Loyalist – if my nickname was Ally McCoist, would you believe I am Rangers legend? Or what if your nickname was mwerdna? Would that mean that you’re Luddenham’s coach??? Just like in football, not always things are easy to explain. I can also assure you that last time another team "totally outclassed" was last year, when lost 3:0 to eventual competition winners. We could be possibly thinking about two different clubs…

I must say that I'm a little surprised by Nepean's win last night - maybe they will start getting some decent results. No surprises though in the other game.

well Kedar you may be right: Round 6 catch up game played today

Hurstville 0-1 Nepean

quite surprising considering Hurstville were the 'form team' of the past couple of rounds, beating Luddenham, beating Fairfield and drawing Roosters in the past 3 weeks. I'm not surprised by Nepean beating Gazy 2-1 yesterday but looking at today's result is definitely a shock.

State League Two Round14 Review
05.06.11 21:40


Northbridge toppled top team Luddenham 2-1 in round 14 of NSW State League division two to throw the competition wide open again, as Wanderers beat Bathurst 2-0, Hakoah routed prospect 3-0, and Nepean let fly with a double league victory, 2-1 over hapless Gazy and 1-0 over Hurstville City.
The wet weather claimed three victims with the Hawkesbury City versus Hurstville City game, Springwood United at Chopin Park Rams and Belmore against Roosters all postponed.

Despite the loss Luddenham (27 points) still holds onto top spot but they’ve been forced to give their game-in-hand card back to the banker. They lead hold a three point lead over Wanderers (24), with Roosters (23), Hakoah (22) and Chopin Park (21) rounding out the top five. Prospect (20), Hawkesbury (20), and a rising Northbridge (19) are all right in the mix, while Springwood (16) has three catch-up games still to play. Five teams have had less league defeats than leaders Luddenham, demonstrating how open this year’s competition really is.

On the goalscoring front Brit-hit Ry Hardy has shown a real liking to Australian football and notched up his 10th strike of a productive season for Northbridge, joining Hakoah ace Neil Jablonski at the top of the goalscorers list. Luddenham sniper Huso Merdanovic is hot on their heels after scoring his ninth to join Roosters weapon Adem Taslak. Hawkesbury striker Paul Cooper is stuck on eight goals, with Roosters duo Ercan Topal and Hulisi Orhan close behind on seven. Paul Paras (Belmore), Rani Rimmer (Hakoah), Haissan Morhi (Hurstville), Grant Odei (Luddenham) and Eliott King (Northbridge) have six goals each to their name.

Northbridge stun Luddenham

Northbridge upset league leaders Luddenham United 2-1 at Valentine Sports Park on Saturday night to make only a small step up the ladder, but one giant leap in credibility. After a lively start Elliot King put the home side in front with his sixth goal of the season on 20-minutes (he has only been in Australia just on two months) only for Luddenham striker Huso Merdanovic to equalise on the half-hour mark with a 10-yard scorcher following Glen Davis’ tidy work in pilfering the Northbridge defence.

Northbridge got a dream start to the second term when leading goalscorer Ry Hardy bobbed up three minutes after the restart to restore his side’s lead, nicely finishing off a one-on-one opportunity with the United keeper, and he looked like a gazelle in full flight moments later, powering through and over tiger-esque challenges from the last Luddenham defender and keeper, with the ball seemingly on a string only to miss at the defining moment. But a terrific show of advantage from the referee allowed Northbridge to have a second shot from the penalty spot, Max Zanders unfortunately belting the spot-kick into the post for the keeper to pad it away.

The scoreline remained unchanged at fulltime, Northbridge in front 2-1 to become the most successful home team of the division, registering 14 points from seven games (Chopin Park and Hakoah are second best with 13 points on home turf). But in what has been a crazy competition, only five division two teams have gathered more points at home than they have away. The manner of victory pleased coach Joe Haywood, especially ahead of their rescheduled Waratah Cup game against Super League side Blacktown Spartans at Francis Park on Tuesday night (7.30pm kick-off).

“It’s nice to get the wheels back on track following two bad results (loss to Hakoah and draw with Belmore) and fingers crossed that we can keep on building throughout the season,” he said. “We had a team meeting instead of training during the week to discuss what we want to do and plan the goals we want to achieve as a team… and the boys really responded well against Luddenham. To be honest I didn’t think they looked like league leaders out there… but that also shows that it’s still a very open competition.”

Luddenham coach Andrew Montgomery agreed his team didn’t play anywhere up to scratch but paid tribute to his opposition instead. “To say anything about my team’s performance would be to take something away from Northbrirdge, they were brilliant on the night,” he said. “I’d like to think it’s just a speedhump… but I’m most disappointed that we took it a bit too easy and didn’t turn up to play. We have to realise that being top of the table puts a target on our back and we have to play to a high standard to stay there.”

Northbridge 2 (Elliot King 19m Ry Hardy 48m) Luddenham United 1 (Huso Merdanovic 32m)

Reserve grade: Northbridge 0 Luddenham United 0

Nepean down Gazy & Hurstville

What do you do when the league tells you that you have to play two full games in two days? Win them both of course, and that’s exactly what a courageous Nepean did following their 2-1 and 1-0 wins over cellar-dwellers Gazy Lansvale and hitmen Hurstville City Minotaurs over the weekend.

Nepean were made to fight tooth and nail for their late one-goal victory over Gazy at Cook Park, St Marys, on Saturday afternoon, Nikola Pozder scoring from a fifth minute freekick before Sam Pintabona found an injury time winner to overcome Lansvale’s second half equaliser. The whole team jumped for joy, although coach Carlos Camacho admitted he also held a great deal of empathy for his Gazy counterpart Safet Alispahic.

“It’s not my place to talk about the opposition but I can tell you that they’re a team with a lot of heart. For a team that’s coming bottom of the ladder, there’s not much difference in a game against Gazy than a game against the top teams. They don’t give up ever,” he said. “I did celebrate the goal with the boys but I wasn’t 100 per cent happy as the second half was very scrappy and maybe neither team deserved to win. I’m happy for my boys, but not happy we didn’t finish off the game. I also have a lot of sympathy for the Gazy team [re the late loss] as it has happened to us a few times this year… and [Safet Alispahic] is a true gentleman of the league.”

