Round 10 Review – League Two Men’s
The 2025 Football NSW League Two Men’s season reached a third of its completion following Round 10, with many more tight affairs and some big wins, elsewhere.
The Match of the Round this week saw one of those tight affairs, where Inner West Hawks FC came from behind to snatch a point in a close match against Camden Tigers FC.
Saturday, 12th April 2025
Match of the Round: Camden Tigers FC 1-1 Inner West Hawks FC
Inner West Hawks FC secured a point in dramatic style away to Camden Tigers FC in a match with a few big talking points.
Camden started the match on perfect fashion when they countered from a Hawks’ corner through Aiden Quigley; he spotted Bailey Simpson’s run in behind the Hawks’ defence and found him, with Simpson calmly finding the bottom-left corner to give the hosts a 1-0 lead early.
The Hawks fired back with the next three shots in the match, all on target, from Emmanuel Tzanakes and Jack Haslam, respectively, with the latter’s shot saved well down low by Camden goalkeeper, Michael O’Rourke.
In the 25th minute, Simpson got in behind for Camden once more and had a strong shot at the near post saved behind for a corner by Hawks’ goalkeeper, Gene Marantos.
Camden had a big chance to double their lead two minutes later when Quigley got in behind the Hawks’ defence and placed a shot past Marantos, but Hawks’ defender Jeremy Siarakas got back and cleared the ball off the goal-line to prevent the goal.
Haslam had the next two shots for the Hawks in a first half which had 16 shots combined between the two teams, 11 to the Hawks and six to Camden.
There was a big moment to end the half in the third minute of stoppage-time when Hawks’ Peter Phillips was fouled in the Tigers box after he had made a strong run down the left and a penalty was given.
Phillips converted he penalty he had earned, placing the ball into the left of the goal, sending O’Rourke the wrong way to level the contest at 1-1 with the final kick of the half.
The Hawks had the first attempt of the second half when they had a header from a corner saved by O’Rourke, before at the other end a long Camden throw-in found Darcy Wilson, who headed just wide of the left post at the back post.
From there, the match became quite even with both sides nullifying each other in attack, with both goalkeepers called into action on a few occasions.
Camden’s final chance of the night came in the 87th minute when they headed over the goal from a throw-in.
At the other end, in the 89th minute, the Hawks’ Jacob Palamidas got on the end of good build-up play outside the box and fired a shot at goal which thundered against the crossbar.
In a match which saw 14 shots to 22, neither side was able to find the winner with the match ending in a 1-1 draw.
Speaking post-match, Camden head coach Dean Bradley was proud of the effort from his young squad once again.
“We hope to have a full squad back for Round 13… tonight we had 18-year-olds through 21-year-olds out there, so we are doing alright for what we have got.”
Inner West captain Christopher Phillips, meanwhile, was happy with the effort of his side and hopes to see it rewarded further heading into the next part of the season.
“I think we are creating really good chances, and we are getting into good positions, we are just struggling with that final five percent, unfortunately, so plenty to work on at training but again I cannot fault the effort from any of the boys.”
The draw for Camden was their third of the season as they bounced back from their last-start defeat, while for the Hawks the draw was also their third, but they went to four matches without a win.
Camden will hope to grab all three points when they make the trip to face South Coast Flame FC in Round 11, while Inner West will hope to win a first match in five when they host Dunbar Rovers FC.
Camden Tigers FC 1 (Bailey Simpson 4’)
Inner West Hawks FC 1 (Peter Phillips 45+3’)
Friday, 11th April 2025
Bankstown United FC 1-1 Central Coast United FC
Central Coast United FC came from behind to snap an eight-match losing streak in a 1-1 away draw to Bankstown United FC, who went a third-straight match without a win.
In a first half which saw possession split evenly and a few good chances for each side, neither team was able to find a breakthrough as the two teams entered half-time scoreless.
The second half saw plenty more action and Bankstown was the first to capitalise in the 59th minute when Marie Gauthier finished off a counterattack to give the hosts a 1-0 lead.
Despite having 17 shots in the match, Bankstown was unable to score any more while Central Coast made one of their 17 shots count late.
In the 77th minute, Ben Flakus finished off a good team goal with a tap-in to rescue a point for the away side in a 1-1 draw.
Central Coast ended the match with ten men when Cayleb Murray was shown a second yellow card.
The draw for Bankstown was their second in a row, while for Central Coast the draw brought them their first point since Round One.
