In one of the more low-key rounds of the season, nominations around the grounds were in somewhat short supply. The general consensus was that it was an underwhelming weekend, symptomatic of a mid-season slump. That’s just the nature of the beast though, and one positive out of it was that a number of the bigger teams dropped points, giving some of the underdog sides a bigger representation in the Round 11 Team of the Week:
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GK: Chris May (Melbourne Knights)
Another scintillating performance by the Knights ‘keeper, who kept Hume out for the entire 90 minutes – and then some – with a number of world class saves right to the end. It started with a one-on-one block against Nick Hegarty, and ended just before the final whistle to deny his header, earning May the man of the match plaudits and a second consecutive Team of the Week spot.
RB: Jake Halliday (Pascoe Vale)
Almost sounding like a broken record here, but there must be something about the full-back that keeps earning him nominations into the Team of the Week, even if we couldn’t fit him on the left side of defence. An always consistent performer that never lets any coach down, and despite not being rewarded with a clean sheet against Gully, he kept his side of defence relatively quiet all night.
CB: Jack Webster (Bentleigh Greens)
The English centre-back once again showed why he is one of the league’s best stoppers with a commanding display at the back. Along with his defensive partner Topalovic, he kept the in-form Khrapko quiet as the Greens recorded their fourth successive league clean sheet.
CB: Michael Grgic (North Geelong Warriors)
You wouldn’t have picked the Warriors to keep their first clean sheet of the season against Heidelberg, but that’s exactly what happened, and it was in no small part due to the efforts of Grgic at the back. Did well to concentrate throughout the whole game to stave off the threat of the Bergers’ forwards with a resilient defensive performance.
LB: James Riccobene (Port Melbourne Sharks)
Put in a busy shift at left back which shouldn’t go without recognition. For the most part, South’s wingers struggled to make an impact against him, while he also added some spark down the left flank. His set piece delivery was on point as well, assisting Kelly’s goal with a curling corner kick.
CM: Wayne Wallace (Bentleigh Greens)
The skipper returned to the Greens’ starting eleven after a suspension and was pivotal in his side earning all three points. He played in a fantastic through ball to Thurtell for the opener and bossed the midfield with another dominant performance.
CM: Alan Kearney (Port Melbourne Sharks)
A top performance from the midfielder, who sliced South Melbourne’s defence open on a number of occasions. Played the ball through to Ibrahim in the lead up to penalty, which Kearney converted himself. Should also have had an assist when he played Rixon through on goal, who just missed wide.
RM: Yusuf Ahmed (Dandenong Thunder)
The 18-year-old is certainly the form player of the competition, propelling himself to equal top of the NPL scorer’s chart with a brace against Oakleigh Cannons, taking his tally to eight, including seven from the last five games. Despite Dandenong’s defeat, Ahmed can hold his head high, with his two quality strikes including one of the goals of the season – a brilliant burst into the box and chip past Honos.
LM: Matthew Lazaridis (Pascoe Vale)
Lazaridis was Pascoe Vale’s goalscoring hero against Green Gully, netting a brace that included a late winner to seal the three points. In an otherwise unremarkable contest, Lazarides brought it to life with an early goal, and while Matt Sanders equalised in the 80th minute, Lazaridis popped up just moments later to cut in from out wide and beat Rani Dowisha.
ST: Matthew Thurtell (Bentleigh Greens)
The Queenslander was instrumental in his sides’ 2-0 away victory over Avondale, scoring one goal to level himself alongside Lujic and Ahmed on top with eight for the season, before assisting another. He lodged onto a Wallace through ball to beat Siddall with a smart lob, then rounded the ‘keeper and set up Lucas for a tap in late on in the contest.
ST: Dean Piemonte (Oakleigh Cannons)
A double salvo from Piemonte just minutes apart in the second half effectively killed off the contest against Dandenong. With both sides entering the sheds even at half time, Piemonte’s combination up front with Zoric following Bosnjak’s injury did the trick, as his two strikes doubled the lead and sealed a second win on the trot for Arthur Papas.
Bench:
Daniel Zilic (North Geelong Warriors)
Playing second fiddle to May this week, the Warriors’ custodian was crucial in ensuring the team kept its first clean sheet of the season with a number of brilliant saves. Whilst his woodwork was rattled on a couple of occasions, we’ll put that down to his pressure in forcing the Bergers to do too much with their efforts on goal.
Nikola Jurkovic (North Geelong Warriors)
The youngster applied himself admirably in the middle of the park against an imposing Bergers lineup, winning tackles and breaking down Heidelberg’s play throughout the 90 minutes in a determined display.
Goran Zoric (Oakleigh Cannons)
Scored the all important second goal after half-time to propel Oakleigh into the lead once more and somewhat dampen Dandenong’s spirits. His partnership up front with Piemonte was crucial, playing a prominent role in the seven minute blitz that secured victory.
Nick Hegarty (Hume City)
The Hume skipper was a constant danger against the Knights, and on another day would have secured multiple goals. Unfortunately for his sake, he was trumped by May in the Knights’ goals, but nonetheless was one of Hume’s best in a dominant performance.
Milan Batur (Melbourne Knights)
A rock in midfield, Batur was winning challenges, putting in important tackles, and propelling his side’s forward thrusts. A constant force in the Knights’ engine room, Batur’s presence was duly noted.
James Kalifatidis (Northcote City)
Despite the 2-0 scoreline suggesting it may have been a comfortable win for Northcote, in truth it was a scrappy contest between two sides low on confidence, though Kalifatidis was constantly keeping Werribee’s defence on its toes. Should have had an assist in the first half with a pinpoint cross to Hayne, though scoring the team’s second goal from the spot was just reward for his efforts.