Nepean had to back up the next day away to Hurstville City Minotaurs and they played out of their skin to claim a 1-0 victory on the back of an unspectacular first-half goal to Jason Browne. Amazingly, Nepean have scored just 15 goals all season but with 11 different players finding the back of the net. No Nepean player has bagged more than two goals yet, but Camacho will take a victory no matter who scores the goal.

“To tell you the truth I wasn’t really happy with only finding out about the [Sunday] catch-up game on Thursday as a lot of the boys had made plans, some of them were out injured and a lot of them had to back up from [Saturday’s] game,” he said. “But I think the talk we had on Wednesday night about our philosophy as a team is sinking in as the first 45 minutes [against Hurstville] were excellent by us; we played some really good football and showed a lot more composure, and that suited us.”

“They came back hard in the second half and created a couple of chances, especially as our boys started tiring, but then we held on strong for the win. I think the final ingredient that we needed – as we have the tactical awareness and fitness – was the confidence, and two wins in a row will say a lot more than I can tell them. We will now prepare for the next game without getting ahead of ourselves, but hopefully bringing the momentum of this weekend into the rest of the season.”

Nepean 2 (Nikola Pozder, Sam Pintabona) Gazy Lansvale 1

Rescheduled round 6: Nepean 1 (Jason Browne) Hurstville 0

Reserve grade: Nepean 0 Gazy Lansvale 4

Wanderers defeat Bathurst

Fairfield Wanderers returned from Bathurst on Sunday afternoon with a 2-0 victory over ’75 at Alec Lamberton Field returning them to the winners circle. Wanderers had the better of the first half and scored through a Maurcio Sanchez strike. But Bathurst returned to the pitch with renewed vigour after halftime and were unlucky not to score a goal following a wave of attacking raids on the Fairfield goal. The visitors then sealed the 2-0 result with a goal to Gustavo Roy at the death.

Fairfield coach Leo Maturana commended his players for registering a tough road victory at Bathurst (their fourth straight over ’75) and also welcomed the goals – of just three 0-0 games in the league this year, Wanderers have inexplicably been involved in two of them. However, a league-best sixth cleansheet has kept Fairfield well in the picture (Chopin Park is next best with four).

“I thought we held them out well. They were pushing to score to get back into the game but we contained them okay,” he said. “[In regards to the six cleansheets] Our defence has been terrific all year and is really covering us at the moment, but I think we’re doing alright for where we are.”

With so many things checked off his list Bathurst coach Mark Rooke would dearly love to find a goalscorer to complete his team. “I don’t think the scoreline really reflected the game. In the first half we were poor and gave away a soft goal, but I gave them a spray at halftime and for the first 35-40 minutes of the second half we attacked and absolutely gave it to them, and had chance after chance before we gave away a late one on the counterattack,” he said.

“We just can’t score goals. We’re doing well enough all over the pitch but just can’t find a way to put it into the back of the net. The boys walked off dejected, frustrated with what’s going on, but at end of the day we’re not turning our chances into goals and then putting pressure on ourselves to come up with a result. But watch this space as there might be a few signings this week.”

Bathurst ’75 0 Fairfield Wanderers 2 (Mauricio Sanchez 29m Gustavo Roy 78m)

Hakoah whip Prospect

A complete Hakoah performance pollaxed Prospect United 3-0 under lights at Hensley Athletic Field on Sunday night, moving the iconic football club back into the top-five for the first time in a few long, barren years. Hakoah were simply too good and took a deserved 2-0 lead into the halftime break, Rani Rimmer finishing off some terrific Michael Randall work on the left before Rimmer turned provider, sending a corner kick floating into the danger zone, Hakoah fullback Denato D’Agrosa making a decent challenge for the ball as the Prospect keeper keeper fumbled and Marc Kacen pounced.

Neil Jablonski, who could’ve had a hat-trick, then sealed the win with a clinical left-foot finish late in the game to chalk up his 10th goal of a superb year. Hakoah steals Prospect’s top-five place with their first back-to-back victory of the season, and their first over United in three years, making coach Mark Robertson one proud manager.

“The boys did really well… when I made the new signings at the start of the year, in terms of personnel and attitude for footballers, I couldn’t have picked any better,” he said. “[In terms of the historic club regaining its footing after a slippery few years at the bottom] Hakoah doing well again has ignited a few of the old flames to be honest. It’s a real community club and everyone would love to get back to the top, and I’m in the same boat as them as that’s all I want to do.”

Prospect coach Tony Caruso dipped his hat to his opponents. “For first time this year we were totally outplayed, but I don’t think anyone would’ve done any better against them, they were just that good,” he said. “[After their fifth loss in six games] We’ve had a bad run with injuries and suspensions but they’re obstacles we should be overcoming. Every team goes through a slump. We’re only seven points behind first place with 13 games still to play, so there’s plenty of time to go.”

Hakoah 3 (Rani Rimmer, Marc Kacen, Neil Jablonski) Prospect United 0

couple of good results for nepean

northbridge result was a surprise but good on them, a club new to the division that is more than competitive

Mate i can tell you Luddenham had a few players missing but even still Northbridge were electric. They dont play the most attractive style but geez they were good and fully deserved the win.

on the flip side, prospect are in free fall..
they do have some suspensions and injuries but they have only won 1 game in the last 4-5... look forward to making it another loss this weekend, and then smash chopin park in the catch-up game..

State League Two Round 15 Preview
08.06.11 08:39



The division two season is really heating up and it promises to be a sizzling affair at Northbridge Oval when movers Northbridge meet second-placed Fairfield Wanderers on Saturday afternoon (3pm kick-off).
Northbridge disposed of league leaders Luddenham last weekend and have number two lined up in their sights, welcoming Wanderers to a protected home turf that few have taken rewards away from this season (Northbridge have four wins and two draws from seven home games). But Wanderers know a thing or two about playing big games and will be wary of a Northbridge side that drew 2-2 with them at Knight Park earlier in the year.

Prospect United versus Springwood United at William Lawson Reserve on Saturday evening (5pm) will be another interesting match-up, with Springwood poised for a top-five strike (with a couple of catch-up games up their sleeve) and Prospect yearning for a win after two months of agony (one win in six outings). While both sides boast impressive defences this one could well be decided by who takes the initiative up front. Prospect stole a slender 1-0 win up in the mountains in round two so this should be a prize that both teams will be keen to take.

