Under 15 Boys: Fairfield Hotspurs too strong for Hawks

Fairfield Hotspurs put in a dominant display to defeat a resilient Menai Hawks side 3-0 in the Under 15 Boys EA Sports Champions of Champions final.

Fairfield Hotspurs jumped into the lead as early as the 8’ minute, with Nathan Irusta showing great composure to slot home a penalty.

It was end to end action early in the piece with both sides trading attacking blows with Menai Hawks looking to make use of the height of Jack Thorne with a high ball into the box, but the striker was unable to direct his effort on target.

Nathan Irusta did well to dispossess his marker and deliver a tantalising cross into the box to find Peter Khouchaba free at the far post on 25’ minutes, but his glancing header finished on the wrong side of the post.

Following the break, Fairfield Hotspurs doubled their advantage just after the restart. Some great footwork by Brendan Warda saw him create space inside the area, letting fly a shot that Hawks shot stopper Dylan Sutic could only parry – with the rebound falling to Anthony Zappia who tapped into the empty net.

Despite falling behind, Menai Hawks refused to give up and some great passing and movement saw the Hawks bomb forward into Hotspurs territory on numerous occasions in search for a goal.

The Hawks best chance came in the 60’ minute, after a scramble ensued inside the box with Rody Dawood making a string of fine saves to keep the Hawks scoreless.

With literally the last kick of the game, Peter Khouchaba made sure of the result by scoring with his head after peeling off to the back post unmarked to make it 3-0 in what was a truly entertaining clash.

Match Stats:

Fairfield Hotspurs 3 (N Irusta 8’ A Zappia 37’ P Khouchaba 69’)

Menai Hawks 0

Saturday October 20th, 2012

Valentine Park, Glenwood

Fairfield Hotspurs: GK.R.Dawood; 2.B.Kirby, 3.D.Lilly, 4.J.Cunico, 5.N.Irusta, 6.L.Ferreira, 7.M.Hanna, 8.A.Zappia, 9.B.Warda, 10.J.Lepore, 11.P.Khouchaba, 14.J.Kosso, 23.M.Ciarleglio

Menai Hawks: GK.D.Sutic; 2.L.Azzopardi, 3.J.Williams, 4.N.Samios, 5.L.Basic, 6.B.Barlow, 7.J.Thorne, 8.L.Sparke, 9.A.Agius, 10.J.Locaputo, 11.R.Brissett, 12.S.Stratton, 13.M.Downes, 15.J.Towell, 23.J.Coelho

-By Dean Southern

 

U16s boys: Extra-time winner gives Bellambi JSC thrilling victory

The Grand Final of Grand Finals.

A win for either team would provide hero status amongst their footballing peers; a loss would leave nothing but tears and sleepless nights. After all, this is why we love the round ball game so much. This is the Champions of Champions.

Bankstown Sports Strikers in their traditional green and yellow kits got the ball moving and were instantly on the attack against their red and green counterparts, Bellambi JSC.

From the moment the starting whistle blew, it was obvious who the architect of Bankstown Sport Strikers play would be, centre forward Brennan Fussell. The tall, pacey attacker was the perfect link between the midfielder and the final third of the field whilst also providing plenty of entertainment for those on the sidelines with his ability to beat a defender with ease.

Some desperate defending from Bellambi’s Jesse Tyssen in the opening ten minutes of play was enough to deny Mahmoud Elomar an opening goal for Bankstown Sports Strikers. A fantastic strike on goal but an even better save was the proof of both teams’ focus and dedication towards this fixture.

Bellambi’s Franco Ledesma found himself in a shooting position midway through the first half however a less than pretty challenge meant Bellambi were awarded a free kick in a prime position. Daniel George stepping up to take the free kick which clipped the crossbar much to the surprise of the Bankstown Sports goalkeeper who predicted the ball to sail over the goal.

With just three minutes before half time, Bankstown Sports Strikers found themselves in front. Youseff Nasreddine firing in a long range free kick forcing the Bellambi keeper Billy Deniz to come off his line to collect the ball. Unfortunately for Bellambi, Billy Deniz couldn’t hold onto the ball which in turn dropped in front of midfielder James Miotto who pumped the ball into the back of the net to put his side in front just before the break.

Two minutes into the second half and Bellambi got themselves an equaliser, putting a smile back on the faces of the boys in green and red. With a long ball over the top of Bankstown Sports Strikers’ defence, Bellambi’s captain Daniel George found himself with space and time to catch the Strikers’ goalkeeper in no-mans-land before nudging the ball into the back of the net.

