Round 20 Review – League Two Men’s
Round 20 of the 2025 Football NSW League Two Men’s season marked the two-third point of the season, with a runaway leader extending their advantage and the chasing pack for 2nd as close as ever in their fight.
The Match of the Round this week saw Bankstown United FC put themselves back in the mix with a big home win over Parramatta FC.
Saturday, 21st June 2025
Match of the Round: Bankstown United FC 2-0 Parramatta FC
Bankstown United FC won their first match in five after a 2-0 home win over Parramatta FC in the match of the round, with the Eagles moving to five matches without a win.
The hosts started the stronger of the two sides in the first half but were dealt an early blow, Steven Wright substituted for Tyron Geany in the 15th minute.
Bankstown made the most of their pressure in the first half, however, when Harry Stavris continued his strong form in front of goal as of late, scoring his fourth goal of the season to give the hosts a 1-0 lead.
Following a first half where Bankstown had eight shots to Parramatta’s three, they took their 1-0 lead into half-time.
After the break, Bankstown quickly doubled their lead, Stavris scoring a double for the second time in three weeks to give the hosts a 2-0 lead in the 48th minute.
Following that, Parramatta stepped up in their search for a way back into the match.
They fired ten shots on target in the second half, testing Bankstown goalkeeper Sebastian La Luz, but were unable to find a way back into the contest.
Bankstown had chances, themselves, but were not able to add to their two-goal lead.
In the end, Bankstown proved too strong for Parramatta, running out 2-0 winners at home to complete the league double.
The win for Bankstown saw them rise up the ladder one spot from 9th into 8th, while the loss for Parramatta saw them go five matches without a win as they fell from 5th down to 6th.
Bankstown will hope to build on this win when they travel to take on 11th-placed Gladesville Ryde Magic next week, while Parramatta will hope to end their winless streak when they host 10th-placed Nepean FC.
Bankstown United FC 2 (Harry Stavris 35’, 48’)
Parramatta FC 0
Granville Rage 3-1 Camden Tigers FCC
Granville Rage scored three goals in the span of 10 minutes to pick up a crucial 3-1 comeback home win over Camden Tigers FC to keep them in touch with the top sides ahead of the final third of the season.
Both sides had a few chances in the first half without testing each respective goalkeeper, with the match goalless at the break.
After the break, in the 51st minute, Camden struck first through Avisai Vunisasaro, who found the back of the net for his second goal in as many weeks to give the Tigers a 1-0 lead.
Granville stayed in the contest and found the equaliser in the 60th minute through Ante Tomic, who found the back of the net to the delight of the home side.
Seven minutes later, Timothy Borg-Williams put Granville ahead, scoring his 11th goal of the season to put the Rage in a commanding position.
Granville added a third goal in the 70th minute to round out a strong 10-minute period for them, Tomic completing his double from the penalty spot to give the Rage a 3-1 lead.
The Tigers were reduced to ten men late, Bailey Simpson shown a red card in the contest.
The win for Granville saw them go five matches unbeaten as they rose one spot from 6th into 5th on the ladder, while the loss for Camden saw them go eleven matches without a win as they stayed in 14th, just one point ahead of last-placed Sydney University SFC.
The Rage will hope to continue their charge towards the top two when they host 12th-placed Inner West Hawks FC next week, while Camden will hope to avoid dropping to last place when they host the side just below them on the ladder, Sydney University SFC for their Old Boys Round.
Granville Rage 3 (Ante Tomic 60’, 70’ pen; Timothy Borg-Williams 67’)
Camden Tigers FC 1 (Avisai Vunisasaro 51’; Bailey Simpson 90’ red card)
Sydney University SFC 2-0 Hawkesbury City FC
Sydney University SFC won a second match in the space of three weeks as they continued to turn their season around in a big 2-0 home win over a Hawkesbury City FC side who lost their first match in seven.
The match was even until a penalty was given to University in the 31st minute following a foul in the box from Hawkesbury on a University player; Jethro Thornton stepped up and slotted the spot kick home to give the students a 1-0 lead at half-time.
Following the break, there were chances at both ends, with Hawkesbury’s Harry Drew and Vincent Dermilio both hitting the woodwork, while Jude Bramhall also headed a cross onto the post for the visitors.