Belmore Hercules welcomes Hawkesbury City to Blick Oval on Sunday afternoon (3pm kick-off) with new coach Walter Alvarez hoping to make an immediate impression. Belmore are under siege, second from bottom, and 11 games away from that solitary first round victory over Roosters. What could be worse is enduring five agonising draws in their past seven matches, but on the upside they still get to play their next six games at home. And Blick Oval is probably where Hawkesbury City would prefer to be playing as they’re still winless at home, fortunately boasting the league’s best road record with five wins and two draws from seven games. These two sides played out an enthralling 3-3 draw at Bensons Lane Field back in March, their third successive draw together.

Third-placed Roosters meet Bathurst ’75 at Hills Sports High on Sunday afternoon (3pm) ready to build on their early season success. Roosters have lost just once in eight games but will find out this week the long-term fate of star striker Hulisi Orhan. He will already be missing from this game, delivering an early bonus to Bathurst, but the ’75 boys are terrible on the road losing both of their previous journeys over the mountains this year. But coach Mark Rooke indicated last week he may have enlisted the services of a genuine goalscorer, and this too could help Bathurst vindicate their 2-0 win over Roosters in round two.

Hurstville City Minotaurs host Gazy Lansvale at Punchbowl Oval on Sunday afternoon (3pm) looking to get their season back on track. After claiming spirited wins over Luddenham and Wanderers the Minotaurs horns buckled to a 1-0 loss to Nepean last week, halting Hurstville’s bullish charge momentarily. Gazy have also shown a mini-revival of sorts, maybe not in results (they held Springwood to a draw) but they seem to have plugged up their leaky defence to have given themselves a competitive chance of late. The Minotaurs flogged Gazy 4-0 earlier in the year but this weekend’s circumstances are entirely different.

Nepean travel up the Great Western Highway to play Chopin Park at Chopin Park on Sunday afternoon (3pm) with both teams riding a high wave at the moment. Nepean won two games in two days last weekend to create renewed confidence at the club after a sluggish start to the year. While they haven’t scored many goals Nepean have been highly competitive in most of its games and suggest enough to keep fourth-placed Chopin Park on their toes. The Rams have built up a solid home record of just one loss in eight games at the Park and would like to get one up on their neighbours following their 1-1 draw at St Marys in round two.

The match of the round is undoubtedly Luddenham United versus Hakoah at Luddenham Oval on Sunday afternoon (3pm) and the prelude is absolutely delicious. Luddenham established a break at the top of the table behind a month-long winning streak only to baulk a little at recent losses to Hurstville and Northbridge, and tight wins over Nepean and Bathurst. Hakoah had been a tad inconsistent until big wins over Northbridge and Prospect catapulted them into the top-five, the iconic club enjoying a fruitful year in front of goal netting 38 peaches in 13 games, while Luddenham have scored 34 of their own. Throw in the fact that these are the only two sides that haven’t been held scoreless this season and you better bring some velcro to the Oval so that you can stick to your seat. Want more? Hakoah annihilated Luddenham 6-1 on a dark March day for United at Hensley Athletic Field. Cue drum roll.

-By Dan De Nardi

---

<- Back to: Division Two

Catch up game last night from round 9

Luddenham 3 Springwood 2

Any news on Luddenhams coach transferring to Hurstville?

Isnt the Loyalist Luddenham's coach? lol

Hahhahaa ive heard hes weighing up the options of Ouzo and Souvlaki Vs Cevapi and Sljivovic.

Luddenham have came back with a counter offer of Cevapi,Sljivovic and Pelinkovac but i hear hes holding out for the added bonus of Krafne.

Round 15 predictions

Prospect 2-1 Springwood
Chopin Park 0-2 Nepean
Northbridge 3-3 Fairfield
Belmore 3-2 Hawkesbury
Roosters 3-0 Bathurst
Luddenham 0-4 Hakoah
Hurstville 2-2 Gazy

Round 15 predictions

Prospect 1-1 Springwood
Chopin Park 2-0 Nepean
Northbridge 3-1 Fairfield
Belmore 1-4 Hawkesbury
Roosters 0-1 Bathurst
Luddenham 0-13 Hakoah
Hurstville 2-1 Gazy

Round 15 Predictions

Prospect 2-1 Springwood
Chopin Park 2-1 Nepean
Northbridge 2-2 Fairfield
Belmore 0-2 Hawkesbury
Roosters 3-1 Bathurst
Luddenham 2-2 Hakoah
Hurstville 3-0 Gazy

Luddenham coach has no idea!
Hakoah to give them another lesson on how to play football!

State League Two Round 15 Review
12.06.11 15:09



Luddenham United bolted eight points clear in the division two premiership race to race ahead of the demolition derby that is taking place behind them, the next seven teams (Roosters, Hawkesbury, Wanderers, Hakoah, Prospect, Northbridge, Chopin Park) separated by just four points.
You wouldn’t discard Hurstville and Springwood either (both have a game in hand), while a Nepean hat-trick has cast Bathurst and Belmore adrift, Gazy still languishing in last place.

Luddenham downed Hakoah 2-0, Roosters beat Bathurst 3-1, Hurstville pipped Gazy 1-0, and Hawkesbury broke their home duck with a 3-1 win over Belmore for the more conventional results of round 15, but Northbridge belted Wanderers 4-1, Nepean upset Chopin Park 2-0, and Prospect steamrolled Springwood 3-0 to add some flair to a good weekend of football.

There was movement on the goalscoring front with an Adem Taslak (Roosters) double and goals to Neil Jablonski (Hakoah) and Ry Hardy (Northbridge) bringing the division two gunslingers together on 11 goals each for the season, ahead of Luddenham’s Huso Merdanovic (9) and Hawkesbury’s Paul Cooper (8). Speaking of goalscorers there have certainly been quite a few in this year’s frenzy (the average has paltered to 3.6 goals per game) with 131 different players finding the back of the net in 98 competitive games so far – that’s how many total scorers division two conjured up in 2010, albeit with 12 teams. Another 22 more players need to score in the remaining 11 rounds (85-odd matches) to surpass this season’s mark.

