NPL Men’s NNSW Round 21 Review: Magic go top as Azzurri continue slump
Match of the Round
Broadmeadow Magic 2-0 Charlestown Azzurri
Broadmeadow Magic went top of the table when they downed a 10-man Charlestown Azzurri side 2-0 on Sunday afternoon.
The clash at Magic Park shaped as a huge clash in the context of this year's premiership race, with Broadmeadow and Charlestown having jostled for the top spot on the table throughout the season.
The hosts started with all the running and asked plenty of questions of Charlestown. But it was an incident just before half-time that was the biggest talking point to come from the first half.
Mid-season Azzurri signing Taylor Regan was shown a second yellow card for dissent following a collision in the middle of the pitch, with the veteran defender sent off moments before half-time.
A 10-man Azzurri side had it all to do in the second half as Magic looked to use Regan's dismissal to their advantage.
Magic broke the deadlock in the 53rd minute from a Jarred Baker corner, with the attacker finding the back post from a curling ball into the penalty area to give his side the lead.
Magic put the game beyond doubt in the 92nd minute when Angus McLeod became the beneficiary following a Keanu Moore shot that hit the crossbar, with McLeod on the scene to poke it home past Azzurri goalkeeper Nathan Archbold.
Broadmeadow coach Damian Zane was delighted with the result.
“It was tight,” Zane said.
“All the games have been like it, even against Valentine. You could say we got lucky with some red cards in both matches but we have been pretty solid. I think I have said before, consistent and solid football is what grinds results out at this time of the season.
“I think we are well and truly in the [semi-finals] now but we are still probably two wins away from definite top three, so it is still game by game. If we win this week I think we will lock in that top three spot and have a real good shot [at the premiership].”
The packed Sunday afternoon of fixtures saw Charlestown Azzurri slip to fourth on the table after Maitland collected three points and Lambton moved to equal competition points following their draw against Edgeworth.
Adamstown Rosebud 2-1 Newcastle Olympic
Adamstown Rosebud made it back-to-back victories when they downed a lacklustre Newcastle Olympic outfit 2-1 on Saturday afternoon.
The victory at Adamstown Oval capped off a brilliant week for Rosebud following their first victory of the season against Lake Macquarie City midweek.
Olympic meanwhile were backing up following a spirited Australia Cup round of 32 performance against Melbourne City.
Rosebud found the lead almost instantly when Anthony Wood got his boot to the ball and chipped Newcastle Olympic goalkeeper Adam Pearce to give the hosts the advantage.
Adamstown then doubled their lead with a stunning shot from Dane Lawther as he picked out the top corner from the edge of the penalty area to make it 2-0 after 20 minutes.
Rosebud preserved their two-goal lead into the second half until Olympic star Joey Langlois got his head to a ball that beat Rosebud goalkeeper Tom Jenkin in the 51st minute.
Rosebud were able to hold onto their lead despite some nervy late moments and come away with the three points with a 2-1 victory.
Newcastle Olympic remains in fifth spot despite the loss, while Rosebud have now climbed off the bottom of the table for the first time this season.
Valentine FC 2-3 Cooks Hill United
Cooks Hill United delivered a potentially fatal blow for Valentine’s finals hopes as they scored an exciting 3-2 win on Sunday.
Cooks Hill have enjoyed a strong run of form as of late while Valentine were desperate to collect three points to keep their finals dreams alive after going down to Broadmeadow midweek.
Valentine had left themselves severely undermanned with Matt Thompson, Nick Cowburn and Nick Martinelli all suspended after being sent off in their midweek loss to Magic.
Cooks Hill started the match in the best way possible as striker Josh Benson found the back of the net in the third minute to give his side an early lead. The visitors controlled proceedings but were unable to extend their advantage.
Valentine found their reply just after the half hour mark as captain Harry Lane broke through and levelled the scores with a strong finish.
Cooks Hill talisman Sam Webb made his mark on the game minutes later when he restored their one-goal advantage with a finish at the back post. Webb then turned provider just before half-time as he found teammate Jon Griffiths in the penalty area who scored with a leaping header.
Valentine had all the work to do in the second half and pegged a goal back in the 68th minute through a Ryan Clarke penalty, making the score 3-2 heading into the final quarter.
