Round 13 Review – League One Men’s
Three of the top four sides dropped points in Round 13 of the FNSW League One Men’s competition, which provided a weekend full of surprises.
Northern Tigers held their nerve to solidify their position in second. While elsewhere, Inter Lions secured their first win of the season and Macarthur Rams shocked the competition leaders.
Match of the Round: Northern Tigers 1-0 Bulls FC Academy
An impressive rearguard performance saw Northern Tigers take out the match of the round over Bulls FC Academy, courtesy of another Jesse Spang goal.
Proving pivotal in the big moment, Spang scored the all-important goal early in the second half, with Bulls FC Academy made to rue missing multiple chances throughout.
After withstanding some early pressure from set-pieces, Bulls FC Academy were the first side to create a notable chance. Luke Zuvela flashed a shot across the face of goal inside five minutes.
The academy side was definitely looking the more dangerous in the opening stages, with another good chance following before the 10th minute. Zane Helweh teed up Justin Cardozo with a cross from the left, with the striker drawing a sharp reaction stop from the keeper.
Northern Tigers responded with a chance of their own soon after, a quick transition seeing Jesse Spang release Ally Brown beyond the defence, with Joshua Lakis in the Bulls goal called into action.
Bulls FC Academy also hit the left post through Michael Pratezina in an action-packed opening 25 minutes full of chances, particularly for the visitors. Opportunities continued to come throughout the remainder of the first half for the visitors, but they couldn’t break through.
The game’s decisive moment came early in the second half, potentially against the run of play. A through ball releasing Kai Denton in behind was snuffed out, with the ball then falling for Jesse Spang, who finished into an open net.
A big chance for Bulls to respond came soon after from a blistering Oliver Randazzo shot in the 58th minute, which just missed the left post.
Proceedings returned to the mean after the goal, with the academy side looking for a way to unlock the defence. Perhaps the closest they came in the final 15 minutes came from a set-piece, with Justin Cardozo heading wide before the 80th minute.
Northern Tigers held out for three points, which takes them to within two points of Blacktown Spartans above them. While there are definitely positives for Bulls FC Academy approaching the halfway point of the season.
Northern Tigers 1 (Spang 50’)
Bulls FC Academy 0
Elsewhere
Blacktown Spartans 0-1 Macarthur Rams
Macarthur Rams secured the best win of their season to date, prevailing over competition leaders Blacktown Spartans by a single-goal margin on Friday night.
A high-tempo contest, with neither side given the opportunity for time on the ball, the visitors perhaps edged the game in terms of chances created in the first half, though it was tight.
Looking like it could be decided by a single goal, it proved to be the case, with Rams scoring the decisive goal before the hour mark. Stefano Di Marino picked up the ball on halfway before threading it through to Chan Yelchan, who got a toe on it to guide it past Anthony Bouzanis in the Spartans goal.
Both sides created chances beyond that but were unable to find the back of the net. Just the second time this season Blacktown Spartans have failed to win, while Macarthur Rams continue to lead the mid-table pack in fifth position.
Blacktown Spartans 0
Macarthur Rams 1 (Yelchan 56’)
Bankstown City 0-3 Inter Lions
Worth the wait! Inter Lions picked up a shock three-goal win over heavily favoured Bankstown City at Jensen Park.
Two major things led to this result from an Inter Lions perspective. The first being an improved defensive performance, in which they frustrated their fancied hosts, who had an off day in front of goal. The second being the return of players from injury, with the likes of Owen Duke providing a spark off the bench.
They took the lead in the first half through James Khoury in the 36th minute before he doubled his tally in the 70th minute, with Owen Duke scoring the third and final goal to complete the memorable win.
Bankstown City had their best period of the game in the opening half hour, though in truth, they were not good enough on the night.
Bankstown City 0
Inter Lions 3 (Khoury 36’, 70’, Duke 76’)
Prospect United 2-2 Rydalmere Lions
In the third of our games referenced in the introduction, Rydalmere Lions came from a goal deficit at half-time to take a point from their clash with Prospect United.
A see-sawing fixture throughout, the visitors took an early lead inside ten minutes through Isaac Cunningham, who cut inside from the left before his strike from outside the area snuck in at the near post.
