Match of the Round
Southern & Ettalong 2 – 1 Terrigal
Southern put an end to their recent slump of performances, coming from behind with just 10 men to claim a crucial three points which saw the Lions overtake the O’lads on the ladder to sit in second place.
Terrigal entered the contest looking to make it a sixth straight win after a slow start to their season whilst SEUFC over the past few rounds have dropped points, falling down the ladder after a strong start to the year.
As expected, the game started at a frenetic pace and was a contrast of styles as Terrigal set up a defensive shape and looked to counter whilst SEUFC continued their attacking brand of football. Both sides traded attacking raids and it appeared that both teams were looking at taking an early goal advantage.
Terrigal started the game well with their game plan working to a tee. Terrigal went 1-0 up after a swift counterattack saw Kassidy Lalor put threw on goal only to be brought down by the opposition as the away side were awarded a penalty. Captain Jai McNamara stepped up for the O’lads to calmly convert and give his side the lead.
SEUFC looked to square the ledger with chances in the 7th minute to Keith Gumbs flashing a ball past the near post and Jacob Lepre hitting the crossbar and fizzing a power shot just wide in the 18th & 29th minutes.
The game took a major twist when in the 39th minute when Terrigal managed to get Stu Adams through on goal who was brought down by the opposition keeper again as Alex Wardle was shown his second yellow and Terrigal were awarded another penalty.
This time, Jai’s penalty was saved by the back-up keeper Lucas Fleming to keep the score at 1-0 which would prove to be a major turning point in the game.
The 10-man Lions outfit continued to adopt their attacking style of football and were rewarded in the 45th minute when Matt Caisley latched on to a Todd Balneaves long throw placing his shot into the side netting and squaring it up at 1-1 heading to the sheds at half time.
Despite being a man down it was SEUFC that took the game to Terrigal in multiple attacking raids and pressure in the 50th minute SEUFC Matt Caisley fired his shot over the bar from 5 yards out.
In the 61st minute SEUFC Charlie Polson picked the ball up outside the 18-yard box from a corner and skipped past 3 Terrigal defenders before firing his shot into the back of the net giving the home team a 2-1 lead.
Both teams’ defensive lines held strong, Terrigal’s best opportunity came in the 80th minute when a Stuart Adam cross found Tahj Werner at the far post whose header was goal bound only to see SEUFC Captain Todd Balneaves with a diving header to divert the ball over the bar to deny Terrigal sharing the points.
“Second half, we were really poor. The extra man didn’t seem to make any difference as we struggled to deal with the physical aspect of the match. The pitch, which is probably the worst field we’ve played on all season, meant no real football could be played and the game became all about the physical battle,” ushered Pete Edwards.
Pete also mentioned, “I’m really disappointed with the result as it was a big game away from home, against ten men that three points were definitely there for the taking. Massive credit to Southern who worked so hard with the player down and ultimately deserved the win.”
“Congratulations to Peter and his team on a sound performance on a difficult playing surface. They have had a good run of solid results over the past month and have shown that they should be part of the final’s series come September,” voiced Dale Eggleton.
“To my lads, I’m so very proud of the character shown today. It is no secret that the past months has seen a number of 50/50 decisions not go our way. Today especially in the second half we channeled a month of some frustrating decisions into focusing on what we can control and play Football to the best of our ability. Today our 10 players went the full 90 minutes opting not to use our bench and freshen up a few players carrying some minor knocks and proving that our fitness levels are where we want to be at this stage of the year.”
Match Official – Miles Allen-Scott
Wyoming 0 – 0 Avoca
Avoca made the short trip to Alan Davidson Oval this past Sunday to meet the relegation-battling Wyoming side who looked to pick up crucial club championship points in front of a home crowd at ‘The Den’.
It was an extremely tough match, as expected between these two clubs that had hoped for better things this season.
The contest was a very even game again as both teams had glimpses where they dominated the contest but couldn’t trouble the opposition with much significance as a few chances were created.