In other news, Northbridge were gallant but eventually dismissed 3-1 by Blacktown Spartans at Francis Park on Tuesday evening, advancing the Super League side into the Waratah Cup quarter finals for a second successive year. Northbridge created plenty of headaches for Blacktown but lacked the killer punch in front of goal, Elliot King netting a late consolation after the Spartans had gone from 1-0 leaders at the hour-mark to 3-0 up just 10 minutes later.

It was still a terrific effort from Northbridge who flew the division two banner high in their first Cup foray. “A bit disappointed on the night that we didn’t convert our chances but the boys were happy with the performance… now we can concentrate on the league,” coach Joe Haywood said. And look out league, with Northbridge smacking Fairfield 4-1 to tantalisingly move to one point outside a jam-packed top-five.

Northbridge thump Wanderers

Northbridge bulldozed Fairfield Wanderers out of the way 4-1 at Valentine Sports Park on Saturday afternoon to send a clear warning to its division two opposition that the new boys in the club mean business. While Northbridge continue to grind their way up the table with just one loss in seven league games Fairfield suffered its first away loss of the season (now only Hawkesbury has an unbeaten road record) and has tasted victory just twice in its past six games.

The home side came out pumped and Daniel Hillege put Northbridge in front by finishing off a Ry Hardy cross and the energetic forward also assisted in the next goal, laying it in for Luke Marshall (back at the club from an overseas stay) to poke underneath the Wanderers keeper to make it 2-0 before the half-hour mark. Hardy was a menace and grabbed a goal for himself moments later and Northbridge led by three at the break.

Fairfield finally woke up at halftime and took advantage of some deep defending to free up Ian Peti for a goal that narrowed the scoreline to 3-1, but local lad Jun Arima made a statement in his comeback game from a stint in reserve grade scoring late to round off an impressive 4-1 victory to Northbridge. The result made their midweek Waratah Cup loss to Blacktown an instant distant memory as the northern marauders continue their merry march.

Northbridge coach Joe Haywood is impressed with the way his side has maintained its course and improved each week. “The first half we passed quick and sharp and were first to the ball and then got the ball into their half quite quickly… it was a good performance from everyone,” he said. “We saw this period in the season as crucial as all the top teams are playing each other, and if we come out of it with some good results then we will be positioned well for the end of the season.”

Fairfield coach Leo Maturana thought the game, featuring two top-five contenders, should have had more prominence at the sports complex but offered no excuses. “They scored early and we never recovered… and before we knew it we were three goals down,” he said. “[In the] second half we turned up to play and threw everything at them, playing some good football, but it was too late. Our defence had its worst game ever [but] we need to turn up to play from the start. We only have ourselves to blame. Hopefully we can learn from this game.”

Northbridge 4 (Daniel Hillege 6m Luke Marshall 26m Ry Hardy 37m Jun Arima 89m) Fairfield Wanderers 1 (Ian Peti 60m)

Reserve grade: Northbridge 3 Fairfield Wanderers 2

Nepean roll Chopin Park

Nepean kept their heads in the game to register a 2-0 win over Chopin Park at Chopin Park on Saturday afternoon, Jason Browne scoring either side of halftime to upset the Rams. Browne proved the difference as his delightful flick opened the scoring just before halftime before he stole the ball and beat the keeper to all but seal the result with 25 minutes to go in the game. The spirited attacker is the first Nepean player to score more than two goals this season and helped propel his side to a third straight league win.

Nepean coach Carlos Camacho liked how his team stuck to their game for most of the match. “[Chopin Park] were frustrated in the first half when they didn’t get some calls go their way, but I thought we played well in wet and slippery conditions,” he said. “Things are panning out for us… but you take it one week at a time as you know. The confidence is definitely up but overall we’re playing the way we should be playing, and trying to keep the ball. Once these boys start getting their confidence up they will start scoring more goals.”

Rams coach Radek Czerwinski disagreed with a couple of contentious calls and felt the decisions deflated his players. It was just the second time Chopin Park had been held scoreless. “We dominated for the first half hour… and the calls took the wind out of the players’ lungs and they lost their focus; we couldn’t pick up the pieces.” he said. “Credit to Nepean though, as they made the most of our being distracted.”

Chopin Park Rams 0 Nepean 2 (Jason Browne 43/65m)

Reserve grade: Chopin Park Rams 2 Nepean 0

Prospect overpower Springwood

A second half blitz took Prospect United to a 3-0 win over Springwood United at William Lawson Reserve on Saturday evening, the victory coming at just the right time for Prospect while consigning Springwood to a double league defeat following their 2-3 loss to Luddenham midweek. Prospect are in the middle of a ladder barney and needed this result to return to winning ways.

A lively first half set it up an enthralling second period but Ahmed Chandab stole the show, connecting sweetly on a 20-yard screamer to blast into the top corner before a merry dance from team-mate Luis Freitas doubled the lead midway through the half, Chandab wrapping the game up with a late goal to make it 3-0 to Prospect.

Coach Tony Caruso was delighted. “It was a pretty tough slog to be honest and a pretty good game,” he said. “We cancelled each other out in the first half and then we got the breakthrough and grabbed a couple of goals, but Springwood are a very determined side and never give up. You always have to be on their guard against them, and they didn’t let up at all. We’re still on track with what we want to achieve but this win is very timely.”

Prospect United 3 (Ahmed Chandab 49/84m Luis Freitas 65m) Springwood United 0

Reserve grade: Prospect United 1 Springwood United 5

Luddenham ambush Hakoah

Luddenham United hobbled Hakoah 2-0 at Luddenham Oval on Sunday afternoon to teleport speed eight points clear at the top of the division two leaderboard courtesy of a come-from-behind 3-2 win over Springwood midweek. Grant Odei was in a goalscoring mood and got one early when he cut inside a couple of defenders and slotted past the Hakoah goalkeeper, and the Luddenham playmaker made sure of the result with a goalmouth scramble doubling the lead before the hour-mark. Hakoah had a free header to get back into the game but it wasn’t to be their night.

Luddenham are now the only team that has scored goals in every match and their ninth win in 11 games has put a smile in coach Andrew Montgomery’s dial. “It was a brilliant game and both sides played really well,” he said. “The fightback against Springwood from 2-0 down and today was one of those games I feared, but I felt we could’ve scored another two goals. I was very happy with the performance today. But there’s a [shipload] of football still to play, and on any day any team can win, so no complacency here.”