However, a good five-minute period after the quarter hour saw the game turn on its head. Michael Singh scored the equaliser after a fifteen-pass move where Leo Hirese provided the assist, before Singh added an assist to his name with a corner which was headed home by Gabriel Vulcik.
That lead lasted until early in the second half, with chances to extend it prior. Jackson Bandiera scored an equaliser in the 50th minute. Prospect had to defend well for a point at the end of the ninety.
Prospect United 2 (Singh 18’, Vulcik 20’)
Rydalmere Lions 2 (Cunningham 9’, Bandiera 50’)
Hills United 2-1 Western City Rangers
Hills United continued their mid-season revival, securing their second straight win to further Western City Rangers’ woes.
A win which does keep them in touch with the top four, the club welcomed back captain Glen Kelshaw, who reached his 250-game milestone with an appearance coming back from injury.
Back to the game, however, and the hosts were pleased with the performance throughout. They opened their account early through Zen Gigliotti, who scored on the volley from outside the box. A lead which they held for most of the game before Gigliotti secured the second of his brace in the 85th minute, once again from outside the box.
Western City Rangers rallied late to grab a goal back through Rocco Pelle, but it wasn’t enough as they fell to their ninth defeat of the season.
Hills United 2 (Gigliotti 9’, 85’)
Western City Rangers 1 (Pelle 92’)
Hurstville Zagreb 1-2 Central Coast Mariners
Central Coast Mariners bounced back from their F3 derby defeat last weekend with a 2-1 win over Hurstville Zagreb in Sydney’s south.
As has been the case for a while now, Hurstville Zagreb just haven’t been able to turn good performances into results. The hosts missed three good chances before the break in an otherwise even first half. The hosts took a goal lead early in the second half through Alessandro Lacalandra, who tapped home after a Michael Vakis cross couldn’t be handled.
To their credit, however, the young Mariners responded well and took the three points. Faraz Rahimi scored their equaliser after a nice combination play in the 52nd minute before Ahmad Elhelou scored the eventual winner off the bench with a minute of regulation remaining. The second half of this one was an end-to-end affair.
Hurstville Zagreb 1 (Lacalandra 47’)
Central Coast Mariners 2 (Rahimi 52’, Elhelou 89’)
Hakoah FC 2-5 Canterbury Bankstown
Canterbury Bankstown bounced back in the best possible way with a 5-2 victory over Hakoah FC.
Crucial to this win was the hosts’ start to each half, taking the game beyond the hosts before the hour mark. They were dominant throughout, with Patrick Savor opening their account from a free kick eleven minutes in, before Gino Cerasoli doubled their lead before the quarter hour after exchanging passes with Fikret Berisha.
Similar circumstances led to the Berries taking a four-goal lead before the hour, with William Kounnas adding a quickfire brace, which has taken his season tally to nine goals. The visitors rallied soon after to score two goals of their own through Nicholas Tooley and Phillip Lapanaitis, but the result was put to bed with a sealer with ten minutes to go from Nicholas Azzi. Canterbury Bankstown moved into 10th position on the back of this result.
Hakoah FC 2 (Tooley 63’, Lapanaitis 66’)
Canterbury Bankstown 5 (Savor 11’, Cerasoli 15’, Kounnas 58’, 60’, Azzi 82’)
Dulwich Hill 1-1 Newcastle Jets
Finally, we were on hand to see Dulwich Hill and Newcastle Jets play out an entertaining draw at Arlington Oval on Saturday evening.
A game which showcased how much the hosts, in particular, have improved across the last couple of months, they were unlucky not to break the deadlock in the first half, creating most of the chances before the break. Marcus Lal, in particular, did a good job leading the line.
However, as is the case in football, if you don’t take your chances, you are made to pay, and Newcastle Jets took the lead early in the second half through perhaps their best outfielder, Dallo Sandy, with a near-post finish in the 48th minute.
The pressure at the other end eventually told, with Liam Spiropoulos scoring from a free-kick around the wall with just over ten minutes to go. Both keepers, Andrew Di Blasio and Cayden Loach, had good games at either end to see the points shared.
Dulwich Hill 1 (Spiropoulos 79’)
Newcastle Jets 1 (Sandy 48’)
By Justin Smith
