Newcastle Croatia FC 6-6 Wallsend FC
Newcastle Croatia FC head coach Joshua Popescu says his side has plenty to work on defensively after a stunning 6-6 draw with Wallsend FC in the first leg of the promotion/relegation play-off series, a result that leaves everything to play for heading into next week's return leg.
It was one of the most entertaining games you're likely ever to see, with 12 goals shared across the 90 minutes and barely a moment to catch breath.
Croatia made the perfect start, going ahead inside six minutes when Jake McGuinness was played through one-on-one and finished coolly.
Wallsend hit back almost immediately, with Bailey Newton tapping home a rebound from a free kick in the 13th minute to level things at 1-1.
The Red Devils, determined to atone for last week's defeat against Croatia, then started to take control of the contest, with Bailey Ryan putting them 2-1 up in the 20th minute before Cody Halpin extended the lead to 3-1 just three minutes later.
Croatia responded almost instantly, with Yeuhei Sato curling one into the top corner in the 25th minute before completing his double just two minutes later to level things at 3-3.
The lead changed hands yet again, with Ryan grabbing his second in the 28th minute to restore Wallsend's advantage at 4-3, capping a remarkable opening half-hour that produced seven goals, five of them in an eight-minute span alone.
The chaos continued after the break.
Beau McDonald levelled for Croatia in the 49th minute, before Guilherme Evangelista Dos Santos fired the home side back in front in the 55th.
Wallsend hit back through Tyrell Paulson in the 61st to make it 5-5, and it looked as though Croatia had claimed the edge heading into the second leg when John Majurovski pounced on a goalkeeping error to make it 6-5 in the 76th minute.
But there was still one final twist to come, with Wallsend snatching a stoppage-time equaliser in the 92nd minute when a corner stumbled in off a Croatia defender, sending the game to a 6-6 draw and leaving both sets of players, and the crowd, in disbelief at what they had just witnessed.
Popescu was honest in his assessment of his side's defending, despite the result.
"We were poor defensively, if I'm honest. Silly errors, turning the ball over when we shouldn't have," Popescu said.
"The boys just weren't up for it today, and I could tell from the warm-up we were flat."
Despite the defensive errors, Popescu did point to his side's attacking quality as a positive to take from the contest.
"The positive is we know we can score goals; we were down 3-1 and came back to 4-3," Popescu said.
"Defensively we've got a lot of work to do, but credit to Wallsend, they were good and they finished their chances."
Looking ahead to the second leg, Popescu made clear the job is far from done.
"At the end of the day, we didn't lose; we get a second chance next week," Popescu said.
"It's going to be a dogfight, but Croatia are good in big games, and next week's a big game."
The result means leaves it all to play for, with both sides sharing 12 goals and neither able to find a decisive edge over 90 pulsating minutes.
Wallsend will take confidence from twice fighting back from behind and finding a stoppage-time leveller to keep the series alive heading into the second leg.
The two sides meet again next weekend in the second leg of the series, with a spot in the one-off promotion/relegation play-off final against the winner of New Lambton FC and Kahibah FC on the line.
Croatia will know a repeat of Saturday's defensive frailties could prove costly against a Wallsend side that has shown they can match them goal for goal.
All eyes will now be on both sides heading into next week's decider, with a spot in the promotion final still very much up for grabs.
New Lambton FC 1-2 Kahibah FC
Kahibah FC coach Blair Newham says the first part of the job is done after his side came from behind to defeat New Lambton FC 2-1 at Alder Park in the first leg of the promotion/relegation play-off series.
Despite the win, it wasn't made easy for Kahibah, with New Lambton fighting to the very end and just 20 minutes away from a win themselves.
New Lambton could not have dreamed of a better start, taking the lead in the ninth minute through a goal-of-the-season contender from Dylan Christofferson, who picked the ball up just past halfway and lobbed the Kahibah goalkeeper.
The strike stunned the visitors, who went on to dominate possession for large stretches of the half, but New Lambton defended resolutely to hold their NPL Men’s NNSW opponents at bay and take a 1-0 lead into the sheds.
Substitutions made in the second half proved to be the turning point, with Kahibah coming out with far greater intent and beginning to create chances of real quality.
It felt only a matter of time before the equaliser arrived, and it came when Billy Eick tapped home a Daniel Byrne header in the 69th minute.
Just two minutes later, Blake Robinson converted home another well-placed bit of play to put Kahibah in front for the first time, a sudden and decisive turnaround that saw New Lambton go from leading to trailing inside a matter of minutes.
Kahibah nearly extended the lead further in the 75th minute, with a header cleared off the line, before seeing out a 2-1 win.
Newham admitted his side's sluggish start on an unfamiliar surface took them time to adjust.
"It was tough on the very bumpy pitch; not something we're used to this year," Newham said.
"New Lambton came at us with everything they had and took their chance, and we didn't react well.
“They deserved the lead at that point, and my message at half-time was simple; our level isn't good enough."
Newham credited his team for turning the contest around after the break.
"We played on a flatter side of the pitch, which suited our style of football," Newham said.
"Our substitutions made the difference; the players who came off didn't come off because they were poor, it was purely tactical, and the ones who came on were terrific."
For New Lambton, there is plenty to build on despite the disappointment of losing their lead so late in the contest.
Having held an NPL Men’s NNSW side at bay for the majority of the game, the Golden Eagles can take their own confidence into the second leg, trailing by just a single goal with everything still to play for.
The two sides meet again next weekend for the second leg, with New Lambton needing to overturn a one-goal deficit to force their way into the promotion/relegation play-off final.
Kahibah will head home knowing a repeat of their second-half performance could be enough to see out the tie and preserve their NPL Men’s NNSW status for another year.