2022 Men’s National League – Week One Review
Cashmere Technical vs Miramar Rangers
Happy days, the National League is back. Well technically the National League has already been going for a couple weeks but now finally the blokes get to join in too. First game was down at an overcast English Park in Christchurch as Cashmere Technical hosted Miramar Rangers. Cashy Tech with a blow before kickoff as Tom Schwarz was ruled out so Sam Lapslie came into the starting team instead – causing a shuffle as Cory Vickers stepped back into the defensive line with Lapslie in midfield. Luke Tongue captained in place of Schwarzy.
There was also the familiar sight of Danny Knight in goal for the Techies. Andrew Storer with Vickers at CB. Tongue RB with Sam Richards on the left. Alex Ballard joined Lapslie in midfield. Then Declan Tyndall on one wing with Lyle Matthysen on the other. Aidan Barbour-Ryan and Garbhan Coughlan were the strikers.
Miramar Rangers were also without a large and influential human being: in their case top scorer Hamish Watson didn’t play. They did have Andy Bevin as the number ten though, who only made a handful of appearances during the winter. 18 year old Jack De Groot was in goal as he usually is these days. Josh Rogerson, Liam Wood, and Sam Midgley the back three. Wing-backs Max Falconer and Jorge Akers. Sam Dewar and Saul Milovanovic in the midfield. And Bevin in behind Sam Mason-Smith and Wilson Souphanthavong. SMS is a veteran of this scene, WS is 18 years old and fresh from the Oceania U19 Championships with New Zealand. Cashmere Tech also had a guy in that squad, Kian Donkers who shared the Golden Boot, but he was on the bench to begin with.
The opening stages of the new season were... a wee bit cagey. Two aggressive defensive units made sure they were bossing all the 50-50s and as such it took ten minutes before the first decent shot. Worth the wait though as Aidan Barbour-Ryan latched onto a clearance from a corner and smashed it off the frame of the goal for Technical. Nearly snapped that bugger in half.
Cashmere were the more ambitious team with Coughlan showing off some nice touches – including one tricky low cross into the six yard box that De Groot was able to deal with... just. For the most part, Miramar were sturdy at the back and winning their headers. Until the 26th minute when another partially cleared corner was slipped wide to Lyle Matthysen who took one touch to set up a beautiful cross and Andrew Storer’s header was a postage stamp for the top corner.
Seriously, how good was that cross? Header was fantastico too. Good reward for the home side who had been turning up the heat prior to the goal... and also after it because, a mere two minutes later, Matthysen got in behind and into the area where Liam Wood blew across him to concede a penalty. Coughlan buried it down the middle to make it 2-0. All of a sudden this game had quite a different complexion. Both goals assisted by Lyle Matthysen.
You could see that Rangers were missing the focal point of Hamish Watson. Souphanthavong is a naturally attacking player but he did play wing-back for the U19s and starting from that higher position he struggled to dodge the offside flag. It wasn’t until about the last ten mins of the half that they had anything much to speak of in the final third: that was a Falconer cross which bounced awkwardly in front of Akers and caused him to handball it before shooting over. A metre deeper and that might have been 2-1 going into the sheds.
Instead Cashmere kept that double advantage and were able to play the second half from a safe, solid base knowing that Miramar had to come at them. From there they’d pick the ball off and try to counter. 53 mins gone and the plan worked perfectly as Coughlan pinged a ball over to Matthysen in a hint of space and the South African shaped up his man before digging one home at the near post. A goal to go with his two assists. 3-0 to CT.
Matthysen forced a save from JDG soon after. Caused trouble every time he got that round thing at his feet, that man. Kian Donkers came on for a hobbling Barbour-Ryan after 65 mins meanwhile Miramar had already made a change at HT and another since, swapping out their wing-backs... but even with more possession they weren’t carving much out. A deflected deep ball that Mason-Smith could only reach enough to hit the side-netting... and that was about it.
At the other end some typical Coughlan prowess saw him keep the ball under pressure then still somehow whip a perfect switch of play to Tyndall but as he cut back, presumably about to score, in stepped Liam Wood with a cracker of a block. But soon Matthysen struck a mint pass up the left wing and Donkers timed his run perfectly, still in his own half as it was played, and converted 1v1 against De Groot to make it four. Coughlan was in the middle but Donkers never looked like he needed him. KD had come on with a spring in his step and the confidence of a man who’s been banging them away. Now he’s up and running in the Natty League.
