Match of the Round
Charlestown Azzurri FC 0-4 Adamstown Rosebud FC
Adamstown Rosebud coach Chris Moylan thought his men executed their game plan to perfection when they took down Charlestown Azzurri 4-0 at Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility in the match of the round on Sunday night.
Riley Aunger opened the scoring for the Buds in the fifth minute when he charged down the left edge onto a Ryan Rooke pass and beat Charlestown’s keeper Ben McNamara from the tightest of angles with a powerful strike.
Adamstown then doubled their lead on the 20-minute mark when skipper Dino Fajkovic intercepted a misplaced Azzurri pass across their backline and rounded Reece Papas before slotting his one-on-one strike into the back of the net.
Charlestown thought they had an equaliser three minutes later when a Rene Ferguson header from close range was cleared off the line.
Reece McManus then produced a goal-bound bicycle kick seconds later, but Adamstown’s keeper George Scorer produced a diving save to keep the strike out.
The Rosebud still led 2-0 at half-time and they extended their lead in the 85th minute as they went coast to coast when Scorer launched a long ball into the path of Fajkovic, who netted his 13th of the season.
The skipper then set up his side’s fourth just two minutes later and it was substitute Cameron Davies who produced the pick of the bunch with a classy strike less than four minutes after entering the match to make the final score 4-0.
Two goals either side of half-time and the Rosebud’s fourth clean sheet of the campaign saw them score their fifth win and drag themselves out of the promotion and relegation play-off zone as they leapfrogged Valentine FC into 10th spot.
Moylan was thrilled with the result but was even happier with the manner in which his men achieved it.
“Playing out here on the AstroTurf certainly suits the way we play,” Moylan said.
“It was a great game from us. Defensively, we were disciplined and we stuck to the game plan. We kept possession and didn’t give the ball away.
“We just played the way we wanted to play. The boys were really good.
“We haven’t had many clean sheets this season, so it was good to get another one. It was a really good result, but I was more impressed with the way we played. I couldn’t fault any of our boys tonight. That first 15 minutes especially, we were sharp.
“The boys are aware that we’ve still got two games to go, so the job’s not done yet. This win goes a long way towards it, but we’ll be looking to win our last two games to make certain of it and finish the season strong.”
Charlestown’s coach James Pascoe thought the way the Rosebud took their chances was the difference on the night.
“I thought it was an even game in a lot of respects, but one team could score goals and one team couldn’t,” Pascoe said.
“The boys kept trying to play football and we had a poor error for their second goal. From there, we were chasing it, and we started to get ugly and do things that we otherwise wouldn’t. It kind of sums up how things have gone for us this season.
“It’s very hard to be critical of the boys because how things have gone for us this year from several factors, but at the end of the day, you have to hold the mirror up to yourself, and I think that if a few of our boys did that, they wouldn’t like what they see at the moment.
“It’s a team sport and we win together and lose together, and we just haven’t been good enough recently.
“Congratulations to Adamstown. It was like a grand final for them, and they played like it, so good on them.”
Charlestown’s last game of the season will be contested at Jack McLaughlan Oval this Sunday when they challenge Edgeworth Eagles in the final round.
Adamstown will be back in action on Wednesday night when they meet New Lambton FC in a rescheduled round 11 clash at Alder Park.
Broadmeadow Magic FC 2-1 Valentine FC
Broadmeadow Magic coach Jim Cresnar says it was mission accomplished after his side secured the first grade premiership and Australian Championship qualification across the weekend.
Cresnar’s men needed two results to go their way across the round, and they did their part on Friday night when they held out a determined Valentine FC to prevail 2-1 under lights at the Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility.
That put them six points ahead on the live ladder and meant that second-placed Edgeworth Eagles needed to beat Weston Bears at the Speers Point venue on Saturday night, however, the Eagles slipped up as they went down 2-0.
Magic opened the scoring in the eighth minute when a James Cresnar volley from a few metres outside the 18-yard box cannoned away off the crossbar and into the back of Valentine’s goalkeeper Brodie Volkiene before rolling over the goal line.
Dean Pettit then made it 1-1 four minutes later when he was slipped in behind by Liam Ryan before rounding Lewis Alvarez and scoring into an empty net to finish off a swift Phoenix counter attack.
The two sides went into the half-time break level at a goal apiece before Jarred Baker restored Broadmeadow’s lead nine minutes into the second stanza.
It looked like something straight off the training paddock as James Cresnar fired a pass across the 18-yard box to Tom Parkes, who laid it off back to Baker with one touch to allow the unmarked striker to blast the ball into the back of the net.
Valentine pushed hard for an equaliser, but Magic secured the three points as the score remained 2-1 at full-time.