Avoca had several half chances but failed to really trouble the Wyoming GK and backline for the entire 90 minutes.
Wyoming had the best two chances of the game, including a one-on-one, but could not capitalise as they had to settle for their third draw of the season, climbing their way out of the bottom of the MPL ladder with a point that could be crucial heading into next week’s massive fixture against Woy Woy.
“All in all, a pretty dour match,” voiced Shark’s Neal Hide. “Credit to Wyoming who will obviously fight in every match to avoid relegation and they still try to play out from the back, instead of just hitting long balls, huge kudos to Coach Macca for wanting to play that way.”
Ian McAndrew also commented post-match, “We had two really good chances we couldn’t capitalise on which hurts cause at the back of the game, we were really pushing and going at Avoca.”
Match Official – Luke Dunkerley
The Entrance 0 – 6 Killarney
After losing their first league game in over two years the previous week, Killarney bounced back in a dominating fashion over their local rivals the Entrance in round 14.
Due to suspension, injuries and holidays, Chris Ackerley gave starting debuts to three first graders this past Sunday with another debutant coming on as a substitute.
The opening half saw the home side struggle to get themselves in the game as the pace at which the opposition played at was troubling the young Entrance side which lead to the Reddies trailing 3-0 at the half-time break.
Killarney’s first goal of the contest came after they were awarded a penalty as the clinical and experienced Tim Knights calmly converted from the spot.
Killarney then doubled their lead through a Nic Batarseh rocket from outside the 18-yard box which riffled into the top corner leaving the opposition goalie with zero chance of saving.
The final goal of the first half came when the two goal scorers linked up and Nic Batarseh played a tremendous through ball through to Tim Knight who finished well past the keeper to extend Killarney’s lead even further.
The second half of action saw much of the same as Killarney continued to dominate proceedings. Tim Knight got his hat-trick after he was brought down in the box and once again scored from the penalty spot to make it 4-0.
Substitute Andy Klijn made his return to the pitch after a month away due to injury and marked his comeback with a goal just two minutes after being on the field, scoring from an acute angle to give the league leaders a 5-0 lead.
The sixth and final goal of the evening came from Klijn once again who found himself on the end of a well weighted through ball as he finished well into the back of the net. Klijn had a golden opportunity to secure a hat-trick to his name also when the Terriers were awarded a third penalty.
However, Jaleel Coombe saved the tamed effort from Klijn to deny the returning attacker his hattrick as Killarney settled for an impressive 6-0 win.
Chris Ackerley was ecstatic claiming a win in all three grades from their local rivals. “Happy for the win in all three grades with 19 players not available through various reasons. Onto next week against Kanwal with a selection headache as nearly all players will be available.”
Match Official – Hugo Fonseca
East Gosford 3 – 3 Berkeley Vale
With both sides stepping onto the pitch this weekend for their first game in three weeks, East Gosford were eager to get back on the park as their opponents Berkeley Vale looked to keep their spot inside the top four.
Knowing how strong the opposition is, Ricky Sansom of East Gosford was hoping the momentum from their win against Southern & Ettalong would carry into this game, but East Gosford’s start didn’t go as planned.
From kick off the Rams looked disjointed and struggled to get control of the ball, 21 minutes in a scramble on the edge of the box resulted in a penalty for the away side after a handball was given by the official.
Paul McGinley stepped up for his side and converted to give the Wombats a 1-0 lead, Berkeley Vale then doubled their lead just five minutes later after a hospital back pass from a Rams defender to his keeper resulted in the goalie trying to clear the ball as the attempted clearance hit a Berkeley player and rebounded back into the goal for the Wombats to take a 2-0 lead after 15 minutes.
For the rest of the half, East Gosford were under pressure in periods until they began to settle down and take some control back. This resulted in a freekick being floated into the back post and David McKellar heading home to take his side into the sheds at halftime 2-1 down.