4-0 was the final score - although Matthysen went close again late on before Milovanovic hit the bar for MR in the fifth added-on min. Agonisingly close to a consolation. This was a win to raise a few eyebrows around the nation. Cashmere Technical missed out on the Southern League title on goal difference so clearly they’re not risking that outcome again. Matthysen was magnificent with three assists and a goal. Coughlan is always a class above. Storer had it on lock at the back (and popped up with a goal). Plus their midfield may have been patched together late but Lapslie and Ballard did a fine job. There were some memorable defensive moments from Rangers and Andy Bevin looked sharp. But they’ll wanna forget this one in a hurry. Cashmere Technical too good on the day and they made it count.
Napier City Rovers vs Wellington Phoenix Reserves
It was a wet and wild day at Bluewater Stadium in Napier to honour the new season, not ideal as the soggy conditions led to plenty of slip ‘n slide throughout the match. That’s summer season footy in Aotearoa for ya. Napier City Rovers and the Welly Nix Reserves finished fourth and third respectively in the Central League, each winning once against the other. Familiarly competitive way for each of them to get back underway after a month off between leagues.
Rovers were without joint top scorer Jonathan McNamara after the Englishman was sent off for a second yellow in the 93rd minute of their final Central League match... leaving him suspended for this game a month later. Long wait to serve his time, so it goes. Otherwise a pretty strong team that Bill Robertson picked. Oscar Mason in goal fresh from winning the Oceania U19 Championships. Fetuao Belcher at right wingback was also at that tournament playing for Samoa. They had Kaeden Atkins, Jim Hoyle, and Fergus Neil in the back three. Liam Schofield at LWB. Midfield duo of Sho Goto and Ta Eh Doe with Cameron Emerson in front of them. And up top were Canadian import Leaford Allen and local lad Christian Leopard. The latter you may have also seen whacking a cricket ball around Pukekura Park with Central Districts.
But the headlines were in the WeeNix team that Chris Greenacre brought over on the bus. Specifically Ben Old and Alex Paulsen, two academy graduates now on senior contracts, both dipping back into some National League for extra minutes late in their preseasons – and coming only a week after both were with that All Whites squad. Along with that duo were six starters from the Aotearoa U19 OFC Champs squad where they played alongside Oscar Mason. Plus another on the bench (a couple others were rested). Also five of these dudes had played for the Welly Nix first team at some stage.
Specifically, it was Paulsen in goal with a back four of Matthew Sheridan, Marco Lorenz, Isaac Hughes, and Lukas Kelly-Heald. Charlie Beale and Dan McKay patrolled the midfield. Ben Old and Noah Karunaratne were attacking mids. Then Josh Tollervey and Riley Bidois up top.
Ben Old was an instant danger, no surprises there. Any time he picked up the ball on that right wing and cut inside he looked like he could spark something. And the WeeNix passing game was instantly on display with some sharp work building out of their own half. However NCR kept things compact at the back and were therefore able to limit things once the WeeNix got towards the attacking third. A lovely move up the left with Tollervey hitting Old on the overlap almost set up the opener as Old squared for Riley Bidois but Biddy couldn’t turn it in on the slide. Great chance.
Up the other end, a flick-on after a corner by Leaford Allen got past Paulsen but was hacked off the line by Kelly-Heald, albeit with shouts for a handball against him which were ignored by the ref. Soon after a Sheridan cross at around knee-height was headed wide at the near post by a diving Bidois.
The slippery surface was causing a few folks to lose their footing yet Ben Old was an exception as he skipped past defenders. However a sloppy pass from Lorenz at the back for the Nix was picked off by Allen, with Hughes stumbling under the pressure... only Allen’s driven shot was straight at Paulsen. Lorenz did make some amends with a super sliding block on Leopard before the half was done. Limited chances in this one but the chances that did occur were pretty big ones.
NCR threw on Andrew Abba at right wingback to start the seconds though again it was the Nix who began the half with more purpose. Old with another fantastic ball, this time to Kelly-Heald at the back stick but he could only fire into Mason’s hands. Needed to take the ball down across his body to preserve his angle, ah well. Meanwhile Allen’s persistency almost led to something except Hughes and Paulsen were able to make blocks inside the six yard box. Allen also had moment soon after as he intercepted another stray Lorenz pass but this time slipped over to ruin his shot.
Tollervey had a shot on target after an Old feed in transition. You’re catching the pattern, right? Ben Old was involved in pretty much everything for the WeeNix. Only drama was that nobody seemed able to put anything away. This wasn’t a team that scored a heap of goals during the winter, only 32 from 18 games (compared to Olympic with 71 and Miramar with 63) plus maybe they were rusty after the time off. Also finishing often comes with experience so being an U20 team doesn’t help. For all the WeeNixers in that U19s team... the two top scorers were from other clubs: Oliver Collotty (Melville) and Kian Donkers (Cashmere Tech). Can’t exclude Ben Old from the wasteful finishing club because he skipped past a couple defenders with graceful ease on 69’ only to fire wide of the target.
