Match of the Round
Kahibah FC 3-0 Valentine FC
Kahibah FC head coach Blair Newham is taking the time to savour a historic win for the NPL newcomers, as his side overcame a fiery Valentine FC to prevail 3-0 at Fred Wright Oval on Sunday afternoon.
The visitors started the game on the back foot, with William Eick nearly pouncing on several defensive lapses inside the first 10 minutes.
It ultimately culminated in a foul in the box by defender Zac McDougall in the 11th minute, with Daniel Byrne making no mistake from the spot to give the hosts a 1-0 lead.
The score proved to galvanise the Phoenix, with Kurtis White nearly returning fire if not for a strong save from Rams goalkeeper Isaac Quinn.
Valentine continued to build into the game, increasingly dictating terms, but the Rams defence proved up to the task, with Byrne and Eick threatening to expose the Phoenix through counterattack.
Kahibah ultimately went into the break leading 1-0, but it wouldn’t take long for the tension to explode once action resumed.
Valentine continued to press, and a heavy challenge on Luka Karihaloo forced the Rams to weather the pressure, with tensions soon boiling over between the sides. Moments later, Valentine’s Jake De Marigny was shown a red card for violent conduct.
The visitors continued to threaten despite being reduced to 10 men, with Quinn pulling off another great save in the 58th minute to keep his clean sheet intact.
Ultimately, the Phoenix couldn’t find the net, and when the Rams finally got the chance to turn the tables, they made Valentine pay.
Substitute Riley Ferguson made his presence known quickly, with a strong buildup culminating in Eick netting his first goal in the 74th minute.
The Rams rapidly followed with another to Byrne two minutes later, with the locals starting to celebrate a historic afternoon for the men in green.
Valentine looked to try and finish the game with a consolation goal, but after botching several free kicks in the final ten minutes, the final effort before full time was undone by poor discipline.
The Phoenix head coach Lee Sterrey was left lamenting the opportunities his side missed, but he believes it’ll prove a valuable lesson for the young group.
“At the end of the day, [we were] our own worst enemy,” Sterrey said.
“The red card changed the game. We just started to build some pressure; we had them in the back third. We hurt ourselves.
“Plenty of teams won with ten men, yes, but when you're 1-0 down, on this pitch, with this team, they just grew wings from it. They [Kahibah] deserved it today.
“We know we're young, we're going to take some pain throughout the year.
“But we're by no stretch finished yet. We're only going to get better as the season goes on.”
For Newham, while his side has a busy week ahead with a Hahn Australia Cup clash, he was taking the time to savour a historic afternoon.
The result was Kahibah’s first home win in the NPL, their first back-to-back wins and clean sheet in the NPL, and their first-ever win at their new home of Fred Wright Oval.
“The emotion of it is still pretty raw,” Newham said.
“When you see the smiles on people's faces and how many people turned out on a Sunday afternoon and how well this club supported, it means a lot to them.
“The red card took a little bit of Valentine’s potency out of their attack. It was still a big arm wrestle for five or six minutes after that, though.
“We defended very well today. That's something we focused on after round one, and we just keep getting better at it. All five of our substitutes came on today and added value.
“I'm just happy we're playing well. Our major focus is on trying to solidify our space in the NPL. Anyone can beat anyone; it's such a crazy competition.”
The Rams will turn their attention to hosting Weston next weekend after their Hahn Australia Cup clash on Wednesday, while Valentine will look to bounce back against a similarly struggling Adamstown at home on Saturday.
Belmont Swansea United 4-3 Edgeworth Eagles
Belmont Swansea United head coach Michael Stafford is still approaching every game like his side are underdogs despite pulling arguably their biggest win in NPL NNSW history so far with a 4-3 defeat of Edgeworth Eagles at Blacksmiths Oval on Saturday.
The hosts were hoping their strong attack would be enough to cut through the best defensive side in the league, and the confidence proved well-founded after star striker Marco Gueli got his side on the board in the 13th minute off a throw-in.
Edgeworth asked questions in the midfield but continued to have issues in front of goal, only attempting three shots across the half and going into the break down 1-0.
But the Eagles emerged for the second half looking like a different side.
Pressing early, Flynn Goodman got his side on the board two minutes into the second half, his shot ricocheting off a BelSwans player into the net.
Only four minutes later, Aaron Niyonkuru benefited from a handy pass from Goodman to score an easy goal, giving the visitors the lead for the first time.
A third goal to Stefan Cordwell, thanks to a well-threaded pass from Niyonkuru, saw the Eagles' lead stretch to 3-1 in the 64th minute, with the visitors on track to keep their undefeated record.
But in a frenetic 10 minute period, the BelSwans’ lethal counterattack saw Gueli score in the 67th and 70th minute to draw level with the visitors.
With momentum on their side, BelSwans' swarming attack pressed the advantage, and in the 74th minute, Gueli produced his fourth goal of the night, shooting from long range to get past Eagles goalkeeper Ben Conway to give his side the lead.
The score ultimately gave the hosts the momentum to see the game out, handing the Eagles their first loss of the season.
Stafford is excited to see how Gueli can continue to grow across the season but is staying grounded as his side continues to build into the NPL NNSW league.
