A round full of goals saw 28 netted across all NPL Victoria games this week, with Pascoe Vale’s 4-2 victory over Hume City starting Round 14 in ominous fashion.
More goalfests followed on the Saturday with five goals split 2-3 between Ballarat and Bentleigh, and 4-1 as the Cannons pummelled the Goulburn Valley Suns. Port Melbourne put a much needed win on the board with a 3-1 result against Dandenong Thunder.
Green Gully and South Melbourne – who picked up their first win in three attempts – both had 3-0 results go their way whilst the rounds lowest scoring game saw a tight contest between the Knights and Northcote City.
Pascoe Vale SC 4 defeated Hume City 2 at Hosken Reserve
Pascoe Vale and Hume City played out an entertaining 4-2 result in the leagues only Friday night match. Vale started the night below Hume on the ladder but by the end of the 90 minutes, has leapfrogged their opponents into fifth on the ladder.
Paco had a fast start to thank for the result as a Tomislav Milardovic penalty in the fourth minute and a poachers goal from winger Luca Santilli saw the home side carry a two goal lead within 10 minutes. In-form Melbourne Heart forward Davey van ‘t Schip – who’s been lighting up the NPL in recent weeks – struck his sides third six minutes later to carry a convincing lead into half-time.
A second goal to Santilli made it 4-0, and from there Vale seemingly took the foot off the gas. The sending off of midfielder Jonathan Voulgaris – who was having a stellar game up until that point – didn’t help as Hume rallied to get back into the game. A penalty to Richie Cardozo and a header from veteran John Sapazovski cut the lead but ultimately it wasn’t enough to avoid defeat.
Ballarat Red Devils 2 defeated by Bentleigh Greens 3 at Morshead Park Stadium
Bentleigh showed grit and class to overcome a two-goal deficit to beat Ballarat Red Devils by a goal in a thriller in Ballarat. A game full of drama was completed with Brent McGrath’s late winner.
New signing for the Red Devils, Deang Aguek marked his first appearance for the club with a stunning first half brace, which had the home crowd in raptures.
Young midfielder Christian Cavallo gave his side some hope with his bullet just after the restart. With Wayne Wallace’s goal in the 79th minute they found themselves level. Time was ticking down and both sides seemed more interested in not losing rather than pushing for the winner. Eventually, one team gave way and it was the industrious Brent McGrath who broke the deadlock. The forward shot clinically to gift his side the win in the 89th minute.
Oakleigh Cannons FC 4 defeated Goulburn Valley Suns 1 at Jack Edwards Reserve
The Cannons did what was expected of them as they put four goals past a confident Goulburn Valley Suns, who were fresh off a 1-1 result against South Melbourne the week prior.
Whilst the away side fashioned an upset of sorts last week, there wasn’t any room for that this time around as three first half goals to Oakleigh had the game wrapped up early.
Dean Piemonte had two by half-time, a cracking curling effort from distance and a volley over Suns goalie Phil Petrovski. Dusan Bosnaj scored in between before Goran Zoric made it 4-0 in the second half.
New signing for Goulburn Valley Brian Vanega reveled in the role behind the strikers and he fashioned a consolation goal in the 70th minute to cap an impressive debut.
Dandenong Thunder 1 defeated by Port Melbourne Sharks at George Andrews Reserve
Both sides have been in some indifferent form this season, perhaps Port Melbourne more so, but it was Dandenong that were left disappointed as the Sharks nabbed their first win in six games.
The Thunder thought they had secured at least a point after defender Jarryd Barnes tapped home in the 70th minute to cancel out Andrew Milicevic fortuitous opener.
Port Melbourne had other ideas however as Luka Prelevic and Lambros Honos both struck late to heap more misery on their inconsistent opponents, whilst also giving the Sharks a much needed win of their own.
Werribee City 0 defeated by Green Gully 3 at Galvin Park
A clinical Cavaliers, led by forward Jason Hayne, dispatched a surprisingly lackluster Werribee City 3-0 who struggled to hit their passes all afternoon.
Hayne struck a goal either side of the half with his – and the games – opener coming on the half hour mark; a simple tap in at the far post. His second came off the chest to extend the lead to three goals over the Bee’s, with midfielder Matthew Sanders’ goal sandwiched in between.
The win pushes a four-point gap between the two mid-table sides, with both outfits looking certainties to avoid relegation.
Northcote City 1 drew with Melbourne Knights 1 at John Cain Memorial Stadium
It was a second half where both keepers had a chance to make themselves heroes for their respective sides as some brilliant shot stopping kept Northcote and the Knights deadlocked at 1-1. Jonathan Munoz hit a sweet free kick for City before winger Shayan Alinejad squared the ledger early in the second half.