Hakoah coach Mark Robertson knew that the result came down to converting chances. “It was tough conditions for football and both keepers didn’t have much to do. It was good football all round; they defended well and we didn’t put the ball in the back of the net, it’s as simple as that.” Hakoah hold onto fifth spot despite the defeat.

United 2 (Grant Odei 7/56m) Hakoah 0

Reserve grade: Luddenham United 1 Hakoah 2

Roosters bail-up Bathurst

Roosters took the loot in a 3-1 win over Bathurst ’75 at Hills Sports High on Sunday afternoon, shaking off their forced forfeit to Hurstville to stay in second place on the ladder. They might not want to look over their shoulder with six teams within four points of them, but they’re in a better place than Bathurst, who are now floating in the competition’s no-man’s land.

Hayden Porter stole a surprise lead for Bathurst following a 10th minute goal but the joy was very shortlived as the home side grabbed the ascendancy and the lead with quick strikes to Adem Taslak and Gurkan Girgin lifting Roosters to a 2-1 halftime advantage. Taslak made then crushed Bathurst hearts with his 11th goal of the season securing a 3-1 win to Roosters.

Bathurst have now lost all three of their road trips into Sydney but they are one of just five clubs who have made more points playing at home than away (Gazy is another) this season. Roosters have their necks ahead in the division two chicken coop but face top-five contenders Northbridge, Luddenham, Wanderers, Hakoah and Hawkesbury in their next five matches.

Roosters 3 (Adem Taslak 18/63m Gurkan Girgin 33m) Bathurst ’75 1 (Hayden Porter 10m)

Reserve grade: Roosters 2 Bathurst ’75 3

Hurstville pip Gazy

Hurstville City Minotaurs celebrated an unconvincing 1-0 win over Gazy Lansvale at Punchbowl Oval on Sunday afternoon, but with points tough to come by you’ll take them any way you can. Hurstville and Lansvale went hammer and tong in the first half and it took a piece of brilliance to separate the two sides, Mudar Sultan rising high to meet a Kyriacos Phylactou freekick to put City in front in the 70th minute.

The result leaves Hurstville thereabouts on the competition standings, in ninth place but just four points behind fifth-placed Hakoah/Prospect and with a game in hand on every team above them on the ladder. Behind them at the bottom of the table Gazy can still do something about their lowly position, but they will need to dig deep to get the wins they so desperately crave.

Minotaurs coach Peter Sarikakis put the points in the bag and left the ground. “It was windy and not very good conditions, but getting the three points was the important thing,” he said. “I guess the lost to Nepean was a bit of a setback for us and today we got back on track again I suppose.”

Hurstville City Minotaurs 1 (Mudar Sultan 70m) Gazy Lansvale 0

Reserve grade: Hurstville City Minotaurs 4 Gazy Lansvale 2

Hawkesbury bury Belmore

A tricky change in venue wasn’t enough to maintain the Hawkesbury home curse as City broke through for a fine 3-1 win over Belmore Hercules at Bensons Lane Field on Sunday afternoon. The game was initially scheduled for Blick Oval before being moved to Hawkesbury turf, where they had been winless this year, and a 0-0 halftime scoreline might have given coach Gary Lewis the jitters, but a second half witch-dance – with goals to Michael McCrory, John McCrae and hassen Arnaout inside 10 magical minutes before Paul Paras’ consolation for Hercules – broke the voodoo and lifted City to third place on goal differential.

“The first half was a real arm wrestle, obviously with a new coach [Belmore’s Walter Alvarez] their boys had something to play for, but their wasn’t too many opportunities in the first half,” he said. “Then we put on 10 minutes of brilliant attacking football in the second half and showed we wanted it that little bit more. We had 12 players unavailable today and the sad part about the win was that the changeroom showed a few walking wounded.”

“We had a talk before the game about the second round and that with overnight results we had a chance to go second or even 10th,” Lewis said. “I told boys that playing well and not winning won’t help our position, that we needed to get results. It could’ve gone either way against Hakoah but we did really well today against Belmore.”

Belmore Hercules 1 (Paul Paras 89m) Hawkesbury City 3 (Michael McCrory 49m John McCrae 53m Hassen Arnaout 57m)

Reserve grade: Belmore Hercules 0 Hawkesbury City 0

Round 15 scores

Prospect United 3 (Ahmed Chandab 49/84m Luis Freitas 65m) Springwood United 0

Northbridge 4 (Daniel Hillege 6m Luke Marshall 26m Ry Hardy 37m Jun Arima 89m) Fairfield Wanderers 1 (Ian Peti 60m)

Chopin Park Rams 0 Nepean 2 (Jason Browne 43/65m)

Hurstville City Minotaurs 1 (Mudar Sultan 70m) Gazy Lansvale 0

Roosters 3 (Adem Taslak 18/63m Gurkan Girgin 33m) Bathurst ’75 1 (Hayden Porter 10m)

Luddenham United 2 (Grant Odei 7/56m) Hakoah 0

Belmore Hercules 1 (Paul Paras 89m) Hawkesbury City 3 (Michael McCrory 49m John McCrae 53m Hassen Arnaout 57m)

Rescheduled round 8: Hawkesbury City 1 (Michael McCrory 75m) Hakoah 1 (Neil Jablonski 35m pen)

Rescheduled round 9: Springwood United 2 (Peter Henderson 9m pen Bryan Campbell 12m) Luddenham United 3 (Pasquale Corso 25m Reece Shiels 57m Glen Davis 83m)

Reserve grade:

Prospect United 1 Springwood United 5

Northbridge 3 Fairfield Wanderers 2

Chopin Park Rams 2 Nepean 0

Hurstville City Minotaurs 4 Gazy Lansvale 2

Roosters 2 Bathurst ’75 3

Luddenham United 1 Hakoah 2

Belmore Hercules 0 Hawkesbury City 0

Rescheduled round 8: Hawkesbury City 0 Hakoah 3

Next week’s games

Round 16 of NSW division two kicks off with three Saturday night affairs, Northbridge taking on Roosters in a cracker at Valentine Sports Park (7pm kick-off), a rising Nepean against Prospect United at Cook Park, St Marys (7pm), and Bathurst ’75 versus Hawkesbury City at Alec Lamberton Field (7pm). On Sunday afternoon, Chopin Park Rams face Hurstville City at Punchbowl Oval (3pm), Gazy Lansvale play Belmore Hercules at Blick Oval (3pm kick-off), and Fairfield Wanderers battle Luddenham United in the match of the round at Luddenham Oval (3pm), while Springwood meet Hakoah at Hensley Athletic Field on Sunday night (7pm).

