AIS 2 (Gersbach 24’, Antoniou 72’)
Newcastle Jets 0
Venue: AIS Grass Fields
The Australian Institute of Sport kicked off the new Youth League season with a home fixture against the Newcastle Jets on Saturday afternoon. Alexander Gersbach put the home side ahead mid-way through the first half with an effort in to the bottom corner. AIS doubled their lead with under twenty minutes remaining through Bai Antoniou who expertly put away a one-one-one chance. 

 

Brisbane Roar 3 (Walker 53', Hore 71', Ingham 74')
Melbourne Victory 3 (Nabbout 2', 68', Karvelis 25')
Venue: Goodwin Park
The reigning premiers Melbourne Victory began their season with a 3-3 draw away to Brisbane Roar. The away side gave up a 2-0 and 3-1 lead to share the spoils with the Roar. Andrew Nabbout gave Victory the lead after just two minutes before James Karevlis ensured they would be two goals to the good at half-time. Jaiden Walker pulled one back for the Roar at the start of the second half but Nabbout scored his second with just over twenty minutes to go to restore their two goal advantage. But Roar refused to give up and three minutes later Mitchell Hore had them back to within a goal. Three minutes after that and Roar managed to level the scores through Jai Ingham. The Roar almost stole the win late on but a Lawrence Thomas save and an offside call saved Victory’s blushes.

 

Perth Glory 0
Melbourne Heart 1 (Kaya 33’)
Venue: Intiga Stadium
Melbourne Heart got off to a winning start with a 1-0 victory against Perth Glory in the west. Contrary to the senior team, Heart were able to win away from home, with Ersin Kaya scoring the only goal of the game after 33 minutes. The goal came from some slick work down the right hand side, which included a cheeky back-heel from Hernan Espindola. Adrian Zahra started against his former club but was unable to get past Heart goalkeeper Marko Stevanja. 

 

Central Coast Mariners 0
Adelaide United 0
Venue: CCM Centre of Excellence
Central Coast Mariners and Adelaide United were unable to be separated as the two sides played out the first 0-0 draw of the campaign. It was Patrick Zwaanswijk’s first game in charge of the Mariners youth but after dominating most of the first half his side had nothing to show for it. Adelaide United goalkeeper Paul Izzo was forced to make a number of crucial saves and was a key figure in the contest. 

 

Sydney FC 1 (Naumoff 90+2’)
Western Sydney Wanderers 0
Venue: Cromer Park
Sydney FC left it late to snatch a dramatic 1-0 victory in the derby against local rivals Western Sydney Wanderers. The game was set for a second 0-0 finish of the round but Christopher Naumoff stepped up in stoppage time to secure the winner. The young stiker pounced after Nikola Taneski’s shot was blocked by Wanderers goalkeeper Blake Tuxford. Although it could have been a totally different ball game had Sean Symons’ volley gone in off the crossbar rather than rebounding out.

 

Round Two:
Brisbane Roar vs Melbourne Heart, Sat 2 Nov 2013, Goodwin Park 2.30pm
Perth Glory vs Sydney FC, Sun 3 Nov 2013, Intiga Stadium 10am
Melbourne Victory vs AIS, Sun 3 Nov 2013, Lakeside Stadium 2.30pm
Western Sydney Wanderers vs Adelaide United, Sun 3 Nov 2013, Marconi Stadium 2.30pm
Newcastle Jets vs Central Coast, Sun 3 Nov 2013, Wanderers Oval 3pm