Magic’s second premiership in as many years after breaking an 11-year drought in 2024 was even more special, given it secured a spot for the club on the national stage.
Cresnar said he could not have been any prouder of his players for getting the job done during a season that has been ravaged by injury.
“I’m extremely happy for the whole club; the players, committee and supporters,” Cresnar said.
“It’s a great achievement considering the year we’ve had with injuries. We’ve had eight players who’ve been in and out with injury from the first grade squad, but the players who have been given opportunities have really stood up.
“They’re a special group of players and I’m extremely proud of them. I think that the biggest thing for me is their level of commitment, as well as the team culture and the way they buy in to what we’ve been doing as a football team.
“People that know coaching know that the premiership, or the minor premiership as it’s often called, is the most important. That’s always been the case for me.
“Winning grand finals is great, but the grind and being the best team over 22 rounds says more than a one-off game.
“Our focus now, apart from finals football, is looking towards the national Australian Championship starting in October and preparing for that. We really want to get to the next stage of that, which is the round of eight.”
Broadmeadow are now looking forward to their old boys day celebrations this Sunday when they host Cooks Hill United at Magic Park, where they will celebrate the 2025 premiership in front of what is expected to be a bumper crowd full of former Magicians.
Valentine ended the weekend in 11th place on the 12-team table. They will host Weston at Croudace Bay Complex on Sunday afternoon.
Weston Bears FC 2-0 Edgeworth Eagles FC
Weston Bears flipped the script on Saturday when they defeated Edgeworth Eagles 2-0 on a wet and wild night at Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility.
For weeks now, many including Weston have been resigned to the fact that Weston were going to finish third. But the Bears’ second win over Edgeworth in a matter of weeks saw them go six points behind the Eagles with two games left to play.
Kew Jaliens’ men would likely end up second on goal difference if they win both of those games and if Edgeworth lose their one remaining fixture, so a home semi-final is still a possibility for them.
Burke Fahling opened the scoring in the 20th minute with a cracking strike from outside the area into the bottom-left corner.
Chris Hatfield then doubled the lead 16 minutes later with a tap-in after Dom Archbold made a brilliant overlapping run down the left edge and delivered a brilliant cross in.
The Bears had chances in the second stanza despite running into the wind, but neither they nor Edgeworth could add to the scoresheet as Weston secured a 2-0 victory to stretch their current unbeaten run to six games.
Next up for Weston is a rescheduled round 13 clash against Newcastle Olympic at Rockwell Automation Park on Wednesday night.
Edgeworth have now lost three of their past four matches and will be looking to gain some momentum for the finals when they host Charlestown Azzurri at Jack McLaughlan Oval in the final round this Sunday.
Cooks Hill United FC 3-3 Lambton Jaffas FC
Cooks Hill United and Lambton Jaffas contested a six-goal thriller that included three equalisers on Sunday evening, and they shared the points after the match ended locked at 3-3.
The Jaffas found themselves behind early but then led twice before conceding in the 81st minute as their four-game winning streak came to an end.
It was an eventful first half for Jaffas winger Jimmy Oates, who turned a Liam Spurway free kick into his own net for an own goal in the 31st minute, was denied an equaliser when his shot struck the post five minutes later, and then set up Lambton’s first goal in the 41st minute as Cooks Hill’s Mitchell Dobson registered the second own goal of the contest.
Nikolai Topor-Stanley then put the Jaffas ahead 2-1 at the half-time break when he got himself upfield seconds into injury time and found the back of the net after Cooks Hill failed to deal with a Tom Waller cross from the left.
Chris Zoricich’s men equalised with 20 minutes left to play when the Jaffas were unable to clear a corner kick and Liam Spurway lashed home a volley to make the score 2-2.
Matt Cahill restored Lambton’s lead in the 79th minute when he intercepted a pass just inside his attacking half and made a brilliant run and completed a wonderful solo goal with a calm finish.
But Cooks Hill made it 3-3 less than 20 seconds after kicking off when Spurway netted another volley from just inside the box.
It remained that way when the final whistle sounded despite both teams’ best efforts to find a winner.
The result saw Lambton remain fourth and Cooks Hill stay eighth. Their finals hopes now both rely on them winning their remaining games and other results going their way.
Next up for Lambton is a home clash against Maitland FC at Arthur Edden Oval in the final round this Sunday.
Cooks Hill also play Maitland next as they prepare to travel to Cooks Square Park on Wednesday night for a rescheduled round 13 clash against the Magpies.
Maitland FC v Belmont Swansea United FC
This match was abandoned due to lighting.
New Lambton FC v Newcastle Olympic FC
This match was abandoned due to lighting.