The missed chances left the Nix vulnerable as Rovers pecked away with their own efforts. On 73’ they finally converted one. It was 17yo substitute Sam Lack coming on in the attacking mid spot who did the trick, rushing onto a silky lay-off from the impressive Leaford Allen and then evading a couple challenges before firing through Paulsen’s grasp. How’s that for a super sub?
Chris Greenacre rotated out a few attackers with Kaelin Nguyen, Seb Barton-Ginger, and Ben Wallace all introduced – Old was now playing free through the middle – but Nguyen missed a couple efforts (including one diverted into Mason’s hands from a low cross, one of the better opportunities all day) and Bidois wasn’t able to get a decent shot away after Hoyle’s failed clearance. Finally right near the end a crunching tackle from Nguyen created an overload for Ben Wallace to have a sighter... and his attempt thudded off the crossbar. It simply wasn’t happening.
You can’t say that the WeeNix didn’t have it in them but when you don’t make the most of the chances you create, despite having the bulk of possession and playing some quality stuff, that’s what can happen. Ben Old was the best player on the park regardless and the way they operated in the midfield and down the wings will be something to hang the metaphorical hat upon. Gotta work on that finishing though. Luckily Chris Greenacre does know a thing or two about that subject.
A 1-0 win to Napier Rovers... gotta applaud the work of that NCR back three, in particular Kaeden Atkins who was superb. They won the bulk of their contests and made it as tough as possible for the Nix. Sam Lack had an inspired cameo even aside from the goal. Loved his energy off the bench. And Leaford Allen’s a striker you can build an attack around, no doubt. Didn’t get a goal this day but he did bag an assist. A winning start for Napier City Rovers, on ya go.
Wellington Olympic vs Auckland City
Apparently this fixture is called the Mediterranean Cup. One team is known as The Greeks, one team has strong Croatian heritage (through City’s Central United connections). So when they play each other – as also happened in a Chatham Cup semi-final not so long ago – they celebrate that with an aptly named trophy. If you didn’t know before, now you do.
More importantly there were National League points on the line and Olympic, having already had a look at City in that cup tie, will have felt as confident about their chances of beating them as anyone... other than Auckland United who literally did beat them, the only team to do so in 2022.
Olympic were without Justin Gulley who was suspended from the end of the Central League. Tam Dimairo therefore had to drop into the back three and do a job alongside captain Ben Mata and Alex Palezevic. Scott Basalaj in goal. Tor Davenport-Petersen and Nati Hailemariam in the midfield. Jack-Henry Sinclair and Jonty Roubous were the wingers and Gianni Bouzoukis played off Jesse Randall and Kailan Gould up top-skees. Strong team with a lot of attacking prowess.
Auckland City did rotate things a tad with club stalwart Angel Berlanga given a start in place of Sam Brotherton. Adam Mitchell joined him in central defence with Aidan Carey on the right and Alfie Rogers on the left. Conor Tracey in goal. Mario Ilich the holding mid behind Cam Howieson and Gerrard Garriga Gibert. Then Ryan De Vries in the nine, flanked by Joe Lee on the right and Liam Gillion on the left. That added up to four changes from the Chatham Cup final XI – the absentees including Jack Batty Medallist Dylan Manickum (as well as Brotherton, Jordan Vale, and Reid Drake). This was the Central League champs hosting the Northern League champs. Very possibly a preview of the eventual final. Aww, here goes.
City wasted no time in getting onto the attack through their young wingers Gillion and Lee but a sizzling run (replete with nutmeg) by Sinclair set up a run of corners for Olympic that also required some defending. Gillion’s backheel down the line to Rogers, leading to a Garriga shot into orbit, was another early highlight. As was The Bulldog Kailan Gould searing into the area and punting a shot over the bar. Both teams looking very well drilled, playing sharp and precise footy.
And Olympic were shading things through twenty minutes, further proof that they could foot it with City. Randall and Sinclair and Gould all had flashes. Then Jonty Roubos rushed onto a half-clearance with a thunderous strike directly into top corner for what looked like an absolutely brilliant opening goal... until the ref ruled it out because Bouzoukis was offside and apparently in the line of sight of keeper Tracey. Apparently. Those interfering with play by blocking the keeper’s vision ones are slippery to say the least.
