White Eagles, Saints Almost Gone

Victorian Training Centre P
Richmond P
@ Knights Stadium

VICTORIAN Training Centre and Richmond did not take to the pitch at Knights Stadium on Tuesday night as heavy fog forced the postponement of their clash.

Visibility issues brought an end to the earlier Under 21’s clash at half time and officials called off the seniors’ fixture without a ball being kicked.

Bentleigh Greens 2 (Ryan De Vries, Michael Gwyther)
Richmond 3 (Michael Ferrante, Timmy Purcell, Own Goal)
@ Kingston Heath Soccer Complex

RICHMOND have all but assured their top flight status after an entertaining 3-2 win against Bentleigh.

The Eagles are 12 points clear of the bottom two after their second-straight win.

Bentleigh’s Aron Wilford diverted into his own net early on, before Ryan De Vries waltzed through the Richmond defence to send the teams into the break level.

The first 10 minutes of the second half were incredible as three goals were scored – the first a Michael Ferrante penalty.

Michael Gwyther equalised for the Greens but parity only lasted three minutes before Timmy Purcell tapped in after a shot from Nicholas Marinos was parried.

A win for Bentleigh could have cemented their spot in the top five and they now face a tough road trip to Hume.

Oakleigh Cannons 0
Melbourne Knights 1 (Jacob Colosimo)
@ Jack Edwards Reserve

MELBOURNE Knights recorded their first away win of the season as they picked up a 1-0 victory at Oakleigh.

Paul Magdic’s side has won four of their last five outings and are all but safe from relegation with a comfortable run home coming up.

A second-half penalty from Jacob Colosimo, his seventh goal of the season, was enough to condemn the Cannons to a third loss in five games.

Oakleigh will hold onto second despite the loss, but their struggles are a danger sign for a club renowned for slow finishes to campaigns.

Green Gully Cavaliers 1 (Jason Hayne)
Dandenong Thunder 0
@ Green Gully Reserve

GREEN Gully have moved back into the top five with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Dandenong Thunder.

The Cavaliers rebounded from their heavy 4-0 loss to Hume by collecting three points against Thunder, a club struggling after fines imposed by Football Federation Victoria earlier this year.

A 39th-minute goal from attacker Jason Hayne was enough to separate the two teams, although Gully’s Jonathan Munoz was carried off with what appeared to be a serious knee injury.

Thunder have only taken one point from their last five outings and lost coach Chris Taylor during the week after he walked out after barely a week in charge.

South Melbourne 1 (Steven Weir)
St Albans Saints 0
@ John Cain Memorial Park

SOUTH Melbourne maintained their spot in the top three, edging St Albans 1-0.

South are now four points clear of the sixth-placed Bentleigh after a second-half Steven Weir goal gave them full points against a Saints side that is all but relegated.

St Albans are 12 points from safety and have four games to play, needing a miracle to avoid dropping back to State League One after only a year in the top flight.

Springvale White Eagles 1 (Dominic D’Angelo)
Hume City 2 (Richard Cardozo, Isiyan Erdogan)
@ White Eagles Stadium

HUME City extended their unbeaten run to 10 matches as forward Richard Cardozo continued his goal-scoring spree in an eventful 2-1 win over the Springvale White Eagles.

The top of the table City surprisingly struggled against the relegation-destined White Eagles, relying on a late penalty save from shot-stopper Lupce Acevski to seal three points.

Cardozo had put them ahead via the dead ball in the first half, his 15th goal of the season.

But Springvale’s Dominic D’Angelo capitalised on some poor defending to equalise just after the interval, only for Hume defender Isiyan Erdogan to put his side back ahead on 77 minutes.

Erdogan’s day did not end there, sent off in stoppage time and giving White Eagles’ Zoran Vukas the chance to equalise from the penalty spot.

Acevski saved, leaving Springvale in the same position as St Albans and requiring something special to stay in the top flight.

Heidelberg United 2 (Saso Alexovski, Sean McIlroy)
Northcote City 1 (James Kalifatidis)
@ Olympic Park (Village)

HEIDELBERG United recorded a vital 2-1 win over Northcote City in a battle between two finals contenders.

It was the Bergers who moved back into the top five courtesy of the win, marred by the sending off of coach George Katsakis.

Neither side could break the deadlock in the first half and it was only after Katsakis was sent to the stands for dissent after 54 minutes that the Bergers opened a 2-0 lead.

Forward Saso Alexovski was first to strike, unleashing a powerful drive into the top corner from 30 yards.

Sean McIlroy made it two five minutes later and they held on despite James Kalifatidis tapping in a rebound after having his penalty saved by Griffin McMaster.

McMaster was involved in a heavy collision soon after and will miss the next six weeks because of a fractured tibia, he revealed on Twitter on Monday.

United are now two points clear of Bentleigh, while City are a point out of the five in seventh.

Round 19:
Wednesday (8.30pm): Victorian Training Centre v Hume City @ White Eagles Stadium
Friday (8.15pm): Melbourne Knights v Heidelberg United @ Knights Stadium
Saturday (3pm): Northcote City v Green Gully Cavaliers @ John Cain Memorial Park
Saturday (3pm): Dandenong Thunder v Springvale White Eagles @ George Andrews Reserve
Saturday (3pm): Hume City v Bentleigh Greens @ Broadmeadows Valley Park
Saturday (3pm): Richmond v South Melbourne @ Kevin Bartlett Reserve
Sunday (3pm): St Albans Saints v Oakleigh Cannons @ Churchill Reserve

Alanic Victorian Premier League 2011 – League Table

* Please note Victorian Training Centre games are for points but the team cannot play finals or be relegated.
* Round Three: Heidelberg United docked three points for incidents stemming from their clash with Hume City.
* Round Nine: Dandenong Thunder deducted six points for incidents stemming from their meeting with Bentleigh Greens.

Alanic Victorian Premier League 2011 - Leading Goal-Scorers
15 – Richard CARDOZO (Hume City)

11 – Saso ALEXOVSKI (Heidelberg United)

10 – Osagie EDERARO (Heidelberg United), Trent RIXON (Northcote City)

9 – James KALIFATIDIS (Northcote City)

8 – Michael FERRANTE (Richmond), Jason HAYNE (Green Gully Cavaliers), Steven WEIR (South Melbourne/Hume City)