Match of the Round
Urunga FC 1-3 Woolgoolga United
Woolgoolga United FC coach Joel Finlayson couldn’t be happier with his side’s 3-1 win over Urunga FC at Urunga Recreation Reserve on Saturday afternoon.
The visitors bounced back in style away from home with a classy performance to give themselves a chance to progress out of the group stage.
Woolgoolga broke the deadlock and opened the scoring in the ninth minute through James Gorrie.
Nickalas Mallett got onto the end of a long ball and sprinted down the pitch and into the penalty area before he crossed it to Gorrie, who slotted the ball into the back of the net.
Woolgoolga doubled their lead in the 43rd minute after a wonderful header from Ignacio Antonio Ovalle Ortega off a corner kick.
The visitors went into the sheds at the half-time break with a 2-0 advantage.
James Palmer took the score to 3-0 in the 70th minute with a fantastic strike on goal. Mallett provided his second assist of the afternoon after he beat his defenders and powered down the pitch before he crossed the ball into the penalty area.
Palmer received the ball, turned and struck the ball into the bottom left-hand corner of the net.
Urunga clawed one back in the 76th minute after a strong individual effort from Fabrice Wamara.
Wamara received the ball in the middle of the park and beat numerous defenders as he weaved his way through the crowd and had a one-two pass with Raif Bosshard before he powered his way into the penalty area and unleashed the ball into the back of the net.
But the home side was hurt again when they went down to 10 men after their captain Joel Hampson was given his marching orders in stoppage time after he received a second yellow card for a reckless tackle.
Woolgoolga was able to hold onto their 3-1 lead and secure their first three points of the tournament at the full-time whistle.
Finlayson was thrilled with the performance and their ability to bounce back with the
“I thought we were excellent. We dominated possession for most of the match and were lucky enough to impact the game by doing that,” Finlayson said.
“Urugna are always a tough opponent but I felt that our approach going into the game and our game plan was spot on.
“It was especially impressive after having so many weeks off and without training.
“I couldn’t be happier with the outcome and the result. But there is still plenty to improve on and I am always wanting the guys to keep working and be better.
“I thought considering the players who we had available on the weekend, everyone knew their job and their task, which they executed really well. All of the coaching staff was very happy with all involved on the weekend.
“It sets ourselves in a lot better position for the group stage now. I think after that narrow loss to Inverel,l even if we win our next match we will have to rely on other results at this stage.”
Despite the result, Urugna’s coach Jaxen Heward was proud of how his side fought for the full 90 minutes.
“I thought we played well. We had a lot of guys out and had younger boys stepping up,” Heward said.
“Overall I was happy with how the guys played.
“Woopi [Woolgoolga] were strong but I thought we handles what they threw at us pretty well but they scored some good goals that we could have stopped.
“It was good to get 11 out on the pitch and knock the ball around.
“I am pretty proud of some of the young guys and how they came on and did a good job, with some of them out of position. They stepped up and did a job and now I know that they can do that.
“The performance will give them confidence and belief in themselves.
“It was something to build on.”
Woolgoolga will be determined to cement their place in the finals series when they face Macleay Valley Rangers at Clive Joass Memorial Sports Park on Saturday July 12.
Urunga will be hope to bounce back when they take on Macleay Valley Rangers in their round one rescheduled fixture before they travel to Inverell Sporting Complex to take on Inverell on July 12 in round three.
Port Saints 2-1 Port United
Port Saints FC have retained the bragging rights after they came from behind to snatch all three points from their cross-town rivals Port United FC with a 2-1 win at Findlay Park on Saturday.
The Saints have retained the bragging rights after their substitutes helped them to come from behind to snatch all three points from their cross-town rivals in green.
Port United opened the scoring in the 30th minute when Edoardo Castro Wade hit the back of the net.
The visitors took their 1-0 advantage into the sheds at half-time but the Saints flipped the script with two goals in the second half.
The home side levelled the score in the 59th minute after Jordan Stevenson converted a penalty from the spot.
As the minutes ticked by it looked as if the sides would be forced to share the points.
But the Saints had other ideas and took the lead for the first time in the match after Riley Venables found the back of the net in the 80th minute, which they held onto all the way until the final whistle.
The win saw the Saints move to the top of the table in Group B above Port United on goal difference.
Port Saints will be eager to keep their momentum going when they face Northern Storm in their round one rescheduled match before they travel west to take on Armidale City Westside FC at Harris Park in round three on Saturday July 12.
Port United have moved into second on the table with three points and will be determined to bounce back when they welcome Northern Storm FC to Dixie Park in their final group game.
Macleay Valley Rangers 0-5 Inverell FC
Inverell FC secured back-to-back NNSW RSL wins after a dominant 5-0 win over Macleay Valley Rangers at Rangers Park on Saturday afternoon.
The visitors broke the deadlock in the eighth minute of the match when Steven Toleyi opened the scoring.
Brent Pedlow doubled Inverell’s advantage in the 24th minute before Andrew Wale extended their lead again 11 minutes later.
Toleyi netted his second of the afternoon and took the scoreline to 4-0 right on the half-time break.
Inverell was reduced to 10 men in the 51st minute after Kyle King was sent off for serious foul play after a late tackle on Macleay’s Sam Applegate.
But the Rangers were unable to make the most of their one-man advantage and get on the scoresheet.
Substitute Norman Miniti put the icing on the cake when he hit the back of the net in the 78th minute to take the final scoreline to 5-0 and secure Inverell’s second win of the competition.
The win has seen Inverell jump to the top of Group A with six points. They will hope to keep the good times rolling when they return home to Inverell Sporting Complex to welcome Urunga FC in the final round of the group stage on July 12.
Macleay Valley Rangers will be eager to bounce back in their two remaining group matches against Urunga FC for their rescheduled round one game before they travel to Clive Joass Memorial Sports Park to take on Woolgoolga United FC in round three.
Northern Storm v Armidale City Westside FC
Northern Storm locked in their first Regional Super League win when they down Armidale City Westside FC 7-1 at Korora Oval on Saturday afternoon.
Four goal-scorers got their names on the board for Northern Storm with the most dominant being Thomas Sweeney with a hat-trick.
Campbell Brear scored two goals while Mark McCarthy and Jamie Kennedy both found the back of the net.
Armidale's Aiden Webster was able to claw one back for his side and lessen the deficit.
Armidale City Westside will be eager to lock in their first win of the competition when they host Port Saints FC at Harris Park in round three.
The win has seen Northern Storm jump to the top of Group A with three points. They will look to keep the good times rolling when they travel to Dixie Park to face Port United FC in round three.