University sealed the match in the 86th minute when a cross delivered in from the left was met with the head of substitute Stefan Visscher, who had header saved from six yards but only into the path of Samuel Paslis, who scored off the bench to give the students a 2-0 lead.
In a match which saw Corey Twinning make his first-grade debut and Kota Arakawa keep his first clean sheet of the season in goal, University picked up a big 2-0 win over the Hawks.
The win for the students was their second of the season as they moved to within one point of 14th-placed Camden Tigers FC, while the loss for the Hawks snapped their six-match unbeaten run as they fell from 3rd to 4th on the ladder.
University will hope to continue their positive momentum when they travel to face Camden Tigers FC in a big battle for position in Round 21, while Hawkesbury will hope to bounce back when they host 2nd-placed South Coast Flame FC in a crucial clash.
Sydney University SFC 2 (Jethro Thornton 31’ pen; Samuel Paslis 86’)
Hawkesbury City FC 0
Hurstville Zagreb FC 3-0 Nepean FC
Hurstville Zagreb FC moved one step closer to the league title and promotion after a strong 3-0 home win over Nepean FC, a win which saw them win a seventh-straight match as well as complete the league double over Nepean.
Hurstville controlled the ball early but were not able to break down a resolute Nepean defence, before the visitors had a period of good possession, themselves.
The hosts regained possession in the contest and were rewarded in the 39th minute following a team goal.
Daniel Maras found Declan Sheldon, who in turn switched the ball to Michael Neill for Paul Gagro; he cut the ball back to Nikola Todoroski, who found the back of the net with a composed finish for the fourth time in the past six matches to give Hurstville a 1-0 lead.
Jesse Gagro had a chance to double the hosts lead before half-time when he looked to chip Nepean goalkeeper Luke Cotten, but Cotten saved well, Hurstville 1-0 up at half-time.
After the interval, Nepean came out strongly with intensity, but Hurstville defended well to see out that tough period.
Hurstville created chances late and sealed the match in the 90th minute when substitute Jacob Botic and Jonathan Maras combined down the flank; the ball fell to Todoroski, who played a one-two pass with Neill before he slotted the ball home to secure the three points for the hosts.
Hurstville were not done yet, however, and added a third goal straight from kick-off after they stole the ball and broke through Todoroski; he cut the ball back to Jonathan Maras, who scored in the second minute of stoppage time to give Hurstville a 3-0 win over Nepean.
The win for Hurstville saw them extend their advantage atop the league to 14 points over 2nd-placed South Coast Flame FC, who have a match in hand, while the loss for Nepean was their third in a row as they stayed in 10th.
Hurstville will hope to continue their strong charge towards the league title when they host 3rd-placed Prospect United SC next week, while Nepean will hope to snap their losing streak when they travel to take on 6th-placed Parramatta FC in a western Sydney derby.
Hurstville Zagreb FC 3 (Nikola Todoroski 39’, 90’; Jonathan Maras 90+2’)
Nepean FC 0
Inner West Hawks FC 2-3 Central Coast United FC
Central Coast United FC came from behind and held on with ten men late to overcome Inner West Hawks FC away in a big 3-2 win to snap their six-match winless run.
Inner West had the better of possession and chances in the first half but were not able to find the back of the net early.
The Hawks took a 1-0 lead in the 36th minute when a long ball from Emmanuel Tzanakes found Peter Yannopoulos, who cut the ball back inside the box for Peter Phillips to score for the hosts, the Hawks 1-0 up at half-time.
After the break, the Hawks pushed for a second goal but had three chances to Phillips, set up by Yannopoulos, but Central Coast goalkeeper Zayd Husain stopped each of those attempts.
Lawrence Claxton also had a big chance off a Christian Cirino cross but was also unable to find the back of the net.
Central Coast levelled the contest in the 62nd minute through Harry McCalmont, who was played in behind by Alexander Arbelo and found the back of the net with a first-time volley to restore parity.
In the 71st minute, Central Coast took the lead for the first time in the match through Jay Goodwin, who finished a one-on-one chance, the ball going in off the underside of the crossbar, as he scored for a third-straight week for the Pirates.
Less than two minutes later, Goodwin completed his double with an effort from range into the corner of the goal to put Central Coast in a commanding position at 3-1 up.
Goodwin almost had a hat-trick in the match following a volley from distance but was denied by Hawks’ goalkeeper, Gene Marantos, who saved well.
