Match of the Round
Newcastle Olympic 0-0 Cooks Hill United
Newcastle Olympic head coach Alex Tagaroulias and Cooks Hill United head coach Jamie Dunning shared similar sentiments after their sides played out a tense 0-0 draw at Darling Street Oval on Saturday afternoon.
Both sides came into the match desperate for three points, with Cooks Hill chasing a maiden finals opportunity while Olympic looked to lift themselves out of the bottom of the table, both sides starting with intent.
After trading the same number of shots in the first half, the game quickly transformed into a battle of attrition, with both goalkeepers, Cook Hill’s Daniel Eisenhauer and Olympic’s George Stephens, producing several quality saves to stay in the contest.
Despite the entertaining arm wrestle, both sides created chances but went into the break without troubling the scorekeepers.
Much like last week, Olympic weathered several early attacks from the visitors before growing into the contest and creating the better opportunities as the match wore on.
The Cooks Hill defence, marshalled by Eisenhauer in goal, stood firm to keep Olympic at bay. The visitors also fashioned several dangerous opportunities of their own late in the contest but were unable to find the breakthrough.
Olympic finished strongly, earning several free kicks on the edge of the area in the final 10 minutes, but after five minutes of stoppage time, the points were shared in a scoreless draw.
While Cooks Hill could not secure all three points, the draw extended the side's unbeaten run to three matches. They remain two points behind Lambton Jaffas with a game in hand and a favourable run of fixtures ahead.
Despite this, Dunning was disappointed his side couldn’t capitalise on the chances created.
“[We’re] disappointed to get just the point,” Dunning said.
“The keepers, to be fair, made some fantastic saves and they [Olympic] created their own little bits as well. So they're probably in the same boat as us.
“They're [Olympic] definitely on the up. They're well-drilled and second half they lived on transition and got in behind us a couple of times.
“We did have moments, and we've got to be better.
“[The next two games are] massive for us. It's probably two Cup finals for us, because we're still in touching distance.
“The mentality's changed. I want to be chasing. I want to be there. These two weeks are critical in our season. We just don't want to meander and just sort of finish sixth or seventh.
“That's not what we want. We want to keep pushing.”
His frustrations were echoed by Tagaroulias, his side retaining their spot in 10th place and still looking for their first victory since their round 10 win over Valentine FC.
“The commentators said that a nil-all draw probably doesn't suit either team. They were probably right,” Tagaroulias said.
“It seemed like a bit of a battle of attrition, but both teams worked really hard.
“Both goalkeepers had to do well at times in the second half to keep their teams in it, I was disappointed that we couldn't finish off. But you know, I'm sure Cooks Hill might feel the same about a couple of moments.
“The only thing we can take from that is that it was a clean sheet and that we created stuff, and it seems to be building on something.
“But ultimately, we've got to start getting results because we're going to start drawing ourselves away from that end of the table.”
Olympic will have the chance to bounce back quickly when host Charlestown Azzurri in a round 13 catch-up game on Wednesday night.
Cooks Hill will also have the opportunity to make up ground on Friday night when they host Valentine in their round 14 catch-up clash.
Valentine FC 1-1 Lambton Jaffas
Valentine FC head coach Lee Sterrey remained focused on the bigger picture of securing his side's position and continuing their improving form after they came from behind to draw 1-1 with Lambton Jaffas at Croudace Bay Complex on Saturday.
Coming into the match looking to back up last week's win over Edgeworth Eagles, the Phoenix were forced onto the back foot early as Lambton's experience saw the visitors create several dangerous chances in and around the box.
The hosts gradually grew into the contest, finding success in transition and creating a handful of opportunities of their own late in the half, with the scores remaining level at the break.
Valentine kept up the pressure, but after weathering the storm, the Jaffas netted the first goal in the 70th minute through Pat Bond, his effort along the ground finding its way past goalkeeper Brodie Volkiene.
The goal galvanised the hosts and, just nine minutes later, the Phoenix produced a stunning response. Kurtis White replicated his strike against Edgeworth last week, unleashing a brilliant effort from outside the box that Ben Kennedy had little chance of stopping.
Both sides traded chances in the final 10 minutes, from both open play and set pieces, but after four minutes of stoppage time they could not be separated as the match ended in a 1-1 draw.
It proved a frustrating result for Jaffas, the side needing to keep pace with Edgeworth to try and climb into fifth place and now sitting four points behind them following their win over the Buds.
Despite being disappointed to not get the result, Sterrey is focused on ensuring the side does enough to stay out of the relegation zone.
“Our second half especially was very strong,” Sterrey said.
“I always knew we were going to get better and better as the season went on. We're still a young team, and we're inconsistent, but when we're at our best, we can certainly match up with anybody. We've lost one game in the last six.
“They [Jaffas] probably shaded us in the first half for sure with the ball, but again, we had seven or eight goal chances in the match. We've got to start taking our chances, we've also got to start a bit quicker in the first half.
“The last few weeks have been great, yes, but a hiccup here or there and you're back to square one. We know the teams behind us only have to get one win, and they can jump in front of us. We've got to keep going forward, we've got a task to do.”
Valentine will face Cooks Hill United in their round 14 catch-up clash on Friday night. The Jaffas, who have no catch-up fixtures remaining, will travel to face Weston Bears in round 18 following the scheduled washout weekend.