It looked for all money that Northcote would regain their lead after Trent Rixon went down in the box. Step up Christopher May, who made an incredible save from the spot, continuing his good form this season.
Northcote keeper Chris Theodoridis then had his chance to shine after a stunning one-on-one save from Alinejad’s effort five minutes from time.
Not one to be topped however, May ensured the Knights went home with a point after an incredible diving save in injury time left the teams even come the full-time whistle.
South Melbourne 3 defeated Heidelberg United at Lakeside Stadium
No longer can we mark South Melbourne down for a win each round, as demonstrated in recent weeks by Oakleigh Cannons and more surprisingly Goulburn Valley Suns, who earned a 1-1 draw in their first v last clash last week.
They did go a long way to restoring the faith however with a comprehensive 3-0 victory over the in-form Heidelberg, who themselves would’ve been disappointed not to gain ground on the ladder leaders.
United’s Steven Pace was in the wrong place at the wrong time as Nick Epifano’s wicked ball deflected off the veteran center-back and into the net for the games early opener. With one came two as Matthew Theodore volleyed home to extend the lead to two goals, effectively killing the contest in the tenth minute.
There was little doubt after South’s third, which had the Berger’s defense reeling. The likely culprit Milos Lujic sat in the box to meet Brad Norton’s inch perfect cross, duly accepting to make it 3-0 in 30 minutes. That’s how it ended at Lakeside as South further pushed their title credentials.
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A relatively quiet week in the NPL1 Victoria saw a low scoring round – save for big wins for North Geelong and Moreland Zebras – in which only nine of the total 22 goals falling in five games.
The two big results saw North Geelong continue their resurgence with a 6-1 clobbering of bottom side Brunswick City, whilst the Zebras proved too strong for Springvale in a shock result.
Bulleen continue their push for promotion as they accounted for Whittlesea Ranges 2-1, with Avondale Heights looking pretty assured for the premiership after narrowly ousting Kingston City 1-0.
2-0 wins for Richmond over Dandenong City and FC Bendigo over Sunshine George Cross – who’ve had a June to forget – see the two sides sure up their respective positions on the ladder.
The final game of the round pitted St Albans Saints against Box Hill United, with the former taking the three points to make up ground on the top four sides.
Whittlesea Ranges 1 defeated by FC Bulleen Lions 2 at Epping Stadium
Bulleen Lions continue to wait in the wings for an Avondale Heights slip-up as they worked hard for three points against lowly Whittlesea Ranges.
A first half goal for Joshua Sabidussi was consolidated by Joe Katebian’s poaching effort. The night was spoiled somewhat with Tomislav Trbuhovic netting for the home side late on to give them a sniff. Ultimately it was to be a consolation as Bulleen shored up second place.
Richmond SC 2 defeated Dandenong City 0 at Kevin Bartlett Reserve
Richmond relied on their heavy hitters to do away with Dandenong City, with the 2-0 result pushing the side into fourth place on the NPL1 ladder. The Eagles notched up their fifth win in unconvincing style with the home side on the back foot for large parts of the game.
Regardless, they dug deep with Hamlet Armenian netting in the 30th minute and captain Tom Cahill in the 59th.
Avondale Heights 1 defeated Kingston City 0 at Avondale Heights Reserve
Another game, another three points seems to be the way things roll down Avondale Heights way as the ladder leaders continued to show why they’re unbackable favourites for the title. This weeks win was a little less convincing, although the inner sanctum would’ve been pleased with another clean sheet to go with their 11th straight win.
Avondale had to wait until the 72nd minute for the game shaper as Dean Campelj soared above the Kingston defence to head home from a free-kick.
Sunshine George Cross 0 defeated by FC Bendigo 2 at Chaplin Reserve
The regional club was slow to find their feet in the NPL system but they’ve now well and truly inducted themselves, after notching up a third straight win at the expense of Sunshine, who would’ve been harbouring hopes of promotion this season. Add to that a third straight clean sheet and the newly established FC Bendigo are looking like a club on the up.
They were made to work for it however as Seb Mattei saved a tame Delfin Mosibe penalty. Earlier, Bendigo had a penalty of their own, which Trent Waterson confidently converted with the coveted second of the contest falling to Jonathan Ryan in the second half.
Brunswick City 1 defeated by North Geelong Warriors 6 at Dunstan Reserve
North Geelong received a nice boost to their goal difference after more than accounting for bottom side Brunswick City, despite being a goal down at half-time.
A barnstorming second term saw forward Reardo Luka net a hat-trick, while serial offenders Michael Anderson and Robert Zadworny also chimed in. Defender Matt Townley put the icing on the cake with his injury time penalty.