After some soul searching at half time, East Gosford came out a different team and put Berkeley under pressure with a raised energy level and rediscovered self-belief.
The constant pressure from Oliver Vanderslot on the centre-back saw the defender fumble the ball as Oliver went one on one with the keeper and calmly slotted home to make it 2-2.
East Gosford continued the high intensity and threatened frequently when again a free kick was floated into the box and Dave McKellar was dragged down resulting in a penalty which Oliver Vanderslot slotted home for his second of the day to take the score to 3-2.
From that point on East Gosford looked like either increasing or holding their lead as they maintained a high-speed level and looked like getting another win over a top four side.
However, a long ball into their box in the last five minutes which appeared to be of no real danger was headed back to the keeper a little too soft and the Berkeley striker managed to get a foot to the ball and slot past the Rams keeper, securing a vital point for his side in a 3-3 draw.
“Disappointing end but overall, a pleasing result from 2-0 down. we showed true spirit and again exactly what we are capable of,” voiced Ram’s Ricky Sansom.
“A good game by both teams,” commented Mark Pratt post-game.
Match Official – Russell Kirkland
Woy Woy 3 – 4 Kanwal
Windy conditions, poor playing surface and a determined Woy Woy side made it a difficult day for Kanwal who scrapped to a 4-3 win to reclaim a spot inside the top four.
It didn’t help that Kanwal were their own worst enemy as the Bulls started the game well but conceded a penalty in the 14th minute that was converted by the opposition to give Woy Woy an early 1-0 in front of a home crowd.
Not to be deterred, Kanwal would draw level a few minutes later with a through ball from Jason Cozens seeing Logan Moore one on one with the Woy Woy keeper and he would make no mistake with an unstoppable shot.
Kanwal started to get on top and they were rewarded in the 25th minute with a quick free kick finding Bayley Appo who controlled the ball nicely with his shot finding the bottom corner to give Kanwal a 2-1 lead.
Kanwal would create a number of chances over the next 10 minutes but poor finishing or determined defence would deny Kanwal each time. It would be another Kanwal error that would bring Woy Woy back into the game.
Kanwal goalkeeper Kurtis Mahon came out of his box to meet a long ball with his header hitting a Woy Woy player and the ball falling nicely for a shot into an open goal to make the game all level at 2-2 where the score remained at the half time break.
Kanwal would come out the stronger team in the second period but again were unable to convert their chances. However, It would be a 2-minute period that would ultimately see Kanwal gain the advantage.
Firstly, Rory Rizzi would dribble through a few players into the box only to be brought down. Up stepped Logan Moore who made no mistake from the penalty spot. Two minutes later a Jason Cozens shot from the edge of the box gave Kanwal a 4-2 lead.
Not to be deterred a Woy Woy long throw in the 79th minute came off a Kanwal defender into his own net to give Woy Woy a glimmer of hope. For the third week in a row, it would be a nervy end to the game for Kanwal, but for the third week in a row, Kanwal were able to hold the opposition out and walk away with a hard-earned 4-3 result.
Ryan Walker was relieved after the game. “It is a difficult place to come and play and I’m happy to walk away with the result. Some tough games coming up that we need to win to make the 4, so we really need to minimise our errors and improve our conversion rate, but the effort of the players over the last few weeks has been pleasing”.
Match Official – Mark Roberts
Golden Boot Standings –
| 11 | Tim Knight (Killarney), Logan Moore (Kanwal) |
| 9 | Jacob Lepre (Southern), Andy Klijn (Killarney) |
| 8 | Kane Woolston (Berkeley Vale) |
| 7 | Keith Gumbs (Southern), Cooper Ebrington (Avoca) |
| 6 | Charlie Entwistle (East Gosford), Ben Flakus (Terrigal), Nathan Baker (Woy Woy) |
Points Table –
Club Championship –
Division 1
Round 14 Results –
Points Table –
Club Championship –
