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Peninsula Power 4:0 UQ FC
Peninsula Power warmed up for the first week of the finals with a comprehensive home victory over wooden spooners UQ.
Everyone will be talking about…
Power’s ability to bag goals from anywhere – Ally Graham’s brace opened up another avenue for September goals.
Yeah, but what happened?
Power starred the first half with a dominating display of possession football. They deserved more after Graham’s early opener, but it didn’t arrive until after the break. In a repeat of their first half start, Graham snatched a second within five minutes of the sides retaking the field. Shaun Feuerriegel sealed the result soon after and there was still time for Matthew Breeze to add a fourth.
The numbers:
Power – Graham ‘5, ’49; Feuerriegel ’63; Breeze ‘74
North Star 1:2 Brisbane Force
Brisbane Force dramatically snatched 10th spot from North Star’s grasp with a smash-and-grab late victory at O’Callaghan Park.
Everyone will be talking about…
Lachlan Munn’s man-of-match performance. The lethal frontman put his side in front twice to earn them just rewards for a positive second half of the season.
Yeah, but what happened?
This was always bound to be a tight encounter, with a big end-of-season boost up for grabs for either side, who both struggled in underwhelming campaigns. The first period proved just that, with deep-lying defensive lines closing out the opposition. It looked set for a stalemate at the break until Munn popped up to open the scoring minutes before half-time. To their credit, Star didn’t seem affected by the psychological blow of going behind at the break and recouped well in the second period. They were awarded a penalty with just over ten minutes to play – which Joseph McMahon duly converted. But Munn would prove to be the hero of the day, as he secured all three points for his side with less than ten minutes to play.
The numbers:
Star – McMahon ‘78(p)
Force – Munn ’42, ‘82
Rochedale Rovers 2:2 Capalaba
Rochedale came back from behind twice to eventually snatch a late draw which also confined Capalaba to a 7th place finish.
Everyone will be talking about…
Terry Hughes’ late equaliser. With the game seemingly gone, the Rovers talisman stepped up once again when it mattered most – a performance worthy of a repeat in the finals.
Yeah, but what happened?
A dour first half sparked to life through Josh Sherwood’s opener – the only difference between the sides at the break. Rochedale rallied in the second half and eventually broke level through Ryota Nakaooka – only for Greg Warden to put the visitors in front again two minutes later. It looked to be the clincher, until another moment of brilliance from Hughes.
The numbers:
Rochedale – Nakaooka ’75; Hughes ‘89
Capalaba – Sherwood ’35; Warden ‘77
Logan Lightning 7:1 Albany Creek
Logan demolished Albany Creek at Cornubia Park to end 2013 on a high and overtake Capalaba into 6th spot.
Everyone will be talking about…
Creek’s demoralising turnaround in fortune after a positive start to the season – 67 goals leaked means they finish as the league’s second worst defence. Even wooden-spooners UQ fared better.
Yeah, but what happened?
The match took a while to get going, but when it did it was all one-way traffic. Jackson Hall broke the deadlock on the half-hour and soon netted his second, before Daniel Clark made it 3:0 moments before the half-time whistle. Clark emulated Hall and completed his brace from the spot within ten minutes of the restart. Not long after, Kurtis Burchar and Petar Kostovski got in on the scoring act for the hosts. It took over 80 minutes for Albany Creek to score in what became an overly open game – Matt Needham notching his 14th of the season. Nevertheless, it was Logan who managed another – Trent Vohland sneaking in their last for the season.
The numbers:
Logan – Hall ’28, ’35; Clark ‘45+2, ‘53(p); Burchar ’61; Kostovski ’72; Vohlan ‘84
Creek – Needham ‘81
Ipswich Knights 1:0 Wolves FC
Tambe Sadick struck the only goal of the match midway through the second-half to hand Wolves just their fourth loss of the season one week out from the finals.
Everyone will be talking about…
With second spot all in the bag, surely this result cannot mean much…but a swing of momentum can influence the best of teams.
Yeah, but what happened?
The neutral spectator would say Wolves had one eye on the finals and never really put 100% into this one, but credit has to be given to Ipswich. They held their line against the solid depth of Wolves’ forward line and once going ahead, held on for a much needed morale boost to close out the season.
The numbers:
Ipswich – Sadick ‘71
Lions FC 1:3 Eastern Suburbs
In Greg Thomas' last league game, a brace from Brendan Lewandowski propelled Easts towards victory at Lions Stadium – the only side to manage the feat this season.
Everyone will be talking about…
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| A guard of honour for one of the local game's greats. Photo: Ian Judd - FB Media |
Yeah, but what happened?
Goalless at the break, the match exploded into life when Brendan Lewandowski opened the scoring immediately after the restart. Following an injury-ravaged season, Lewandowski has had a great second-half to the year, following up his hat-trick against Albany Creek two weeks ago with a brace in this one. Before Lewandowski had grabbed his second, Justin Mcmullen propped up to double Easts’ lead in front of a stunned crowd. Matija Simic gave them something to cheer about late on, but the Lions faithful will be hoping this match is all but forgotten ahead of an upcoming semi-final.
The numbers:
Lions – Simic ‘81
Easts – Lewandowski ’46, ’65; Mcmullen ‘49
Final League Standings
