it, as reflected on the scoreboard.
Jay Mcgowan opened the scoring for the host on 17 minutes getting on the end of a Jordan Wang cross from the right. Before Rydalmere hit back through Matthew West six minutes later. The first half turnaround complete with a goal from Alistair Mckie who spotted the opposition keeper off his line lobbing it from out wide.
St George didn’t go away though backing themselves to play their way in the second half. Jordan Wang once again involved with the assist for Anthony Morabito to level things.
A red card then giving the Saints the chance to grab the three points with Shunta Nakamura grabbing the decisive goal.
Bankstown City FC 1 (Nikola Todoroski 6’) v Sd Raiders FC 1 (Sebastian Malfara 100’)
A late equaliser saw SD Raiders steal a point away from home against Bankstown City at Jensen Park.
It’s been a disrupted few weeks for the SD Raiders, they’ll walk away happy with a point after it looked like it was all going wrong earlier in the piece. Sebastian Malfara scored an equaliser from the spot late for the victory.
It’s a case of what if’s for Bankstown City who took the lead early and had enough chances to seal the deal, however they couldn’t close the game out despite being up a man.
Spurred on by a decent sized crowd at Jensen Park, Bankstown City started well with an early goal. Jeffrey Issa the creator from the right byline cutting it back to Nikola Todoroski who snuck in at his markers blind side.
In a flowing game of football, both sides had their moments in the ascendency, Noah Chianese in particular proving a threat for the Raiders with a couple of chances.
While at the other end, Raiders keeper Misha Marson made a couple of tremendous saves, one from the spot, the other from a set piece header.
The game continued to ebb and flow with the visitors nearly leveling things on the hour through Klime Sekutkoski who fired into the near post. Whereas the visitors nearly doubled their lead soon after on a couple of occasions.
Things then got bad to worse for the visitors, first seeing a member of the coaching staff sent off. Before a player joined him for an early break a matter of seconds later.
However they were able to salvage something from the game with a late penalty giving them the point.
By Justin Smith
