LAURIE WILLIAMS and JOHN CARDONA
SOCCER
LVSL
By LAURIE WILLIANS
ROUND 17 didn’t go as planned for a couple of teams. Moe was held to a 1-1 draw by Sale, helped by a Sale defender with an own goal. Falcons demolished Olympians 9-0, while Churchill snapped a 25-game winless streak with a hard-earned 1-0 victory over Tyers. Fortuna had to come from behind twice to win 4-2 over Newborough/Yallourn.
Falcons v Olympians
FALCONS demolished Olympians on a cold Saturday night at Falcons Park, the Birds dominating all aspects of the match from their first goal to the last, with a nine-goal to-nil victory. The club were celebrating their 30th-year reunion off the field, but on the field, they were taking charge, delivering the coup de grace on the hapless Olympians.
Although well beaten on the scoreboard, Olympians never gave up trying but couldn’t break through the tight end lines by Falcons. Keeper Charles Simon saved a couple of good chances, but there were few by Olympians as Falcons took control.
James Mills was the highlighted star for Falcons, scoring four top goals, the first two at 26 and 35 minutes, with the next two coming 50 minutes apart at 76 and 85 minutes.
Captain Joby Capp scored twice, as did Nonda Lazaris, but the big cheer went up as veteran defender Joe Auchiello scored the final goal of the match at 88 minutes to give Falcons a decisive 9-0 victory.
Olympians, although down, had good players in Mohamad Taleb, Adinew Page and Devang Krish, while for Falcons, the defensive line of Joe Auciello, Gabrielle Bochicchio and Toby Capp was hard to beat.
Churchill v Tyers
CHURCHILL broke through for their first win since round nine (May 28) of 2022, beating Tyers by a single goal in a frantic struggle for three points, reversing their first-round defeat by Tyers, which was also 1-0.
The win came from a Mark Bianconi penalty shot which beat the keeper at the 37-minute mark.
Although winning, it was still not enough to lift the Rams off the bottom of the table.
It’s been a long journey for the Rams going 25 games without a win, but their hard work and persistence finally paid dividends.
Newborough/Yallourn v Fortuna
IT was a game that Newborough/Yallourn needed to win to stay in contention for a top spot, but Fortuna spoilt the Combine’s dream.
It was looking good for the Combine when they were able to score from Mark Fairbrother 11 minutes into the match. Fortuna, without their usual punching power up front, was floundering under pressure, but on the half-hour, they equalised.
It was 1-1 at the break, but Tristan Donohue put the Combine back in front with a goal at 50 minutes, but four minutes later, Fortuna again equalised through a penalty.
Newborough/Yallourn went a player down after a send-off on the hour. A quick turnaround saw the Lions add another only two minutes later as they regained control, and finally, in injury time, they made it a 4-2 ball game.
Daniel Cooper scored a brace, as did Hayden Tanti for Fortuna as they continued to press hard for the top spot.
The Lions trail Falcons by one point with a game in hard but have a better goal difference of 59 to 31 which may ultimately decide the top position in five weeks’ time.
By JOHN CARDONA
Sale United v Moe United
MOE United’s travels to Sale ended in a disappointing night for the Red Devil’s.
In their quest for the Latrobe Valley Soccer League title, Moe dropped two valuable points on Saturday night against a fighting and determined Sale United, with the match ending in a 1-all draw.
Moe United was gifted an early lead after only 10 minutes when a well-placed corned from Noah Kane saw a desperate clearance effort by Sale defender Hayden John miscue his attempt and finish up in the back of the net.
For the next 20 minutes, Sale found themselves under extreme pressure from the Red Devil’s midfielders in Joe Stewart, Tanner Pyle and Luke Bathgate all getting plenty of control of the ball.
Pushing for that second goal, a Riley Winkleman pass sent striker Connor O’Hanlon through and his one-on-one opportunity saw Sale goalkeeper Jacob Richardson pull off a superb save.
Minutes later, Stewart kept up his great first half when he found Bathgate, who’s strike went inches wide of goal.
Other chances to Winkleman, O’Hanlon and Kane were well contained by Richardson, who was at his best for Sale Untied.
The keeper’s saves were rewarded by his side when Sale forward Kieran Horgan latched onto a loose ball to slot the ball past Moe keeper Peter Albanese from close range just before halftime.
The second half had Sale United pinned into their own half, desperately defending onto the 1-all score line.
Finally, the important break came for the Red Devil’s when a deliberate handball in the box saw referee Ian King point to the penalty spot.
Kane stepped up to convert, but his shot at goal was saved by Richardson.
O’Hanlon was causing major headaches for Sale United’s defence, and his attacking run down the right put him in a scoring position, only for it to be cleared.
O’Hanlon was again involved in play when his pass to Steward was struck well, but again Richardson was on-hand to save.
Moe continued to bombard the Sale goal, but poor finishing failed to break the deadlock.
In the final minute, a Kane free kick saw Pyle jump the Sale defence, but another freakish save by best-on-ground Richardson kept Moe United at bay.
Best for Moe were O’Hanlon, Nick Fogarty and Pyle.