Both sides got into some good positions however were unable to capitalise on their chances. With the scores level at a goal each, extra time and the pressure filled golden goal time started.

Bellambi looked the better of the two sides during extra time with Junior Mushaba a bright spark up front as he linked up with James Wakeling time after time in the final third of the pitch. Bankstown Sports Strikers on the other hand were really struggling with the demand of extra time and it wasn’t long until players started dropping likes flies due to cramps and niggling injuries.

With the scores still level and just seconds left on the clock, a penalty shoot-out looked likely. That was until Bellambi’s captain Daniel George managed to get the winning goal in the 95th minute of play by scoring off a corner. 

A well-deserved win for Bellambi who are a small club based in the Illawarra made famous for two things. Firstly producing one of the best left sided players to ever grace the Australian National Team, Scott Chipperfield. And Secondly, Mark Tyssen’s 2012 under 16s squad who were crowned minor premiers of the Football South Coast competition, winners of the Robert Brown Cup, Champions of the State Cup and finally the Champions of Champions winners.

Match Stats:

Bankstown Sports Strikers 1 (James Miotto 32’)

Bellambi JSC 2 (Daniel George 37’, 95’)

Saturday 20th October, 2012

Valentine Sports Park, Glenwood

Referee: Brett Lorimer

Assistant Referees: Keith Yau and James Ford

Bankstown Sports Strikers: 1. Christopher BUTLEY, 4. Jay PHOUISANGIEM, 2. Frank FERRANTE, 6. Jackson RYAN, 29. Evan LOIZOU, 12. Bennan FUSSEL, 7. Zac BELANI, 20. Youseff NASREDDINE, 28. James MIOTTO, 8. Jason HOOPER, 9. Alex GHABACHE.

Substitutions: 13. Hassan EL CHEIKH-ALI, 10. Mahmoud ELOMAR, 14. Adam IACONA, 11. Adam TAHERE.

Yellow Cards: Evan Loizou 33’

Red Cards: Nil.

Bellambi JSC: 1. Billy DENIZ, 2. Jesse TYSSEN, 3. Kevin ANDERSON, 4. Chris ZANETTI, 5. Curtis GUNES, 6. Jean BUKASA, 7. David DIEUDONNE, 8. Francesco LIBERTI, 9. Jamie WAKELING, 10. Junior MUSHABA, 11. Daniel GEORGE

Substitutions: 12. Matthew WALLACE, 14. Brendon FROOM, 15. Des BAROS, 16. Franco LEDESMA, 17. Imran AGAS.

Yellow Cards: Nil.

Red Cards: Nil.

- By Pete Nowakowski

 

Under 17 Boys: Awesome Auburn Districts spank Figtree

Auburn Districts showed why they have remained undefeated in all competitions over the past two seasons, putting in a fine display to defeat Figtree 6-0 in the Under 17 Boys EA Sports Champions of Champions final.

Moustafa Rifai wasted no time to open his account and had his side up within the first 30 seconds of the match with a well taken goal.

Despite the hot conditions, both sides started the game at a frantic pace but it was Figtree’s custodian Aydin Basoglu who was certainly the busier of the two early on, making a string of early saves to keep his side in the contest.

Auburn Districts made it 2-0 in the 20’ minute, as Moustafa Rifai pounced on the loose ball following a corner.

Just moments later Auburn’s Yasir Naderi made a rampant run towards goal, letting fly a shot that deflected just over the crossbar.

Down the other end, Luke Simon showed great pace and composure to deliver a magnificent near post cross that Hassaniyan Alzaidi smothered up comfortably.

Following the break, Figtree won a penalty not long after the restart. Bradly Cascio stepped up to the plate but slid his shot across goal, missing the target.

Just some moments later Auburn were gifted a penalty after some nice footwork by Haidar Al Shinawa saw the striker brought down in the box. Elli Esber stepped up and made no mistake – slotting the ball into the bottom right hand corner in the 49’ minute to make it 3-0.

Less than five minutes later Elli Esber was at it again, scoring in the 55' minute after winning the ball deep inside Figtree’s box and taking Basoglu by surprise with a clever near post finish.

Figtree had an opportunity to pull a goal back in the 60’ minute but Ben Goodhew’s effort packed too much power as it blasted over the crossbar from close range.