Bankstown will hope to welcome back players from injury soon as they prepare for Hurstville Zagreb FC away next week, while the Pirates will hope to build off their point when they travel to face Nepean FC.
Bankstown United FC 1 (Marie Gauthier 59’)
Central Coast United FC 1 (Ben Flakus 77’; Cayleb Murray 90+1’ red card)
Hawkesbury City FC 0-3 Hurstville Zagreb FC
A strong first half from Hurstville Zagreb FC saw them set up a 3-0 win over Hawkesbury City FC, who failed to score in a match for the first time this season.
Hurstville pushed for an early goal and were rewarded in the 16th minute when Hesan Soufi whipped a corner into the box and Daniel Maras headed home from close range to give the visitors a 1-0 lead.
Hawkesbury had chances through Harry Drew and Jude Bramhall with the latter’s header missing.
Hurstville defended well to stop the Hawkesbury attacks and grabbed a 2-0 lead in the 38th minute when Michael Neill slipped Nikola Todoroski through who scored with a chipped effort.
Three minutes later, Hurstville extended their lead to three when they won the ball and Todoroski played Paul Gagro out wide, who cut inside and placed the ball home.
Hawkesbury had a few chances to grab a goal back late, but Hurstville defended well to keep their clean sheet in a 3-0 win.
The loss for Hawkesbury was their first in seven weeks, while for Hurstville they remained top of the league and grabbed their fourth clean sheet of the season.
Hawkesbury will hope to bounce back when they host Fraser Park FC next week, while Hurstville will hope to win a sixth-straight match when they travel to face Parramatta FC in a mid-week Round Eight catch-up match before they host Bankstown United FC in Round 11.
Hawkesbury City FC 0
Hurstville Zagreb FC 3 (Daniel Maras 16’; Nikola Todoroski 38’; Paul Gagro 41’)
Prospect United SC 4-0 Granville Rage
Prospect United SC picked up their equal-biggest win of the season after they took out a 4-0 home win over Granville Rage in the western Sydney derby.
Prospect had three good chances early and took a 1-0 lead in the 40th minute through Dimos Vlachos, who shot from just outside the box and found the bottom corner for the hosts to have a 1-0 half-time.
Prospect doubled their lead in the 53rd minute when Anthony Idehen combined well with Praneet Singh on the edge of the box, where the latter scored to give Prospect a 2-0 lead.
Idehen grabbed a goal himself in the 66th minute when he made a run in behind and finished well to give Prospect a 3-0 lead.
Vlachos completed his double and sealed a 4-0 Prospect win in the first minute of stoppage-time when he finished first time off a Jacob Micallef pass to round out the Prospect victory.
The win for Prospect was their third from their past four matches as they continued to fire, while the loss for Granville ended a run of back-to-back wins.
Prospect will hope to continue to showcase their good form when they travel to face Parramatta FC in another western Sydney derby, while Granville will hope to respond when they host Sydney University SFC.
Prospect United SC 4 (Dimos Vlachos 40, 90+1’; Praneet Singh 53’; Anthony Idehen 66’)
Granville Rage 0
Saturday, 12th April 2025
Parramatta FC 1-1 South Coast Flame FC
A seesaw of a match saw the spoils shared between Parramatta FC and South Coast Flame FC in a 1-1 draw.
The Flame created chances early through Jyden Harb and Daniel Merola, but neither were able to find the target.
Parramatta weathered the early Flame storm and had a chance when Navid Alizada and Marco Sama linked up, with the latter’s shot claimed by Flame goalkeeper Nenad Vekic.
The Flame had their best chance of the half in the 28th minute when Will Provino fired a shot from a tight angle but could not find the target.
Jordan Gomez had the last shot of the half for Parramatta, but his effort was saved well from just inside the box by Vekic.
Into the second half, Harb forced a save from Parramatta before Eagles’ substitute Jordan Hassiem found an effort on target.
Parramatta’s Travis Oughtred stopped a big chance for Harb and in an attacking period of the match Parramatta’s Hassiem had an effort go just wide at the other end a minute later.
Parramatta broke the deadlock in the 71st minute when the Flame failed to clear their lines, with the ball falling to Jordan Parfait, who buried his effort for a 1-0 Eagles lead.
Less than ten minutes later, the Flame found themselves level when Harb stepped up from a free-kick and found the back of the net direct from it with a strong strike to level the contest at 1-1.
