Match of the Round
Newcastle Olympic 3-3 Edgeworth Eagles
Newcastle Olympic head coach Michael Bolch is hoping his side can land some “football luck” as an added time goal from Edgeworth saw the Eagles snatch a 3-3 draw at Darling Street Oval on Saturday.
In one of two ANZAC Day clashes, both sides started at a helter-skelter pace, with a penalty in the seventh minute seeing Kale Bradbery net the first goal of the afternoon, despite a valiant attempt from Eagles keeper Ben Conway.
But the score galvanised the visitors into action, with the Eagles pushing deep into enemy territory and applying pressure. And when Aaron Niyonkuru produced a messy goal from nothing in the 16th minute, the game was on.
The Eagles took the lead for the first time five minutes later thanks to a bullet from Stefan Cordwell as Olympic struggled to make it into the attacking third, with Jared Muller testing the referee’s whistle on several occasions.
Neither side could find another strike, with the sides heading to the changing room with the score 2-1.
But the break proved a perfect time for Olympic, with the hosts emerging from the sheds a different side.
Matching the Eagles’ intensity, Olympic worked their way back into the match, with midfielder Lachlan West finally delivering a brilliant goal to equalise in the 61st minute, leaving Conway stuck in the mud.
Bolch’s decision to inject his bench early yielded momentum for the hosts and when substitute Nathan Toby gave the hosts the lead again with their third goal in the 73rd minute, the fans and staff became nervous, hoping to land a crucial win after a difficult period.
But as the four minutes of stoppage time came to an end, the Eagles made a late push and with a long-range kick from Conway catching his opposite man, Adam Pearce, out of position, substitute Alexander James put the ball in the corner to pull a draw out of the fire.
The result came as a frustrating one for the Olympic head coach, the result marking the third time this season - and second in as many weeks - that his side had conceded a lead at the death.
“That's two weeks in a row that errors cost us in the 90th, 91st minute. It's just the story of our season, you know?” Bolch said.
“It's football luck, because I can't knock anything that my boys did. They were outstanding.
“Sometimes you don't get your reward, it doesn't matter how hard you work. We've just got to remember how to win. We've gone the distance [against good sides].
“[The result] shows us a couple of areas where we can be better.”
Eagles head coach Peter McGuinness praised his side’s ability to come back after Olympic wrestled momentum away in the second half, digging deep to get something out of the game.
With his side rediscovering their attacking flair, the head coach will now turn his focus to fixing their defence and transitions.
“It would have been a good game for the neutral. A good game for both sets of supporters, really,” McGuiness said.
“We're scoring goals but we're letting them in too. Feels like it's the eternal balance.
“I thought we were good value going into half-time. The second half, I think, there was a bit of a change in attitude from them. It changed things.
“I was pleased we came back. I thought we deserved something out of the game. I was happy with the boys' reaction to getting something out of it in the end.
“It's a completely different league to what's been here in the past. There used to be teams that would roll over. Teams don't roll over anymore. They're much more competitive. It’s good, you want that.”
Edgeworth will travel up the expressway next week to face Weston Bears on Sunday, while Newcastle Olympic will head to Croudace Bay to take on Valentine on Saturday.
Adamstown Rosebud 0-2 Weston Bears
Weston Bears head coach Damian Zane has been impressed by his side’s growing form on the road as Weston completed a month away from home with a 2-0 win over Adamstown Rosebud in their traditional ANZAC Day Heritage Cup clash.
Following a moving commemorative ceremony, the visitors hit the ground running on Saturday afternoon, a Chris Hurley pass seeing Brock Beveridge get his side on the board in the 18th minute.
The Bears continued to press for the first half hour, neutralising the Buds' ventures into enemy territory, being rewarded in the 31st minute as Chris Hatfield set up Beveridge for his second goal.
With the score 2-0 at half-time, the hosts desperately needed something to turn around the momentum in the game and weren’t helped as skipper Dino Fajkovic was shown a red card on the hour mark for a clumsy challenge on Ryan Ensor.
The Buds, however, began to make some inroads in the final half hour, rejigging their formation to ask further questions of the Bears' defence.
Despite this, defensive pressure saw them unable to get a shot on target, with Weston holding on with an unchanged scoreline at full-time.
The result put a dent in a promising run for the Buds in April, having climbed off the bottom of the table and looking to reclaim the Heritage Cup.
With the Bears defending the Heritage Cup and now set to enjoy a fortnight at Hunter City Motor Group Stadium, Zane was keen to take the five wins they’ve managed away from home and translate that into success in front of the home fans.
“Our form away from home has been pretty good,” Zane said.
“When you get some tricky away games and you still get three points, it's a good thing.
“We want to control games. We're not putting 90 together but in the first half, we just controlled it. When you're in control, you control possession. By controlling possession, you control the transition. The way you attack is the way you defend and vice versa.
“What is key [going forward] is depth. That's probably the area in the last month that I've felt we've gone to another level.
“There's a good vibe, there's good competition for spots and the depth is there for us now.”
The Buds will have a busy week coming up as they host a catch-up game against Lambton Jaffas on Wednesday, before heading across town to play Cooks Hill next Saturday, while the Bears return home to host Edgeworth.
Broadmeadow Magic 2-2 Maitland FC
A stunning extra-time goal from Luis Lara Delgado has seen Broadmeadow Magic avoid their second loss of the season against a firing Maitland FC, the sides walking away from Magic Park with a 2-2 draw on Friday night.
The opening clash of round nine served up everything you could want in a heavyweight clash, with Magic getting things underway in the 10th minute thanks to a James Thompson pass finding the wrong player, Delgado benefiting to give his side a 1-0 lead.
But it would prove to be the score that galvanised the visitors, who began to build momentum in the front third and ask questions of Magic’s defence.