-By Dan De Nardi

must also admit this result surprised me from what i have heard about Hakoah, what a comp everyone is beating each other

Dear s0ccerball and supercoach.

Everyone at Luddenham wishes to apologize for ruining your long weekend by beating Hakoah 2-0. Apparently Luddenham were totally outclassed and were very lucky to win 2-0 and the whole game was in luddenhams half. Their 2 goals came against the run of play because they boot the ball long all the time. Your right the coach has no idea at all as they have been lucky so far in winning 11 out of 15 games and now being the only team to have scored in every game. Can't believe the amount of luck they've had hey but you know that already.

Love Luddenham

alot of movement and more congestion in the table thanks to some shocks from this past round. Farfield getting hammered 4-1 by Northbridge, Nepean upsetting Chopin Park 2-0 to make it 3 wins in a row and Luddenham forgetting about their 6-1 hammering in March to defeat Hakoah 2-0 were all very surprising results in my opinion. It's a fantastic comp for the neutral watching this, just 4 points split 2nd from 8th. Can Luddenham keep their great run going, especially with the tough next couple of fixtures coming their way?

Walter !!!

Walter alvarez coached our team this year until he got picked up by Belmore
Belmore offered money where we could only offer beers at the end of our game :)

good luck Walter!

=d> =d>

well said loyalist, and surely you cant fluke being on top after 15 rounds by that much of a margin?? congrats to luddenham, good to see a club that only made the top 5 last year for first time going so well

^^^^^^^^Like^^^^^^^^

Luddenham is a club on the rise. Theres a lot of things in the pipe for next season and the coming years. I must say though that the competition this year has been very strong certainly the strongest its been in a long long time. If you look at nearly every side they have had a influx of players from higher divisions and also 1 or 2 players in each division that has at least played super league or premier league. Even clubs like Hakoah and Northbridge have brought in quality players from overseas, so reagrdless of who gets there in the end whoever does win it win certainly deserve it.

there is definately quality there by sounds of it, i have heard same thing from ppl i know too that there is alot of players that could still play higher, and that mainly due to work/family committments or whatever it might be it suits them to play div 2

bit out of my depth here, but do you need juniors to go to div 1???

No not a pre requisit but definatly adventagous. This is a area which is currently being worked on by Luddenham and this season reserve grade contains around 6-7 15,16,17 year olds who are the priority in the reserve grade side with a view for them (if Luddenham get promoted) to be retained and playing in the under 20's next year. The reserve grade so far has performed very very well considering some of them played under 14's last year.

the veiw has been taken to try and promote the youth in the area and to give them a go.

Round 16 Predictions

Bathurst 2-2 Hawkesbury
Nepean 1-0 Prospect
Northbridge 3-2 Roosters
Belmore 1-2 Gazy
Luddenham 3-4 Fairfield
Hurstville 2-3 Chopin Park
Hakoah 4-1 Springwood

Round 16 Predictions:

Bathurst 1-2 Hawkesbury
Nepean 1-3 Prospect
Northbrige 3-2 Roosters
Belmore 2-2 Gazy
Luddenham 3-2 Wanderers
Hurstville 3-2 Chopin Park
Hakoah 3-0 Springwood

Round 16 Predictions:

Bathurst 1-3 Hawkesbury
Nepean 0-4 Prospect
Northbrige 3-1 Roosters
Belmore 3-0 Gazy
Luddenham 1-3 Wanderers
Hurstville 0-2 Chopin Park
Hakoah 2-2 Springwood

Congratulations to Northbridge for going this far in Waratah cup as well as latest string of good results- they're getting stronger. Few interesting results too. Had a chance to see 2 games last weekend and the new African striker from Bathurst will definitely be causing trouble to other defenders...
Good luck to those who weren't washed out this weekend!!!

State League Two Round 16 Review
19.06.11 20:34



NSW State League division two was thrown on its head in round 16 as Wanderers crushed Luddenham, Bathurst beat Hawkesbury 2-0, Hakoah beat Springwood 2-1 and Hurstville pinched a 1-1 draw with Chopin Park.
This reduces Luddenham’s lead to six points, with Wanderers (on 27 points) just ahead of a Benny Hill procession, Hakoah (26), Roosters (25), Hawkesbury (24), Prospect (23), Northbridge (22), Chopin Park (22) and Hurstville (20) playing a game of top-five sardines. Patchy weekend weather following a consistent week-long deluge prevented Saturday night play in clashes between Northbridge versus Roosters, Nepean versus Prospect and Belmore versus Gazy Lansvale.

Bathurst repel Hawkesbury

Bathurst ’75 lifted for a 2-0 win over Hawkesbury City at Alec Lamberton Field on Saturday night to break a four game losing streak and throw down the gauntlet to its nearest neighbours Springwood and Nepean, who sit just a couple of points above ’75 on the table. Bathurst took a 1-0 lead via a 10th minute Brent Osborne goal to give the home fans something to cheer about early on, and despite Hawkesbury holding onto plenty of possession it was Luke Sullivan who bobbed up for a second goal in the 60th minute (his fifth of the year), finishing off a sublime Jarrod Portegies canter down the left flank, to complete a much-needed victory.

The two goal win comes at a good time for Bathurst, who have struggled to find the back of the net in 2010, this just the fourth time in 15 matches they have scored more than one goal in a match. Hawkesbury’s below par performance ended a conquistador like quest, it was their first away loss of the season (in eight outings) and comes ahead of a nightmare month-long run facing Northbridge, Wanderers, Luddenham, Roosters and Hakoah, three of them on the road.

Bathurst coach Mark Rooke was pleased to finish ahead in what he described as an ugly affair. “It wasn’t a pretty game and at the end of the day I’m quite happy to get the three points,” he said. “We had seven first-team guys out and are struggling for numbers so it was good to grab an early lead. At halftime we talked about trying to contain them and hit them on the break, and that’s exactly how it panned out in the second half. It doesn’t often happen when things come off like that but it did last night. They had all the possession and were the better football side on the night, but we defended well as a unit to deny their opportunities.”