In the final minutes of the match, the Flame’s Takayuki Kayano got a head on the ball from a corner but was denied by a strong save from Parramatta on the goal-line to save a point for his side.
The draw for Parramatta ended their five-match winning streak but they went a sixth-straight match unbeaten, while for the Flame it was their third draw of the season.
Parramatta will hope to continue to fire when they host the top-of-the-table Hurstville Zagreb FC mid-week in a Round Eight catch-up match before they host Prospect United SC in a western Sydney derby, while the Flame will hunt down a win when they host Camden Tigers FC.
The Eagles also advanced to the next round of the Australia Cup mid-week after they defeated League One Men’s side Hakoah Sydney City East FC 4-2 after extra-time, with goals to Navid Alizada, Noorullah Afzaly, Travis Oughtred and Christopher Arditti bringing them the win.
South Coast, meanwhile, fell in the Australia Cup mid-week, falling to League One Men’s side Macarthur Rams FC 3-1 in the fourth round despite a late goal for Chisholm Brown.
Parramatta FC 1 (Jordan Parfait 71’)
South Coast Flame FC 1 (Jyden Harb 81’)
Dunbar Rovers FC 0-0 Sydney University SFC
A contest which saw both teams receive a red card also saw Dunbar Rovers FC and Sydney University SFC unable to be separated in a tight 0-0 draw.
The hosts remained resolute in their defensive efforts throughout the match but were unable to make the most of the chances they created in the match with their six shots on target and seven off target.
University’s big threats in the match came from corners but the Dunbar players did what they had to and dealt with those corner situations.
Dunbar had a big chance to grab all three points in the match late when Zachary Marinos found himself with an open goal off a cross, but he was unable to convert under pressure from University goalkeeper, Jasper Sarkies.
The red cards came out late when University coach Christopher Williams was sent off in the 85th minute, before Julian Dal Bianco was shown red for Dunbar in the third minute of stoppage time for repeated fouls.
In the end, neither team was able to take an advantage in the match with the game ending in a 0-0 draw.
The draw for Dunbar was their second in a row as they moved to four matches without a win, while for University they grabbed their second point of the season and their first since Round Six.
Dunbar will hope to find their attacking edge when they travel to face Inner West Hawks FC in Round 11, while University first have a Round Eight catch-up match away to Nepean FC on Tuesday, April 15th before they host Central Coast United FC in the next round.
University also fell in the Australia Cup fourth round mid-week after a 4-2 extra-time away loss to Illawarra Premier League side Wollongong Olympic FC, despite a goal each from Stefan Visscher and Isaac Folkes.
Dunbar Rovers FC 0 (Julian Dal Bianco 90+3’ red card)
Sydney University SFC 0
Fraser Park FC 2-1 Gladesville Ryde Magic
Fraser Park FC won a third-straight league match and a third-straight head-to-head match against Gladesville Ryde Magic after they held on late for a 2-1 home win.
Both teams traded early blows with shots in the opening quarter of the match, but it was Fraser Park who took the lead in the 21st minute when collected the ball on the edge of the box and turned his defender before he scored to give the hosts a 1-0 lead.
The two teams continued to create but in the first minute of stoppage time, a corner delivered into the box by Fraser Park saw the ball fall to Shu Torihara in the six-yard-box; he volleyed the ball home from close range to give the hosts a 2-0 half-time lead.
Gladesville fired up and created nine shots to five in the second half in their pursuit of getting back into the match, with both sides putting in strong tackles.
The Magic were rewarded for their energy in the 71st minute when they were awarded a penalty which was put away by Bonmyeong Koo to the left of Fraser Park goalkeeper Amaro Ferreira to give the Magic hope at 2-1 down.
The visitors pushed for an equaliser in the final twenty minutes but could not find another goal as Fraser Park held on for a big 2-1 win.
The win for Fraser Park was their third in a row as they continued their resurgence up the ladder, while the loss for the Magic was their third in a row.
Fraser Park will hope to win a fourth-straight match when they travel to face Hawkesbury City FC in Round 11, while the Magic will hope to grab a win when they return after their bye.
Fraser Park FC 2 (Francis Mcalpine 21’; Shu Torihara 45+1’)
Gladesville Ryde Magic 1 (Bonmyeong Koo 71’ pen)
Nepean FC had a bye in Round 10 but fell the Australia Cup mid-week in their Round Four match-up against NPL side APIA Leichardt FC, losing 10-0.
By Football NSW League Two Men’s Reporter, Dylan Costa
