SOCCER

FV LATROBE VALLEY

By LAURIE WILLIAMS, SEBASTIAN HASSETT

 

EAST Gippsland United caused the upset of Round 6 in Football Victoria Latrobe Valley, defeating Churchill in a result that might cost the Rams a shot at the title.

Defending league champions Moe United could also be toast, after losing 2-nil to Monash.

The Red Devils currently have an entire team sitting on the side lines due to injury.

 

Olympians 7 def Traralgon City 0

FOR the 85th time, the Traralgon soccer derby was played between Traralgon Olympians and Traralgon City,

Olympians won 7-nil to take their 40th derby.

The contest between these two neighbours, which is only separated by a fence, has always been fiercely competitive.

Last Saturday night however, all the plaudits went to Olympians. It was only the second time ever that a 7-nil score line has been recorded between the two sides, the first back in 1992.

Saturday night’s match had the early hallmarks of a traditional clash, with a couple of hard nuts coming together at 28 minutes. The referee sorted them out with a yellow card each.

By halftime, scores were locked at nil-all.

The big break-through came on the hour when Olympians’ Jake Dunstall drilled one past the City keeper which paved the way for Jordan Martin to score a brace at 63 and 70 minutes.

Zac Anderson was subbed on for captain Alradi Ali at 73 minutes. He made his presence felt by scoring two goals in six minutes. City tired and Olympians made them pay, scoring another two goals at 89 and 90 minutes by Moni Eliaser, who now leads the superboot pack with seven goals.

 

East Gippsland 3 def Churchill 1

FOR the second time in two seasons, East Gippsland has ripped the heart out of Churchill.

The home side won 3-1 in the biggest upset of the season so far.

Churchill went into the match near the top, while the Eagles were on the bottom in a winless situation.

This all changed however on a miserable afternoon for Churchill.

Churchill opened up early and it took only 12 minutes before Jacob Cheney banged one into the net and it looked like the Rams were on their way, but pressure from the rigid Eagles defence saw Churchill head into the sheds only 1-nil up at half time.

East Gippsland captain Sergio Quitadamo levelled the scores 10 minutes into the second half.

Leading by example, Quitadamo scored his brace 15 minutes later to break the deadlock, much to the delight of the home crowd.

Churchill pressed on, but to no avail, and to rub salt into the wound, the Eagles scored again deep into injury time, with Joshua Calle scoring his third goal for the season to give East Gippsland a deserved 3-1 victory.

 

Pegasus 5 def Sale United 4

PEGASUS continued its match winning form with a solid win over Sale in their 45th match against the Swans.

Sale was on the board early when James Penn opened up at eight minutes.

Pegasus then produced some magic, with three goals in three minutes after a lapse of concentration from the Sale defence.

Levi Mahammud (17), Chocho Jacob (19) and them Kuku Mahammud at 20 minutes, turned the game around with the halftime score seeing Pegasus up 3-1.

Choco Jacob scored his brace at 51 minutes, but two minutes later, Pegasus was reduced to 10 players after Nelson Tombra received a second yellow.

Sale, with the extra player on the field, was able to claw back with three goals, with Jacob Richardson scoring on the hour and then Luke Wilson scoring at 67 and and 70 to bring the game alive at 4-all.

The pressure was now on, but cool heads prevailed, with Cholil Nyachiol becoming the hero for the Horsemen with an 86th minute goal.

 

Falcons 5 def NYU 1

IT’S been 75 years since Yalloun Soccer Club’s famous ‘Miracle Men’ shocked the world to become Victorian champions.

The anniversary might be the only thing the Combine gets to celebrate this year, after they were trounced 5-1 by a rampaging Falcons 2000 outfit at Burrage Reserve last Sunday afternoon.

Falcons (1984 and 1989) and Newborough-Yallourn United (1951) share the remarkable distinction of being crowned Victorian league champions, a testament to the astonishing history and legacy that soccer holds in Gippsland.

Only one other club – North Geelong Warriors in 1992 – has ever managed to win the Victorian State League (now called NPL Victoria) from outside metropolitan Melbourne.

However, it’s only the Morwell-based side who will fancy their chances of adding silverware to the cabinet based on their sensational past month, winning four straight matches to put themselves right in the hunt for the Football Victoria Latrobe Valley title.

Confidence was flowing through the Falcons’ outfit after recent victories over East Gippsland, Moe United and Traralgon City, and what followed was another statement performance, set up by three first half goals.

“Going to Newborough is always tough, so we prepared ourselves very thoroughly all week but ultimately we still had to execute and I thought our players did that in style,” coach Adrian Salvatore said.

“To be 3-nil up at the break was a fitting reward for the way the boys were playing.

“It’s an exciting brand of football that the group is starting to produce. Hopefully we can continue building on that momentum and keep this strong run going.”

Falcons wasted little time imposing themselves on the contest, striking in just the sixth minute through Jordi Vacca, whose fine finish rewarded the visitors’ bright opening spell.

The early breakthrough immediately unsettled the Combine, with Falcons controlling possession and repeatedly threatening through their quick movement and attacking intensity.

An early substitution forced Salvatore into a reshuffle when Tom D’Alia replaced Sam Amaira – who scored a brace against Traralgon City the previous weekend – in the 25th minute, but the visitors barely missed a beat.

Toby Capp doubled the advantage four minutes later, before adding his second in the 37th minute to complete a devastating first-half display.

At 3-nil down, the Combine faced a daunting second-half task.

Jordan Kennedy effectively sealed the result in the 68th minute when he added Falcons’ fourth goal – although NYUSC stalwart Mark Fairbrother converted a penalty two minutes later to briefly give the home side some hope.

Falcons never looked troubled however, and co-captain Jamie Pistrin completed the rout with a penalty of his own in the 90th minute.

The result continues a dramatic turnaround for Falcons after a difficult start to the campaign.

Salvatore praised the group’s work ethic and resilience after shock back-to-back losses to begin the year.

“The group has worked extremely hard for these results and this is what they’re capable of when they combine confidence and cohesion,” he said.

“We’re very proud of this performance but our focus is already shifting to hosting Sale next week and building on this run of form.”

Falcons’ clash against Sale United – who are also emerging as an outside title chance – will kick off at 5pm this Sunday at Morwell Recreation Reserve.