Photo: Whittlesea Ranges
There was plenty of action across the grounds this weekend in the state’s second tier, including a mouthwatering match-up between high-fliers Dandenong Thunder and Northcote City – with the pair exchanging six goals in a tasty affair – while Whittlesea Ranges were able to notch up a third consecutive win ahead of an important fixture against Northcote next week.
The marquee fixture of the round saw the Thunder inflict NPL2 West ladder-leaders Northcote with a first loss of the season, coming in an enthralling 4-2 result at George Andrews Reserve.
Brandon Barnes shot to the top of the NPL2 Golden Boot standings with a brace, while strike partner Veton Korcari also struck twice in front of a home crowd.
It was the latter that was able to break the deadlock after 14 minutes, putting a penalty he had earlier won beyond Griffin McMaster who went the right way.
They grabbed a second just minutes later through Barnes, who was able to convert with a composed finish to pile the pressure on Zeljko Kuzman’s men.
Northcote were awarded a penalty of their own on the half hour mark, with Josh Knight there to reduce the deficit before heading into the rooms for half time.
Barnes’ second came just four minutes after the restart, but celebrations were short lived as Northcote soon hit back via Baggio Yousif, once again coming from the penalty spot – the third issued for the night.
The result was put beyond doubt by Korcari who profited from a strong assist from Barnes to push the buffer back out to two goals.
It was the biggest test of the season for both clubs, with the Thunder aiming to consolidate with a good result against a Murray United side fresh off their first win of 2017.
Northcote will be looking to bounce back with a fixture against the in-form Whittlesea Ranges next week in a top-of-the-table clash.
The Ranges head into that fixture fresh off a 3-1 victory over Box Hill United, their third consecutive win marking an upturn in fortunes for Vinko Buljubasic’s side.
For the visitors, the loss leaves Pythagoras winless after six rounds, their worst ever start to an NPL season.
They did start the brighter of the two sides, with former Melbourne Victory forward Andrew McNamara missing an early opportunity at goal.
They managed to hit the lead through Josh Calle, who sweetly struck a left footed effort into the bottom right corner.
Danny Charalambous was looking ominous for the Ranges in their search for an equaliser as he saw a number of chances thwarted in the first half.
Mario Piraino went even closer for the Ranges when his shot crashed into the crossbar early into the second term.
Whittlesea’s pressure eventually told as Tom Barforosh restored parity in the 58th minute, tapping home from close range via a Ross Frame assist.
It was the former Dandenong City midfielder that then found the net himself soon after, with Frame profiting from a Naum Sekulovski ball before rounding the keeper to put the hosts into the lead.
Sekulovski also hit the crossbar for the Ranges before Charalambous eventually got in on the act with a deflected goal coming from a Barforosh assist.
Things didn’t improve for Box Hill who saw Calle’s second goal of the night chalked off for offside five minutes from time.
As frustrations built, the game boiled over with a minor scuffle between the sides taking place deep into injury time with the Ranges eventually going on to round off an important victory.
Sunshine George Cross handed Springvale White Eagles its second loss in as many weeks as they ran out 3-1 winners at White Eagles Stadium.
Nepalese international Jagajeet Shrestha opened the scoring in the just the fifth minute, when Teddy Yabio’s strike from a wide area was parried by Lajos Oliviera into the path of the forward.
Five minutes from the interval, a slip up from Barry Devlin allowed Delfin Mosibe to grasp on the error and capitalise for Springvale to put them on level terms going into the break.
The game spurred into life again just after the half hour mark when Dom Falla opened fire from range, where his shot found the top corner to give Sunshine the upper hand.
A sharp counter attack 10 minutes from time saw Shrestha turn provider, as his cut back found an unmarked Yabio who made no mistake to help secure the three points for Sunshine.
Bendigo City’s life after Srecko Baresic-Nikic didn’t yield the result desired against Goulburn Valley Suns, as they fell to a 4-2 defeat despite two late goals.
Liam Baxter’s early strike set the tone, but it was a devastating five-minute spell after the break that had Nick Kalafatis’ side roaring to a 4-0 lead, with Baxter and Geordie Lelliott each netting a brace.