Edgeworth Eagles 3-2 Adamstown Rosebud
Edgeworth Eagles gave themselves some much-needed breathing space in the race for the finals, coming from two goals down to snatch a dramatic 3-2 victory over Adamstown Rosebud with a winner in the final minute at Jack McLaughlan Oval on Saturday afternoon.
After a free-flowing opening 10 minutes, the Buds struck first in the 12th minute when Christopher Reay produced a long-range effort, aided by a favourable ricochet, which looped over goalkeeper Ben Conway to give the visitors a surprise 1-0 lead.
The advantage was doubled just three minutes later when a Taj Buck cross found an unmarked Reay, who finished superbly into the top corner for his second goal of the afternoon.
The hosts responded in the 29th minute in similar fashion, as a Flynn Goodman cross picked out Kye Schumacher in the box, with the midfielder making no mistake to pull his side back into the contest at 2-1 heading into the break.
The Buds looked to consolidate their lead after the restart with several key rotations at half-time and on the hour mark, while continuing to create chances in search of a third goal.
The Eagles, however, began to spend more time on the front foot, and as stoppage time approached it appeared the Buds were on their way to a crucial away win.
A grandstand finish followed, as a Jarrod McKechnie cross found the foot of Jayden Stewardson, with the striker squeezing the ball past goalkeeper George Scorer to level the scores.
Momentum then swung fully, and just two minutes later a deep throw-in caused chaos in the box, with Aaron Niyonkuru getting the slightest touch to divert the ball home and complete a remarkable comeback for the Eagles.
The Eagles will play their round 14 catch-up game on Friday night against Kahibah FC, with the potential to climb into third should they win, while Adamstown will look to bounce back in their next match in round 18, when they travel to face Maitland FC.
Charlestown Azzurri 1-3 Belmont Swansea United
Belmont Swansea United continued their stellar run of form throughout 2026, with a 3-1 win over Charlestown Azzurri at Lisle Carr Oval on Saturday keeping them in touch with Broadmeadow Magic while opening up a five-point buffer over the chasing pack.
Coming into the match needing a response after last week’s loss to Kahibah, the Blues registered several early attempts on goal, but BelSwans’ improving defence stood firm under pressure.
In the 11th minute, as has been the case throughout the season, the visitors’ lethal counterattack struck, with Andrew McGee finding Marco Gueli, who beat two defenders before finishing clinically to open the scoring.
Gueli doubled his tally 20 minutes later, as a more measured build-up involving slick passing from Joe Kable and McGee released the German striker unmarked to finish and extend the lead.
Just before half-time, another quick transition proved decisive, with Kable again involved as he picked out Gueli in the box to complete a first half hat-trick and send the visitors into the break 3-0 up.
Despite the scoreline, Azzurri spent much of the match in advanced areas, with their defence forced to work hard in the second half to prevent further damage.
The hosts grabbed a late consolation through Matthew Cahill in the 85th minute, with goalkeeper Nathan Archbold getting a hand to the effort but unable to keep it out, though it proved too little, too late.
BelSwans will turn their attention to a round 18 away clash with Edgeworth Eagles, while Charlestown Azzurri face a busy start to July with two catch-up fixtures against Newcastle Olympic and Weston Bears before their round 18 meeting with Cooks Hill United.
Broadmeadow Magic 5-1 Weston Bears
In the final match of the round, Broadmeadow Magic have put the entire competition on notice, overpowering Weston Bears in the second half to run out 5-1 winners at Magic Park on Sunday.
Coming off a loss to Belmont Swansea United, the defending champions came out with intent in a tense opening 20-minute arm wrestle with the Bears.
In the 22nd minute, a solid transitional play saw Jarred Baker and Jakob Cresnar line up a rushing James Cresnar to get his side on the board, the midfielder driving the ball into the bottom corner.
The visitors struck back almost immediately, with a corner finding Brock Beveridge unmarked at the back post. The striker benefited from a favourable parry off goalkeeper Daniel Axford to level the scores at 1-1 heading into half-time.
After weathering several early second-half attacks from the Bears, Magic gradually worked their way back into the contest and, on the hour mark, took the lead through a long-range lob that found Luis Lara Delgado, who beat two defenders before finishing to put his side in front.
The hosts then doubled their lead six minutes later, with a Baker corner finding a perfectly executed header from Delgado, the score proving fatal for the Bears.
It would be a returning Bailey Wells off the bench who would put the match beyond doubt, a brilliant Baker strike in the 82nd minute seeing goalkeeper Gerard Roebuck forced to parry, with Wells swooping on the loose ball to score his side’s fourth.
As the rain started to come down, in the final minute of stoppage time, a play set up by Delgardo and reserve Zekiel Mearns saw Wells net his second and Magic’s fifth and final goal, icing a comprehensive win for the defending champions.
Broadmeadow have no catch-up fixtures remaining, with their next assignment a round 18 home clash against Newcastle Olympic. The Weston Bears, meanwhile, will look to bounce back in their round 14 catch-up away fixture against Charlestown Azzurri on Wednesday fortnight.
Kahibah FC v Maitland FC
This match was postponed due to wet weather conditions.