Hawkesbury coach Gary Lewis’s squad was also short 12 players (one player rolled his ankle in the warm-up) but he still fielded a strong side. “We just didn’t play well, but to be fair Bathurst didn’t allow us to play; they scrambled very well,” he said. “We had a couple of chances in the first half that went inches wide… we just didn’t have the mojo going, the rhythm wasn’t there. It really comes down to depth at this stage of the season, but as we’re in the same boat as a lot of other teams you can’t really use that as an excuse. We just have to mentally get it right. We’ve got the players – they just have to believe.”

Bathurst ’75 2 (Brent Osborne 10m Luke Sullivan 60m) Hawkesbury City 0

Reserve grade: Bathurst ’75 0 Hawkesbury City 5

Wanderers pillage Luddenham

They came, they saw, they conquered. Fairfield Wanderers pulled off a clinical raid on Luddenham United at Luddenham Oval on Sunday afternoon, winning 4-0 behind a four-goal effort from Elias Navarette. Fairfield were in a daring mood and some terrific teamwork resulted in Navarette’s first two goals inside the opening 25 minutes. Luddenham missed some chances of their own but the league leaders could do nothing to stop Wanderers from doubling their lead with two more Navarette strikes in the second half, taking the Fairfield forward to seven goals for the season.

The big win moves Fairfield into second place on the ladder they but still trail leaders Luddenham by six points, despite United losing for the third time in six games. It was the first time Luddenham has been held scoreless all season and takes the Wanderers defence to an incredible seven clean sheets from 15 matches, and gives them their first win over United in two years. But perhaps the biggest thrill for the Fairfield clan came from avenging an embarrassing 4-1 loss to United at Knight Park back in March.

The round three flogging was certainly on the mind of Wanderers coach Leo Maturana. “Revenge is sweeter than sugar,” he laughed. “We played really well and played to our game plan and it became one of those games where everything you set out to do came off. We worked on some bits and pieces during the week and played good attacking football today and it paid off when we took our chances.”

Maturana was also enthralled by Navarette’s four goal spree but reflected the praise across the entire team. “I don’t know what he drank but I want some of that too! No, he was just there at the right spot at the right time, but it was a good team effort and not just of an individual. We played them off the park today, but you can’t take any team lightly in this competition. At any particular time they’ll get up, so if you’re not on your game you will suffer.”

Luddenham coach Andrew Montgomery was at a loss for words. Somehow his team, which is a mile in front of the competition, has leaked 33 goals in 16 games (second worst in the league). “Just unbelievable really. How we can be so good on one day and turn out a display like that is beyond me. We made four mistakes and cost ourselves four goals, and at the other end we had chances but didn’t take any one of them. We could have been playing Brazil today and we still would have cost ourselves the four goals,” he said.

“It’s been a great effort to get this point in regard to the scoring, but we could have done a lot better today, even with all the mistakes we made. It was just one of those days. We still have a buffer there [six points at the top of the table over Wanderers]; we just have to put it aside and build towards getting some confidence back. We’re definitely looking forward to the [third-placed] Roosters game.”

Luddenham United 0 Fairfield Wanderers 4 (Elias Navarrete x 4)

Rams, Minotaurs draw

Hurstville City Minotaurs stormed home to grab a share of the points in a messy 1-1 draw with Chopin Park Rams at Punchbowl Oval on Sunday afternoon. A see-saw affair was upset when the visitors grabbed an early second half lead via some great lead-up play, the ball switched from the right to the far left edge of box and a one touch lay-off to Jacek Kajl, who sidestepped a defender and blasted in his first goal of the season.

But Hurstville is a different team from the early days of 2011 and perhaps Alex Obeid should have found an equaliser when Alex Obeid tapped it straight to the Rams keeper from 5m out, but they finally did level the scores when stalwart captain Terry Sidiratos headed home a nifty Achileas Markopoulos pass in the 80th minute. It’s the third time Sidiratos has bobbed up from fullback for a goal this season and both Hurstville’s draws this year have been against Chopin Park.

Collecting a point was fair but Hurstville coach Peter Sarikakis saw the result as points lost. “Haissan Morhi should have had at least 4-5 goals today. We had 3-4 chances in first 20 minutes, and every time we missed they grew a little bit stronger,” he said. “We did it the hard way and I thought we would pinch it as we had a few chances at the end, but that’s the game, you have to take your chances. I think we dropped two points today. Chopin Park put in the effort, but I think we should have won today.”

It was further frustration for Chopin Park coach Radek Czerwinski. His team has a league-high seven draws for the season but he saw a lot of positives in a side that has competed well against every side. “It was a bit of a different game than last time but the result is true,” he said. “But all the tactics are thrown out the window at Punchbowl Oval as the state of the field was not good for a passing game, and they played their home ground to their advantage by playing the long ball. Before the game we talked about readjusting to a long ball game but that is no advantage for our boys. We don’t have enough height to play high balls so naturally the common sense is to play along the ground. ”

Both teams had half-chances throughout the game and it was well balanced, but it is disheartening to draw again to be honest. The concentration has to be a matter of 90 minutes. In 13 games this season we have been the first to score but seem to concede in the last quarter of the game… the defence has been very good this year.”

Hurstville City Minotaurs 1 (Terry Sidiratos 80m) Chopin Park Rams 1 (Jacek Kajl 47m)

Reserve grade: Hurstville City Minotaurs 3 Chopin Park Rams 2

Hakoah edges Springwood

Hakoah beat Springwood United 2-1 in an entertaining match at Hensley Athletic Field on Sunday night. The home side hit the front midway through the first half when Deklan Gilmartin produced three mesmerising stepovers before belting one into the top corner from 25m out in what was one of the goals of the season, and Hakoah made it 2-0 from Rani Rimmer’s second half heist.

Springwood refused to give in and were rewarded for their spirited performance when Peter Henderson headed home his seventh goal of the season with 20 minutes still to play, but the scoreline remained 2-1 at fulltime and lifted Hakoah into third place on the ladder, one point behind Wanderers.