Omer Elustu made it 5-0 with a clinical finish after 63’ minutes, slamming the ball into the back of the net after finding space inside the box.

Less than five minutes later Elustu finished a superb half volley from 25 yards out into the back of the net only to be called back for off-side.

Auburn were still not finished though, and made it 6-0 after Haidar Al Shinawa darted inside the box to shoot past the hapless Basoglu in the 77’ minute to round off an impressive display.

Match Stats:

Figtree 0

Auburn Districts 6 (M Rifai 1/20’ E Esber 49/55’ O Elustu 63’ H Shinawa 77’)

Saturday October 20th, 2012

Valentine Park, Glenwood

Figtree: GK.A.Basoglu; 2.B.Cascio, 3.B.Goodhew, 4.S.Kaleski, 5.K.Kandilas, 6.K.Kefford, 7.S.McDougall, 8.L.Melkerts, 9.R.Morgan, 10.J.Pierro, 11.J.Reid,12.L.Simon, 13.H.Till, 14.C.Twigg, 15.J.Uzunovski, 16.A.Williams

Auburn Districts: GK.H.Alzaidi; 2.M.Tobbie, 3.Y.Bah, 4.O.Elustu, 5.A.Rubaa, 6.E.Karatas, 7.M.Rifai, 8.Z.Hassan, 9.H.Shinawa, 10.M.Rady, 11.Y.Naderi, 12.C.Nguyen, 13.J.Elsamad, 14.O.Elrish, 15.H.Abed, 16.E.Esber

-By Dean Southern

 

Boys U18s: Gunners shoot down Enfield with golden goal

Gunners SC sealed the Boys U18s final with a dramatic golden goal to overcome a resilient Enfield Rovers by a 1-0 scoreline.

Jimjay Aloese was the hero on the day; his 95th minute goal proved decisive after the industrious striker threatened the Enfield backline throughout the match.

Joseph Ferrone gave Gunners an early scare with a cheeky attempt direct from a corner that curled inches over the crossbar; Gunners custodian Nick Pedreira was arguably alert to the attempt.

Gunners were limited to long range efforts during the opening stages before the match was briefly interrupted by a Powerade tent blown across the pitch by an increasing cross-pitch wind.

Aloese came close to opening the scoring for Gunners soon after with a rasping drive from the edge of the box that required a sublime save from Alexander Bendeich to keep the scores level.

Gunners looked to be on top as the half wore on yet other than another Aloese effort that flashed past the far post neither side came close top opening the scoring before the interval.

The second half proved to be a real test for the players as the scorching heat continued to rise and fatigue began to set in.

Bendeich almost gifted Gunners the lead as he spilt a high ball yet the keeper made up for his error by getting his body behind the ball as Liam Piggott looked to apply the finish.

Bendeich was again on hand to keep his side level just as he punched clear Jarrod Risby’s goal-bound free kick just after the hour mark.

Chances were few and far between before a late flurry of attacks could have seen either side grab a late lead, with Cameron Wallace and Aloese going closest before Enfield couldn’t find the final touch they needed in a goal mouth scramble in the closing minutes of normal time.

With nothing separating the sides at the full time whistle the match went into extra time.

Nicholas Smythe went close for Enfield as they threatened from a corner yet the Gunners defence was on hand to deflect his finish wide.

Gunners found the decisive goal soon after as a swift counterattack concluded with Aloese grabbing a well-deserved golden goal to wrap up the narrow win for his side.

Match Stats:

Gunners SC 1 (Jimjay Aloese 95’)

Enfield Rovers SC 0

Gunners SC:  1.Nick Pedreira, 12. Matthew Wallace, 3.Cameron Wallace, 4.Ryan Capps, 5.Craig Jackson, 6.Dylan Karan, 7.Joshua Allen, 9.Luke Shirley, 11.Jarrod Risby, 14.Jordan Omrod, 17.Jimjay Aloese, 8.Liam Piggott, 10.Luke Matthews, 15.Aiden Shortland, 16.Nabil Daoud

Enfield Rovers: 1.Alexander Bendeich, 2.Dominic  Cavagnino, 3.Julian Cardona, 5.Paul Salvarinas, 6.Nicholas Smythe, 8.Ricardo Romeo, 9.Gianluca D’Amico, 10.Andrew Gouveia, 12.Joseph Ferrone, 15.Robert Patruno, 17.Justin Scalone, 14.Andrew Ghajar, 26.Adrian Dellaia

-By Michael Shoolman