Ben Flakus almost scored for the Pirates, too, but saw his effort cleared off the line, before substitute Jesse Roder also almost hit the scoresheet but similarly was denied by Marantos.
In the 85th minute, the Hawks gave themselves a late chance at a comeback when 20-year-old Milo Haas scored his first goal for the Hawks with a finish from inside the box.
Central Coast was reduced to ten men in the 86th minute when substitute Noah Block received a red card following contact with the Hawks’ Marantos.
Inner West were unable to find a late equaliser, however, as Central Coast held on for a big 3-2 away win.
The loss for the Hawks saw them lose back-to-back matches as they stayed in 12th, while the win for the Pirates saw them break their six-match winless run as they stayed in 13th but moved to within five points of the Hawks on the ladder.
Inner West will hope to respond when they travel to face 5th-placed Granville Rage next week, while Central Coast will look to build on this result when they host 7th-placed Dunbar Rovers FC.
Inner West Hawks FC 2 (Peter Phillips 36’; Milo Haas 85’)
Central Coast United FC 3 (Harry McCalmont 62’; Jay Goodwin 71’, 73’; Noah Block 86’ red card)
Dunbar Rovers FC 2-1 Gladesville Ryde Magic
Dunbar Rovers FC came from behind, playing with ten men for 73 minutes, to secure a big 2-1 home win over Gladesville Ryde Magic, a win which pushed Dunbar back into the top half of the ladder.
Dunbar were reduced to ten men in the 17th minute when Gianni Costantino was sent off, meaning Dunbar were on the back foot early.
Gladesville made the most of their advantage in the 18th minute from a free kick, Sidhya Malhotra scoring to give the Magic a 1-0 lead.
The hosts struck back, however, in the 25th minute when 18-year-old Lucas Burbage scored to level the contest at 1-1.
In the 40th minute, ten-man Dunbar took the lead following good build-up play from Gaul Gautier, who set up Henry Eastwood to score to give Rovers the advantage at half-time.
In the second half, the Magic created many chances but were unable to get past the Dunbar defence, the hosts holding on for a big 2-1 comeback win.
The victory for Rovers saw them rise into the top half of the ladder from 8th into 7th, while the loss for the Magic saw them go five matches without a win as they stayed in 11th.
Dunbar will hope to take another big step up the ladder when they travel to face 13th-placed Central Coast United FC, while Gladesville will hope to end their winless streak when they host 8th-placed Bankstown United FC.
Dunbar Rovers FC 2 (Lucas Burbage 25’; Henry Eastwood 40’; Gianni Costantino 17’ red card)
Gladesville Ryde Magic 1 (Sidhya Malhotra 18’)
Fraser Park FC 0-3 Prospect United SC
Prospect United SC had a hat-trick hero to thank in their big 3-0 away win over Fraser Park FC, a result which was crucial for their promotion hopes this season.
Fraser Park created early chances through Harry Skotadis, who had his shot cleared off the line by Prospect’s Shaan Birring, before Matthew Lecce had a shot saved by Prospect goalkeeper Brenden Allen.
The visitors, however, had the perfect start to the match through Praneet Singh, Prospect’s leading goal scorer this season finding the back of the net direct off a free kick from 25 yards to give the visitors a 1-0 lead at half-time.
In the 53rd minute, Fraser Park’s Benjamin Astudillo received a second yellow card in the match, the hosts reduced to ten men.
Further in the second half, Singh continued his form for Prospect; he found the back of the net in the 70th minute following a series of defelections off a free kick for a 2-0 Prospect lead.
Singh completed his hat-trick in the 81st minute to the delight of the visitors following a Fraser Park turnover, his 12th goal of the season giving Prospect a 3-0 away win over Fraser Park.
The loss for Fraser Park saw them drop from 7th down to 9th on the ladder, while the win for Prospect saw them rise from 4th into 3rd, level on 35 points with 2nd-placed South Coast Flame FC.
Fraser Park will hope to bounce back after their Round 21 bye, while Prospect will hope to move into 2nd when they travel to face the league-leading Hurstville Zagreb FC.
Fraser Park FC 0 (Benjamin Astudillo 53’ red card)
Prospect United SC 3 (Praneet Singh 18’, 70’, 81’)
2nd-placed South Coast Flame FC had a bye in Round 20.
By Football NSW League Two Men’s Reporter, Dylan Costa