Springvale White Eagles 1 defeated by Moreland Zebras 5 at White Eagles Stadium
Springvale’s inconsistent season was pushed into another trough as they were torn apart by Moreland Zebras, who themselves are guilty of some yo-yoing form.
The Zebras raced out of the blocks, with Nick Symeoy hitting home in the fourth minute. Scott Robson and Joel Nikolic had the score line read 3-0 by half time. Symeoy and Nikolic completed their braces in the second term to complete the rout. Substitute Ryan Don Paul’s goal was the only saving grace for the White Eagles in what was a torrid day out for the club.
St Albans Saints 1 defeated Box Hill United 0 at Churchill Reserve
A sloppy, error ridden game between two decent sides was always going to be a tight contest. In the end it was a solitary goal that split the two sides, with St Albans getting up over their more fancied opponents thanks to a Stuart Nicholson strike in the second half.
The win also saw the Saints earn their first clean sheet in four games, with ex-Bentleigh ‘keeper Stuart Webster playing his part on debut.
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We were a game short this week in the Women’s Premier League with Ashburton’s game against Casey Comets on Sunday afternoon washed out.
Focusing on the action that we did see this weekend, Round 10 kicked off with Bundoora putting in a dominant display away from home against Box Hill on Friday night.
On the Sunday, South smashed seven past Cairnlea which included a hat-trick from Tiffany Eliadis while Heidelberg scored two of their own to defeat Boroondara Eagles, who now sit outside of the top five on goal difference.
Monday night football saw Sandy snap their three game losing streak against Monbulk with a convincing performance despite the visitors offering some sturdy resistance.
On the other side of town, Bulleen exercised their dominance against the FFV U17 Girls, scoring four goals in the first half and adding their next immediately after the restart. NTC girls though showed their potential, netting in the second half and playing some positive football.
Box Hill United 1 defeated by Bundoora United 3 at Wembley Park
On Friday night, Bundoora continued their fine from with a convincing 3-1 victory over Box Hill. Quality finishing and superb chemistry saw the visitors win in emphatic fashion as Enza Barilla’s brace and Rachel Alonso first half effort saw Bundy finish on top.
It was a contest they never looked like losing, despite a Ruby Foottit pulling one back for the home side.
Ashburton SC vs. Casey Comets washed out
Cairnlea FC 0 defeated by South Melbourne Women’s 7 at Cairnlea Park
South dished out the punishment on Sunday afternoon, demolishing Cairnlea 7-0. Tiffany Eliadis was the star of the day, bagging a hat-trick which included a superb free-kick which was buried into the top corner. Jess Au’s opener was complimented by singles to Baker, Spiranovic and Baker who completed the rout in the 87th minute.
South Melbourne sit on top of the ladder with a superior goal difference and a game in hand.
Boroondara Eagles 0 defeated by Heidelberg 2 at Knox Regional Football Centre
Heidelberg caused a mini upset on Sunday night as two first half goals saw the visitors claim a 2-0 victory. Kelsey Quinn was superb in goals for the Bergers with a well deserved clean sheet with a goal each to Julia Nicolaci and Demi Kallianis steering the side over line.
Heidelberg are now only adrift of the top five by goal difference who now host fifth place Sandringham next week.
Read More > Krygios exstatic with Eagles win
Sandringham 3 defeated Monbulk Rangers 1 at Kingston Heath
Sandringham avoided the potential banana skin in Monbulk Rangers, triumphing 3-1 in difficult cold conditions. The dangerous Nicola Prins opened the scoring in the 27th minute before a Kristen Stensholdt own goal had the Rangers back in the clash.
Continue Reading > Scoring feeling returns for Monbulk
Sandy were able to overcome the obstacle as their stars stood up. First Emma Runnalls slotted from outside the box, before midfielder Sienna Fogarty outdid her teammate with an even better hit to seal the contest.
Their first win in four games sees Sandy move up to fifth place, whilst Monbulk still continue to occupy bottom.
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Bulleen Lions 5 defeated FFV U17 Girls 1 at Veneto Club – David Barrow Stadium
It was a tale of two halves at the David Barrow Stadium on Monday night. Bulleen raced away to a 4-0 lead before the break, with four unique players impacting the scoreboard. Coppock, Tay, Sernio and Privitelli laid on the pain in the first half with Olivia Edwards extending their advantage straight after the restart.
Continue Reading > McGuinness: They stopped us playing
The NTC girls hit back in a much more even second interval, with Melbourne Victory’s Beattie Goad netting her side’s only goal. Bulleen again sit equal first with South Melbourne.