Berkeley Vale 2 – 1 Woongarrah
Celebrating their 50th anniversary, Berkeley Vale Soccer Club have secured their first MPL First Grade Premiership after defeating Woongarrah 2-1 in an extremely entertaining, high-level contest worthy of headlining on the big stage.
From the early stages of the game, you could tell that this was a different Woongarrah side compared to the one who faced Berkeley Vale two weeks early and were defeated 7-0.
A more determined and energetic Woongarrah took the field for the Grand Final and almost reaped instant benefits when a wayward back pass from Shane Littlehales saw the lightning-quick Ridge Mapu chase down a ball and block a clearance from Berkeley keeper Steven Grimmitt.
With an open goal in his wake, Mapu’s effort was heading for the back of the net until a moment of brilliance saw Mitchell Landini head the ball to safety, saving a certain goal and keeping the score level.
Berkeley Vale looked to settle into their usual rhythm of possession football, using the pristine surface of Pluim Park to their advantage but were having little luck when going forward in the early stages of the contest.
A free-kick on the 10-minute mark saw set-piece specialist Jacob Melling stand over the ball as he looked to guide his effort up and over the wall into the top corner.
Melling’s effort looked to be heading in the goal. However, a tremendous save from Berkeley’s keeper Grimmitt denied Woongarrah.
As the game settled into a back-and-forth contest, both teams enjoyed some half chances on goal but struggled to find any clear-cut goal-scoring opportunities and when they did, both teams were met by top-class goalkeeping at either end.
The deadlock was eventually broken 35 minutes into the opening half when a Berkeley Vale corner was well-delivered into the box, finding the head of an unmarked Nicholas Trengrove who guided the ball into the back of the net, leaving the Woongarrah keeper no chance of saving as the Wombats took a crucial 1-0 lead.
Woongarrah looked for an instant reply as they pressed Berkeley Vale high in their own half, forcing multiple turnovers, but struggled to find the final pass to unlock the Wombat’s defence.
This high press left Woongarrah open to swift counterattacks as Berkeley progressed the ball forward with intent but multiple saves from Corey Hedges kept the game at 1-0 after the opening 45 minutes.
As the second period started, it was almost a dream start for the Wombats as a kick-off routine saw Conor Fitzpatrick open on the top of the 18-yard box as his half-volley heading into the top corner, but an acrobatic save from Hedges pushed the ball out for a corner.
As both teams searched for the next important goal, the start of the second stanza saw a cagey opening as neither team wanted to be the next to concede. Once again, Woongarrah had more luck going forward but lacked quality with their final pass which made things extremely difficult for their attackers.
A cheap turnover from Woongarrah’s Alex Suarez saw Ashton Hurley attack the left flank, floating a ball into the box for Fitzpatrick who met the cross first time to volley the ball into the back of the net, doubling Berkeley’s lead 18 minutes into the second half.
Woongarrah’s best chance to pull one back came on the 70-minute mark when a ball over the defence from AJ Henderson saw Jacob Melling on goal with only the keeper in his way. Melling’s powerful effort was met by an incredible save from Grimmitt who was not letting his clean sheet disappear easily.
With time slowly running out and needing to find two goals to bring the game back level, Woongarrah committed more players forward hoping that would increase their chances of finding a goal.
The defence of the Wombats remained solid, stopping multiple attacking raids from the opposition, and sending the ball forward when the opportunity arose to get their attackers on goal against a compromised Woongarrah defence.
Berkeley Vale had multiple chances to increase their lead even more, but Hedges was up to the task, saving multiple goal-bound efforts to give his side a chance to salvage anything from the game.
As injury time commenced, another dangerous ball forward found the head of Melling who expertly flicked the ball to an open Henderson who stuck the ball low and hard past an oncoming Grimmitt to give the Wildcats a late lifeline.
Nonetheless, it was too little too late for the League Champions as time ran out and Berkeley Vale were crowned the 2024 MPL First Grade Premiers for the first time in their history.
An extremely proud Mark Pratt said, “Another tougher game against Woongarrah as we expected, we caught them off guard in the semifinals but that was never going to happen in the GF, congratulations to Luke, his team and everyone involved at Woongarrah after promotion from Div 1 to the minor premiership is a great achievement.”
“To our boys in our club’s 50th anniversary, we got it done and finally broke the Berkeley Vale GF curse it was a great year with an incredible bunch of players, managers, coaches, and everyone involved in the club.
Pratt also added, “Finally to everyone who wished us well in the GF from the wider football community and the congratulations that we received not only for winning the championship but also for how we played throughout the year a big thank you from both myself and Gumps.”
Luke Rogers also commented after full-time, “Congratulations to Andre, Mark and their boys on Winning the Grand Final. To my boys, what a fantastic year. League champions and being a part of the GF. Unbelievable season for such a young club.”
Match Official – Anthony Kabbout
All Grand Final Results –