With the sides trading attempts on goal, it took until the final minute of the half for the Magpies to find their equaliser, with Taye Power-O'Toole finding himself in the right place after a patient build-up to score.
Maitland continued their attacking pressure when the action resumed, with the action mostly in Magic territory for the opening 15 minutes of the second half.
But just when Magic looked to be swinging momentum back their way, Maitland nabbed their second in the 66th minute, with Power-O'Toole benefitting from a quick transition to bury the ball in the bottom left corner.
Magic upped the tempo as they looked to try and avoid a home loss, pinning Maitland back in their own half. But as the final ten minutes came and went, the Magpies’ defence was proving up to the task.
As the final minute of regular time arrived, Magic needed something special to find the equaliser, and Delgardo delivered, picking up a pinpoint long-range kick from Adam Sherratt to score an incredible bicycle kick goal, sending the Magic fans into a frenzy.
Both sides had their chances in the final six minutes of extra time to force a winner but as the referee blew the full-time whistle, both sides went to ground in unison from the massive contest, a draw a fitting result.
Magic will enjoy an eight-day turnaround before they travel to Fred Wright Oval next week to play Kahibah, while Maitland will return to Cooks Square Park to host Charlestown Azzurri next Saturday.
Lambton Jaffas 4-1 Cooks Hill United
Lambton Jaffas’ eight-round search for a crucial three points is finally over, as last year’s runners-up ran out 4-1 winners over Cooks Hill United at a soaked Arthur Edden Oval on Friday night.
Both sides came into the match desperate to turn around several difficult weeks but after going down in a thrilling contest against Maitland last week, Jaffas kept that intensity going, Joseph Langlois scoring from outside the box in the sixth minute to give the hosts their first.
As Cooks Hill missed several opportunities to equalise, the hosts took advantage of their front third pressure, doubling their lead 20 minutes later through a lobbed goal from Drew Patterson.
As half-time encroached, Lambton made it a mountain to climb for Cooks Hill in the 38th minute, a Lachlan Griffiths cross finding Bailey Newton, who buried it to give the hosts a resounding 3-0 lead at half-time.
The visitors found some momentum in the second half, achieving parity with the hosts and trading shots on goal, with neither side finding a way through.
Cooks would finally open their account off a corner in the 71st minute, a Daniel Yaxley header getting his side on the scoresheet.
The hosts’ defence had done its job though in ensuring any hopes of a late flurry of goals would be snuffed out, with a second Patterson goal in the 86th minute icing the result.
Lambton will look to try to replicate their previous seasons and kick into gear when they host Belmont Swansea United on Saturday, while Cooks Hill will return home desperate to turn around a difficult fortnight on the road when they play Adamstown the same day.
Charlestown Azzurri 1-2 Valentine FC
Valentine FC has put a difficult fortnight of heavy losses firmly in the rear-view mirror, pulling off the upset of the round when they defeated Charlestown Azzurri 2-1 at Lisle Carr Oval on Sunday.
Coming into the match sitting in last with an ugly goal difference, the visitors looked a completely different side, taking the lead in the 12th minute when a Max Middleby corner found defender Zac McDougall and the back of the net to give the visitors a 1-0 lead.
The Blues continued to threaten but could not trouble the scoresheet further, going down the tunnel a goal down.
Charlestown came out in a far more aggressive mood in the second half, looking to break down the young Valentine defence and managed to pin the visitors back in their own half.
But despite plenty of shots on goal from the hosts, the visitors’ defence continued to hold firm, spurred on by several good saves from goalkeeper Brodie Volkiene.
Valentine’s resilience was rewarded in the 81st minute, with substitutes Zachery McShane and Cale Graham pouncing on a slow-moving Blues defence to catch them out at the back, Luka Karihaloo linking up to score a critical second goal.
In the 89th minute, after 16 shots and nine corners, Azzurri finally found a way past Volkiene through a corner finding the head of substitute Nicholas Martinelli. Sensing a chance to snatch an unlikely draw, the Blues hounded the Valentine line.
But the visitors’ defence held firm and saw Valentine secure a crucial away win in their 2026 campaign to climb off the bottom of the table.
The Phoenix will return home on Saturday to face Newcastle Olympic, while Charlestown will face a difficult trip away to face Maitland at Cooks Square Park the same day.
Belmont Swansea United 6-3 Kahibah FC
Belmont Swansea reaffirmed why they are such a dangerous outfit, defeating Kahibah in a 6-3 goal-scoring frenzy at Blacksmiths Oval.
Continuing his rich vein of form, striker Marco Guelli started his afternoon early, scoring an eighth-minute penalty to give his side a 1-0 lead.
Skipper Reece Newton would double the advantage 12 minutes later but the attacking form of Kahibah soon bared its teeth, as a penalty at the other end of the field saw Jackson Burston score the visitors' first from the spot in the 37th minute.
But the hosts would get the last laugh, as a third penalty saw Gueli notch his second with BelSwans going into the break with a 3-1 lead.
Kahibah unloaded the bench after half-time but the hosts continued to hold the edge in the front third, with Gueli completing his hat-trick in the 66th minute and Andrew McGee scoring BelSwans’ fifth goal three minutes later to put the result beyond doubt.
Striker Matt Homer pulled one back for the visitors in the 77th minute but Gueli would score his fourth goal two minutes from full-time to increase his impressive season tally.
Rams’ substitute striker Daniel Byrne scored the ninth goal in added time but it would only prove a consolation on an incredible afternoon of attacking football, which saw more than 40 shots taken.
BelSwans will have a six-day turnaround as they head to face Lambton on Saturday in their first away game since mid-March, while Kahibah will return home to face defending champions Broadmeadow Magic at Fred Wright Oval on Sunday.