LAURIE WILLIAMS and JOHN CARDONA
SOCCER
LVSL
By LAURIE WILLIAMS
AFTER Round 11, there were some big changes to the ladder, following the completion of the first half of the season.
Fortuna 60′ jumped from third to top position after their 4-0 demolition of Falcons 2000, Morwell Pegasus climbed from fourth to third after disposing of Tyers Lightning 7-0, Moe United stayed in second after being held to a 0-0 draw and Falcons tumbled from top to fourth, such is the closeness of the competition.
Falcons 0 def by Fortuna 4
FALCONS lost top spot on the ladder and had to hand over the Inter-Australian Trophy after going down 4-0 to neighbours Fortuna in the Saturday night blockbuster.
Fortuna took advantage early with pin-point passing which them able to control the ball.
Falcons suffered from frequent turn-overs which allowed the Lions to capitalise on the errors made by Falcons.
Early returns saw Fortuna apply pressure with goals coming from Matt Janson and Hayden Tanti as the Lions wrapped up the first half with a 2-0 lead.
Falcons looked better in the second half with Josh Patterson, Tom D’Alia and Kevin Carcellar all providing drive, as they tried to get on the scoreboard.
Tall Alex Bowman was the big stumbling block for Fortuna, as he constantly headed the ball from defence each time Falcons went forward.
Fortuna goal keeper Con Mavrofridis had very little to do as many of the attacks failed to reach him.
Eight minutes into the second half, Fortuna went three-up after Hayden Tanti latched onto the ball after it rebounded from the keeper for an easy tap in.
It was tough in the middle with many hard tackles as both teams strived to gain the advantage.
Falcons made a double change in the 67th minute, in an effort to recharge their forward half.
Fortuna with their long kicking allowed forwards DJ Matar and Hayden Tanti the chance to add to the score-line but it was Ollie Spiteri who was able to head home their fourth goal after a goalpost rebound.
It was Fortuna’s first LVSL win over Falcons since 2014.
Olympians 4 def Churchill 0
OLYMPIANS won their second match of the season with a clinical finish to beat Churchill 4-0 in gusty conditions in Traralgon.
A penalty to Anton Antonopoulos started proceedings for Olympians, as they stated to dominate the match, Churchill’s veteran Craig Cheney in goals was under pressure early as Olympians were constantly pushing forward.
Churchill couldn’t make any inroads as Olympians tightened up their defence and by half time the home side led 1-0.
Jayden Steele was having a blinder on the flank and he was rewarded with a superb goal on the hour.
Churchill were competitive but couldn’t break through and when the match was almost finished, Anton Antonopoulos chipped in for his second, and Ollie Saliba claimed Olympians’ fourth, four minutes into extra time to give the home side a 4-0 victory, their biggest win over the Rams since 2017.
Tyers 0 def by Pegasus 7
HAT-TRICKS to Kuku Mahmoud and Germaine Otieno – who now goes to equal leader with Fortuna’s Jordan Campbell on 13 goals – and a single to Manny Eliaser gave Pegasus an easy 7-0 win over Tyers, the Horsemen making short work against a willing Tyers side.
It was Pegasus’ biggest win over the Lightning and now it puts them in a strong position in third to challenge Fortuna for the top position after the King’s Birthday holiday break.
By JOHN CARDONA
Moe United 0 drew with Newborough Yallourn United 0
THE local derby between Moe United and Newborough/Yallourn United ended in a nil-all draw.
The Combine took to Olympic Park on Sunday, for Round 11 action in front of a large crowd.
Moe United controlled the most part of possession in the first 25 minutes, but failed to convert any of their clear-cut chances.
Riley Winkleman had a great opportunity after five minutes of play for the Red Devils when he latched onto Brendan Ruddell’s well-flighted corner, only to see his headed attempt go inches wide of the far post.
Minutes later, Connor O’Hanlon created an opportunity after a penetrating run down the right saw his cross split the Newborough/Yallourn defence, only to see both Winkleman and Matt Shearing’s desperate lunges fail to connect to the ball.
Moe’s strong defensive play led by Tanner Pyle, Nick Fogarty, Chad Shelley and Ruddell repelled any of Newborough/Yallourn’s attacking attempts, giving Moe veteran keeper Peter Albanese very little to do.
At the 30-minute mark, Oscar Sceney thought he had broken the deadlock when his perfectly judged header picked out the top corner at the back post, but great anticipation from Newborough/Yallourn’s keeper made a tremendous save.
Connor Dastey made a great run down the right and found an unmarked Toley Winkleman for Moe, but he sprayed his headed attempt wide of the target.
The second half saw a more scrappy affair, with a few yellow cards handed out to players on both sides.
Very few chances were created, although Sceney had a shot on the turn that went narrowly over the crossbar.
Fairbrother for the Combine had the best chance, only to see his well hit drive go narrowly wide.
Moe’s best opportunity came after 82 minutes when Riley Winkleman, through a perfect pass for O’Hanlon, was repelled by the keeper.
In the final few minutes, the Combine thought they had snatched the winner against the run of play, only to see the linesman’s flag up for an offside infringement.
Best for Moe was Pyle, Sceney and Shelley.
IN the reserves, the Combine was too strong, winning 2-0.
The women’s game saw the visitors win an entertaining encounter 4-2. Best for Moe was Paris Troughton, Taylah Armistead and Miley Cooper.
In the women’s Under 18 squad for the junior country championships, Moe’s Opal East and 13-year-old wonder twins Miley and Summer Cooper were selected.
No matches will be played this weekend due to King’s Birthday long weekend.