“He's [Gueli] quality on and off the park,” Stafford said.
“He only had four shots, and he scored four goals. There's something to his quality.
“It was good to come back in the second half after we started poorly after half-time and get that result.
“I think it is our biggest ever win in the NPL at the moment. The boys have got good drive, they've got good hunger. It's a super group.
“We’re obviously week-to-week, but we're hungry and excited to keep going and see where we can end up.
“We're the underdog every game. You're playing well-established clubs, both on and off the field. We're playing against it. We're going to be the underdog every game.
“I think that's what the boys like about it. There's no pressure, there's no expectation on us. We're just going week-by-week and trying to forge results.”
BelSwans will enjoy an eight-day turnaround before they welcome Newcastle Olympic next week, while Edgeworth will return home to take on Charlestown Azzurri at Jack McLaughlan Oval next Saturday.
Newcastle Olympic 0-2 Broadmeadow Magic
Newcastle Olympic endured a difficult afternoon against defending champions Broadmeadow Magic, going down 2-0 at Darling Street Oval on Saturday.
Fresh off their win over Weston Bears before the Easter break, Magic picked up where they left off, threatening from the opening stages.
But after weathering the pressure, Olympic started to work their way into the match, asking a few questions of Magic goalkeeper Jeremiah Cleur.
Stepping up the pressure in the midfield, the visitors were ultimately rewarded with their first goal of the afternoon in the 22nd minute, with a brilliant buildup finding Keanu Moore unmarked in the box, the youngster making no mistake.
The score galvanised Olympic, who looked to have their equaliser in the 25th minute as Kale Bradbery benefitted from a ricocheting ball to score, only to be called offside. It would prove their best chance, going into the break down 1-0.
The game picked up a frenetic speed in the second half, with Olympic desperate to find their equaliser and Magic looking to put the game away.
Ultimately, the injection of fresh legs proved decisive in the 59th minute, with Ezra Palombini pouncing on a cross and an Olympic defensive lapse from Marcus Duncan to give his side their second.
Ending a difficult afternoon for Olympic that saw them take 11 shots and five corners for no results, a clumsy Duncan tackle in the first minute of extra time saw the defender receive a red card.
Olympic will have an eight-day turnaround before they travel to face Belmont Swansea United, while Magic will return home for the first time in a month when they host Cooks Hill United next Friday.
Lambton Jaffas 0-2 Weston Bears
Lambton Jaffas’ difficult start to the season has only gotten even harder, with league leaders Weston Bears handing last year’s runners-up a 2-0 defeat on Saturday, and their third loss of the year at home.
Determined to bounce back after a loss to Magic before the break, Weston took just 18 minutes to get on the board, with Caylan Law pouncing on Jaffas defender Lawson Weeks to find himself in a one-on-one with goalkeeper Ben Kennedy and finding his way past.
The Jaffas retaliated by upping the pressure in the midfield, but despite capitalising on field position, couldn’t find a way past Gerard Roebuck, the Bears heading into the break leading 1-0.
The Bears returned fire through field position pressure back on the hosts and ultimately prevailed through a Dominic Archbold cross finding Brock Beveridge in the 58th minute, the visitors taking a 2-0 lead.
Despite the hosts finding more attempts on goal, their inaccuracy and inability to find the back of the net proved costly, finishing the game without a goal in consecutive weeks, having not got on the ledger since their round four clash with Charlestown Azzurri.
Lambton will head out on the road next week when they travel to play Maitland FC, while the Bears will stay on the road when they travel to take on newcomers Kahibah FC next Sunday.
Adamstown Rosebud FC 2-5 Maitland FC
Braedyn Crowley has sent a timely reminder as to why he is considered the most dangerous attacker in the competition, scoring an incredible five goals as his side Maitland FC overcame Adamstown Rosebud FC 5-2 in the final match on Saturday night.
Kicking off under the lights at Adamstown Oval, it didn’t take long for Crowley to get on the scoresheet, picking up a great ball from Taye Power-O'Toole to score his first in the 12th minute.
A badly timed tackle from Buds goalkeeper George Scorer saw the hosts concede a penalty in the 25th minute, with Crowley benefitting from a favourable bounce off the woodwork to net his second.
The striker would have his third on the stroke of half-time, a Regan Lundy ball seeing Crowley overcome two covering defenders and the keeper to score, Maitland heading into the sheds with a resounding 3-0 lead.
Any hopes of a miraculous Buds reply were dealt a further blow in the 52nd minute, as the hosts struggled to claim possession deep in their own territory, with Power-O'Toole linking up again to deliver Crowley his fourth.
The hosts would finally get on the scoresheet in the 76th minute through a long-range Dino Fajkovic, the skipper scoring two goals in five minutes to give Adamstown supporters something to cheer about.
But a fifth Crowley goal one minute later put an exclamation mark on the result, the visitors bouncing back well from a disappointing home loss last week to Kahibah FC.
The Magpies will look to put a bad run of losses at home behind them when they host Lambton Jaffas, while Adamstown will chase their first win of the season when they travel to Croudace Bay to take on Valentine FC.
Charlestown Azzurri v Cooks Hill United
This match has been rescheduled to Sunday 7 June.