The double header weekend commenced with a home game against Lugarno on Saturday. It was evident the Lugarno players came with a plan to win and immediately put our boys under pressure. We had many opportunities go begging and then disaster struck when Lugarno scored a goal coming from a momentary lapse in our back line just before half time.
Not deterred by the scoreline the boys started the second half with David on the left and Alex on the right wing threatening to score on more than one occasion. Nunzio and Michael controlled the middle and within 5 mins Alex opened up the scoring for us with a brilliant equalising goal. With Tanaka and Chris Brosnan busy repelling any signs of an attack it allowed Jamie, Chris, Roko and Jordan to pounce resulting in Jordan chasing down an opportunity that resulted in our second goal and the lead. From then on it was a full on onslaught by Lugarno chasing the game and frustrations were showing resulting in what would be the 1st of two yellow cards for the weekend for Tanaka. The game finished in a 2-1 win for the boys, well done.
The Sunday game was a well anticipated game and one that would prove to be a very tough one against Arncliffe Aurora at their home ground. As predicted the atmosphere was tense and the crowd very vocal in cheering for the home team. The guys started the game very positively and Nunzio was at his stifling best in the midfield and together with Chris P created wave after wave of opportunities. Arncliffe were also picking up the pace and were kept clear by the solid defending Matt and Max were providing frustrating their attackers. After 30 odd minutes Nunzio made a run towards the goal and unselfishly passed to Alex who was free and convincingly buried it at the back of the net putting us ahead 1-0 heading. The pressure was on and the Arncliffe players came out determined more than ever to claw back a goal which they did from a free kick outside the penalty box just before half time. The boys composed themselves and came out in the second half outplaying their opposition and closing down plays quickly and drawing free kicks one of which Nunzio buried in the top right hand corner of the goal causing or fans to erupt with joy and jubilation that we were now 2-1 ahead. The frustrated Arncliffe team was now lifting and pouncing wave after wave, we too had some dubious offside decisions that didn’t allow us to extend our lead. With Alex sidelined with an injury for the remainder of the game it was up to Jamie, Roko, David and John to continue the pressure. Matt, Max and Tanaka worked hard to keep the attacks to a minimum but some quick breaks resulted in two corners that led to quick goals by the Arncliffe team taking the lead 3-2.
The game was a joy to watch given the history of this opponent and the home ground advantage certainly played a part in the result. I applaud the boy’s performance against Arncliffe which produced a most entertaining game for the fans to watch……well done.
