NSWPL: Welcome home Sydney Olympic

Round 12 proved to be one of the closest rounds of football this season, with the four matches which did take place all separated by just one goal.


This week we saw Pat Morando remain in control of Parramatta seeing his slide slump to their ninth defeat of the campaign whilst Bonnyrigg continue to pick up their form at the right time of the season. Bankstown continued their hot and cold season with a trip to Marconi Stadium, sitting fifth on the table, Marconi proving they are a side not to be taken lightly. Sydney Olympic fans welcomed their team home for the first time this season, a fired up Trevor Morgan desperate for a result against Peter Tsekenis' men. Meanwhile Blacktown's Mark Crittenden was ecstatic to get a result over Sutherland whose season has been under scrutiny after recent performances.

Bonnyrigg White Eagles 1 - Parramatta FC 0

The 600 strong crowd who made their way to the Bonnyrigg Sports Centre on Saturday night definitely got their money's worth. With just 20 minutes on the clock, Bonnyrigg's Jared Lum was awarded a straight red card after a careless challenge on Kutaiba Elrich which ledt Parramatta with the numerical advantage for the rest of the fixture. Despite countless opportunities in the first half, Parramatta's forward Almir Dizdaric failed to capitalise on any chances.

The second half started to fire up, with Bonnyrigg's Brad Broadman pulled down in the box, gifting Broadman an opportunity to open the scoring. Parramatta's Tomislav Romic denied him with a fantastic save which was followed up with a reflex save forced by a Chris Tadrosse shot. With the match seemed destined for a draw, a poor clearance by Parramatta's Ben Jurman led to the ball at Blake Powell's feet who blasted it past Romic and into the net. The 91st minute goal proof Bonnyrigg their mentality of 'the match isn't over until the whistle' will cause problems for teams aiming to get nothing more than a draw.

Marconi Stallions 1 - Bankstown 0

In a fixture where the ball moved slower than my grandmother - every throw-in and free kick was taken by Bankstown matched with a shout out of "Time!" - Marconi took the points. This lack of pace to the match however did not affect Marconi's plan which was was proved just before half time when Nahuel Arrarte crossed from the left and Daniel Petkovski managed to get a leg between two defenders to knock the ball in and break the stalemate.

The second half saw more shots on target by Bankstown's Hussein Salameh and Marconi's Matthew Mayora, both managing to put the ball just beyond the post during some strong counter attacking plays. Bankstown's coach, Blagoja Kuleski was not impressed with the match saying that even with his side playing reasonably well, his team lack the ability to turn loses into draws and draws into wins.

Sydney Olympic 2 - South Coast Wolves 1

Welcome to Belmore Sports Ground, home to Sydney Olympic. Even with construction tape still covering 60% of the stadium, the pitch was in perfect condition ahead of this fixture.

With limited attacking options, starting up front for Wolves was former Sydney FC defender, Jacob Timpano. This move looked the goods early on with an opportunity in the first few moments of the match, that was until Olympic's Chris Triantis was pulled down in the box by John Keating leaving the referee no choice but to award the penalty. Phil Makrys stepped up and slotted home to make it 1-0 in the first five minutes of the match.

Wolves supporters didn't have to wait long to see an equaliser, a strike by Mark Picciolini in the 24th minute was enough to give the away side some hope going into the dressing rooms for the break.

Olympic's Todd Bamber had the last say in this fixture, his goal in the 60th minute enough for Olympic to get maximum points at home in front of approximately 400 supporters.



Match Highlights courtesy of Football NSW

Blacktown City 1 - Sutherland Sharks 0

Blacktown continued their positive run of late with a surprise win over one of the top sides in the competition, Sutherland Sharks. With the one and only Mother Nature providing unpredictable rainfall and strong winds, both sides were unable to play their usual long ball or 'chip and chase' style of football.

Another strong performance by Sutherland's 'keeper was hindered thanks to a moment of chaos towards the end of the match. Blacktown crossed the ball in, Luke Roodenburg took a header from outside the six yard box which Denham could only push away. In doing so, Hayden Morten failed to clear the ball and somehow the ball managed to make it's way into the back of the net. A goal neither side really expected.

In front of a disappointing crowd of only 200, Blacktown's football keeps getting better and are side to watch out for in this second half of the season.

Washed out fixtures:
Manly United v Sydney United
APIA Leichhardt Tigers v Rockdale City Suns