Cooks Hill's three first-half goals were enough in the end as they held off a spirited Valentine side to come away with the victory.
Cooks Hill coach Dave Tanchevski said it was good to come away with the win after a fightback in the second half from Valentine.
“We created loads of chances in the first half,” Tanchevski said.
“We had the game in their half and we were probably disappointed we weren’t up by more. In the second half. We missed a few chances and a few one-on-ones and let them back into the game so it was a nail-biting finish.
“We have had some good performances in the last six weeks and we have probably been unlucky a few times, even against Valentine last time we played them we were 1-0 up and we got a man sent off and lost.
“It has taken a little while for new players to adjust but it has started to come together in the last half of the season.”
Edgeworth FC 1-1 Lambton Jaffas
Lambton Jaffas coach Shane Pryce was happy to come away with the points after a tough 1-1 draw with Edgeworth on Sunday.
Lambton came into the match at Jack McLaughlan Oval with the potential to go top of the table if other results went their way, while Edgeworth were looking to nab fifth spot with a victory following Newcastle Olympic’s loss to Adamstown Rosebud on Saturday.
Both sides were reduced to 10 men just before the 20-minute mark as Jaffas defender Ben Hay and Edgeworth striker Sascha Montefiore came together in a scuffle that saw them shown a straight red card.
Lambton broke the deadlock just before half-time as James Virgili found an unmarked Kale Bradbery who found the back of the net with a volley to give the visitors the lead.
The match was a hard-fought encounter with plenty of feeling and the second half saw opportunities for both sides to take the game by the scruff of the neck. It was Edgeworth’s Josh Rose who restored parity, as he found the bottom right corner with a tidy finish.
Nothing could separate the sides in the end with Pryce saying he was just happy to come away with something from the match.
“It was a fairly even game. It started fairly cagey today,” Pryce said.
“We were feeling each other out and then the send off changed the game. It opened up a lot after that. Edgeworth had their chances and so did we but we walked away with a point. We were disappointed we didn’t walk away with the win but I think sharing the points was a fair result.
“It’s funneling into an exciting final few weeks. It was a bit of a wishy-washy kind of a game today but I thought our captain Ben Kennedy stood up today, we were under a bit of pressure and he was solid at the back”.
Edgeworth coach Peter McGuiness said he was extremely proud of the effort from his players.
“It was a really tight game today and both sides put in big shifts,” McGuiness said.
“It’s a big pitch to play 10v10 for a major part of the game but I was extremely proud of the boys and thought we played well. We had a great chance at the end to win it but the performance was a really good step in the right direction.”
Maitland FC 4-0 Lake Macquarie City
A first half hat-trick from Maitland striker Breadyn Crowley was the highlight of a dominant 4-0 victory over Lake Macquarie City on Sunday.
Maitland emerged from the bye last week with renewed vigour for this year’s premiership race, while Lakes were desperate to break an 11-game losing streak.
The Magpies struck just after 10 minutes at Cooks Square Park through the irrepressible Crowley as he netted his 20th goal of the season to give his side the lead. Crowley was on the scene again minutes later to secure his brace.
Crowley then completed his hat-trick in the shadows of half-time with a simple tap to make it 3-0 heading into the break.
Crowley then turned provider to play through Flynn Goodman for Maitland’s fourth goal of the afternoon, as the Magpies continued their cruise to three competition points.
The victory saw Maitland move to 33 competition points, level with Lambton Jaffas and Charlestown Azzurri.
Lakes though slipped to the bottom of the table following their 12th successive defeat.
Maitland assistant coach Gav Wolfe said it was another step in the right direction for the Magpies as they hunt the premiership.
“We are pretty happy with the result,” Wolfe said.
“We had a nice simple game plan built around fast ball movement and defensive discipline and we stuck to that really well in the first half.
“We got ahead by three goals with a hat-trick to Braedyn, so we are really happy about that. [Lakes coach Keelan Hamilton] gave his boys a rev-up at half-time and came out with a fair degree of enthusiasm, so not as happy with the second half.
“It was an important three points. We spoke with the boys through the week with the old cliche that our destiny is in our hands if we keep on winning and the minor premiership will look after itself. That is certainly a focus for us, we want to win that minor premiership as all teams do.”