A goal from the penalty spot to Daniel Purdy and Charlie McCormick conversion from a Sam Farr cross had Bendigo on the scoreboard but those strikes ultimately acted as consolation for a side still seeking a first win of the season.
Richmond SC extended their winless start to the NPL2 season to six, after slipping to yet another loss to NPL2 West high-fliers Brunswick City.
Anchored to the bottom of the East conference ladder and in dire need of three points, former Dandenong City defender Halil Gur almost headed the hosts into an early lead, but his header flashed wide of the right post with just a minute on the clock.
Welshman Adam Wright unleashed a vicious volley from the edge of the area, however Richmond shot-stopper Brandon Osipov was up to the task to deny the in-form Spartan.
An important block from youngster Declan Lambert denied Cameron Neales an opener, while at the other end, Seb Mattei and Frank Serratore combined to deny Gonzalo Freddi and Ratip Cileli in quick succession.
The deadlock was broken through Wright who collected a return ball from Matthew Murphy on the right wing before finish with aplomb across the face of goal.
Richmond hit back through Gur, who towered above the pack from a corner to power in the equaliser.
Both sides launched a tirade of late forward thrusts in search for a winner, and substitute Liam Newman thought he had delivered the home support at Dunstan Reserve just that, however his injury time effort was chalked off by the assistant referee.
There was no denying him a second time as his downwards trajectory header from a Wright cross was enough to beat Osipov for the winner, which came in the fourth minute of stoppage time.
Although he didn’t get himself on the scoresheet, Archie Thompson played a big role in Murray United’s first win of the season as they secured a 1-0 win over a Moreland City outfit that missed a golden opportunity to climb to second on the NPL2 West ladder.
Thompson put in a bright display for the hosts and had set up Lewis Greenwood for an easy finish in the first half, but the goal was chalked off for a clear offside from the marquee recruit.
At the other end, Moreland saw a number of half shouts for a penalty fall on deaf ears, while Apai Ukuno looked the most likely, but was unable to breach Abdulkerim Koc’s net.
The winner came nine minutes from time through captain Ashley Dunn, who fired low past Kieran McDowell to lift the side into eight place on the NPL2 ladder.
On Sunday, Melbourne City were able to claim bragging rights in the Youth Derby after securing a thumping 5-1 win over cross-conference rivals Melbourne Victory.
The two sides exchanged blows in the early stages of the first half with former Victory man Lucas Derrick converting from a Denis Genreau cutback in the 13th minute, before Pierce Waring tapped in an equaliser nine minutes later.
A devastating spell from City with half half time approaching put the game beyond the reach of Victory, as a belter from Gerrie Sylaidos sparked a frenzy after converting his fourth goal of the season.
Genreau got on the scoresheet himself just minutes later before a six minute spell of dominance was capped off by Ali Eyigun who was able to convert a penalty earlier won by Derrick.
Substitute Marko Delic was able to open his NPL account with the sealer on 65 minutes, which came just moments after his introduction off the bench.
The thrashing helped shore up City’s position as one of the NPL2 West frontrunners, with the second placed outfit boasting the healthiest goal difference in the league.
Challenging City at the top end of the NPL2 East is Dandenong City, who secured their fourth win of the season against Ballarat City.
The twilight fixture at Morshead Park ended 2-0 to the visitors, who made a fast start courtesy of Mate Dugandzic, who profited from a defensive lapse to tap home the opener with just a minute on the clock.
Shaun Filipovic then sealed the result in the second half with yet another tap in for City, which came courtesy of an error from Joshua Dorron in goals.
Sunday’s final fixture saw Eastern Lions claim a 2-1 victory over Werribee City, while Dandenong City remain top of the NPL2 East conference with a 2-0 away win over Ballarat City.
The Lions found themselves two goals ahead courtesy of a Tommy Falconer penalty and a thunderous volley from Resit Culculoglu in the second half.
Domenico Marafioti gave the Bees some late hope with his first goal of the season on 74 minutes, but it was to no avail.
Serge Sabbadini’s men sit second bottom of the NPL2 West ladder, and remain winless after six rounds.