Hakoah coach Mark Robertson was delighted. “I’m happy with that one. Springwood are a big, tall, physical side and they made it hard for us. It was well battled, and they pulled one back to put a nice edge on the game. Springwood always put up a good fight and they are one of the better teams we have played against. [This weekend’s] results went for us and it throws it right open for next week with a couple of big games [Hakoah play Wanderers and Luddenham face Roosters]. It’s no deal done deal that Luddenham will win the comp.”

Springwood coach Errol Warwick-Day couldn’t fault his players efforts in an even contest. “We always have a good game with Hakoah; it was nice and fast, pretty intense and went end-to-end for the whole game. We pressed and pressed and pushed and got a goal back with 20 to go, and had tons of opportunities and plenty of corners after that,” he said. “But it’s all about maintaining dignity. It was all good football, the refereeing was excellent, and there’s not much you can do about the result.”

Hakoah 2 (Deklan Gilmartin, Rani Rimmer) Springwood United 1 (Peter Henderson)

Round 16 scores

Bathurst ’75 2 (Brent Osborne 10m Luke Sullivan 60m) Hawkesbury City 0

Luddenham United 0 Fairfield Wanderers 4 (Elias Navarrete x 4)

Hurstville City Minotaurs 1 (Terry Sidiratos 80m) Chopin Park Rams 1 (Jacek Kajl 47m)

Hakoah 2 (Deklan Gilmartin, Rani Rimmer) Springwood United 1 (Peter Henderson)

Nepean vs Prospect United washed out

Northbridge vs Roosters washed out

Belmore Hercules vs Gazy Lansvale washed out

Reserve grade:

Bathurst ’75 0 Hawkesbury City 5

Luddenham United 1 Fairfield Wanderers 1

Hurstville City Minotaurs 3 Chopin Park Rams 2

Nepean vs Prospect United washed out

Northbridge vs Roosters washed out

Belmore Hercules vs Gazy Lansvale washed out

Next week’s games

Round 17 of NSW State League division two sees two Saturday evening fixtures in Northbridge against Hawkesbury City at Bensons Lane Field and Hurstville City Minotaurs versus Prospect United at William Lawson Reserve (5pm kick-offs), followed by a Saturday night match-up between Nepean versus Springwood at Summerhayes Park (7pm).

On Sunday afternoon (first grade games from 3pm), Bathurst ’75 play Gazy Lansvale at Cherrybrook Park, Chopin Park Rams meet Belmore Hercules at Blick Oval, and Luddenham United face Roosters FC at Hills Sports High, while Fairfield Wanderers tackle Hakoah at Hensley Athletic Field on Sunday night (7pm).

-By Daniel De Nardi

State League Two Round 17 Preview
21.06.11 11:24



Round 17 of NSW State League division two sees Northbridge take on Hawkesbury City at Bensons Lane Field on Saturday evening (5pm kick-off).
This should be a great contest between two teams fighting for top-five positions, but some of the intrigue is probably for the wrong reason. Hawkesbury have been shaky at home (one win in seven games) while Northbridge have been as equally lacklustre on the road (one win in six games) to set up a statistical showdown this Saturday. A 2-2 draw between the sides in April also suggests this will be a close call.

Fringe dwellers Hurstville City Minotaurs and Prospect United can do their top-five chances a world of good with a victory at William Lawson Reserve on Saturday evening (5pm). Hurstville are just starting to get a roll on and have scored almost double their points in the last five rounds (13) compared to the first 10 rounds (7), while Prospect will also be keen to build on their win against Springwood a fortnight ago. Prospect overpowered a weaker Hurstville 4-1 back in round four but can expect the going to be a bit tougher this time around.

Nepean versus Springwood United at Summerhayes Park on Saturday night (7pm) is another good match-up with interesting consequences. Three straight defeats have dented Springwood’s finals intentions (eight points behind fifth-placed Hawkesbury) whereas three straight wins have elevated newcomers Nepean to the same number of competition points as United despite a sluggish start to 2011. Three of Nepean’s four wins have come on the road while Springwood have won just twice in seven games at home to tip the balance of favour to the visitors this weekend, particularly following their 2-2 draw earlier in the year.

Resurgent Bathurst ’75 play lowly Gazy Lansvale at Cherrybrook Park on Sunday afternoon (3pm) but one senses this is no closed result. Bathurst grabbed a timely win over Hawkesbury last week to move nine points away from bottom-placed Gazy on the table, and they flogged Lansvale at Alec Lamberton Field 6-0 on a dark Saturday night in April, which started a 10-game blackout for Gazy. But the cellar-dwellers have shown a bit of fight of late and as Bathurst are yet to win in Sydney this year you could have a bet either way on this one.

Chopin Park Rams meet Belmore Hercules in an important match at Blick Oval on Sunday afternoon (3pm). The Rams enjoyed a solid start to the year and are still well in the mix loitering just outside the top-five, and they have built their success behind a league-best defence (shared with Prospect). Hercules on the other hand haven’t won since round one, changed coach a few weeks ago and sit precariously four points above last-placed Gazy. Chopin Park belted Belmore 3-0 in the round four fixture to set a big challenge for their opponents this weekend.

Luddenham United play Roosters in a huuuge game at Hills Sports High on Sunday afternoon (3pm). The top-three sides have played out some enthralling contests over the years, Roosters edging out the league leaders in their round four extravaganza, reversing a 3-2 result the other way in last year’s elimination final and, before that, Roosters had enjoyed a three-game winning streak over United. There’s no doubting the shooting ability of either side in 2011, Luddenham have scored 39 goals and Roosters 36, but the United defence has conceded a bewildering 33 goals this year to be only better than Gazy’s 50 goal leak.

And in what will complete a mesmerising weekend of football, second-placed Fairfield Wanderers tackle fifth-placed Hakoah at Hensley Athletic Field on Sunday night (7pm). Both sides are riding high after successes last weekend, Fairfield smashing Luddenham 4-0 and Hakoah edging out Springwood 2-1, and this game should also be hotly contested. Wanderers came from behind to beat Hakoah 2-1 in the April game to make it four in a row against their eastern Sydney rivals, but when you have the league’s best offence (Hakoah, with 41 goals) facing one of the best defences (Fairfield, 18) you wouldn’t get great odds either way.

-By Daniel De Nardi