Yeah... that’s harsh.
WO nearly scored a legitimate one five mins later as Randall dropped a mint ball in behind the ACFC defensive line which Sinclair was able to stretch out and turn on target but Tracey tipped it over the bar with a reaction save. If he’d kept it lower then Tracey wouldn’t have had a chance. Then came an even better save as JHS knocked one over to Randall whose whipped shot was going in when Tracey dove to parry it wide. Add in another good save staying big as he charged down Bouzoukis in behind soon after.
No kidding: The Greeks were all over them. Swarming and hounding. Davenport-Petersen won several strong tackles to keep the pressure going in the City defensive half, ensuring a constant feed to that attacking corps. ACFC did finish the half more reminscent of their normal shenanigans, with Joe Lee going close, though not before Gould snuck in behind and Tracey had to slide out to shut him down too. 0-0 at the break. Conor Tracey and a stray offside flag were the only things keeping City from a deficit.
Thing is, you can’t wound a team like Auckland City and leave them still breathing. That’s horror movie 101 – always make sure the villain is dead before you relax. Welly O didn’t score a goal during their first half dominance and five mins into the second half a silky dummy from Howieson gave Lee the ball in motion and he squared for Ryan De Vries who guided the ball into the net with one touch (and a slight deflection). Michael Myers rises yet again. Auckland City led 1-0 after 50 mins.
How would Olympic respond? Pretty well. City were definitely doing more with the ball than they had been earlier and Howieson forced a Basalaj into a low stop. Immediately afterwards they threw on Emiliano Tade so... yeah, good luck. But Olympic’s Connor Gaul and Theo Ettema were pretty useful subs themselves and Jesse Randall was still making things happen down the left for the Greeks. Great chance for him on 65’ getting the return ball from Bouzoukis but stabbing straight at Tracey.
That was a sign that Olympic weren’t going anywhere and on 75 mins they finally got the goal they’d worked all day for. Jack-Henry Sinclair with a shot from just inside the area. Tracey dove to get a hand to it. Gianni Bouzoukis, in his 100th game for Wellington Olympic, nudged it home on the rebound. That’ll do.
Except ten minutes later Auckland City won a corner kick which Emiliano Tade curled in dangerously. Basalaj pushed it away for another corner. That second one was taken into a similar area only this time it skimmed off the head of Tor Davenport-Petersen and inside the far post for an own goal. Bugger. City then did the possession thing the rest of the way, restricting Olympic from having any real opportunity to tie it up again – in fact the best remaining chance fell to Cam Howieson whose thumping drive (after some brilliant build-up play from Gerard Garriga and Angus Kilkolly) was superbly saved by Basalaj.
They do say that the best teams win on their bad days. Auckland City were second best for large swathes of this game, especially in the first half, but they held firm – with large thanks to their goalie – and then found a way to score. Then when they conceded an equaliser they found another way to score. Top performance from Conor Tracey. Also got noteworthy contributions from their central defenders Mitchell and Berlanga. Aidan Carey had a good game on the right. Cam Howieson is always at least 8/10. Not a vintage game from the Navy Blues and yet they won it all the same. Will any team have a better chance to topple them this National League than Wellington Olympic just did?
On those Olympians... they’ll score a lot of goals against other teams with Sinclair, Gould, Bouzoukis, and Randall all operating in motion like that. Ben Mata was a powerhouse at the back as usual. Davenport-Petersen was unfortunate with the own goal because he’d otherwise played very well. Rupert Kemeys’ fellas are just gonna have to dust themselves off, try get back to winning ways next week, and maybe, just maybe, they’ll get a third crack at the Mediterranean Cup in the National League final. Maybe. This result meant that all three Wellington clubs lost in week one, guts.
Birkenhead United vs Christchurch United
Back up to Shepherd’s Park in North Auckland for the first game of Sunday’s slate as a couple clubs with proud histories stepped into the new National League. Birkenhead were second in the Northern League despite what’s a pretty young squad. Paul Hobson coached a lot of these dudes with Waitakere United in the previous incarnation so nothing to worry about. 3-4-1-2 shape. Silvio Rodic in goal with a trio of Dylan Hobson, Dino Botica, and Andrew Cromb. Everton O’Leary at RWB fresh from the NZ U19s. Jackson Woods on the left. Corban Piper partnered Sam Burfoot in the middle with Dane Schnell a little further forward. And it was Alex Connor-McClean and Curtis Hughes up front.
Paul Ifill’s Canterbury United team won 10-0 in their final Southern League match to clinch the title on goal difference. That’s the confidence they took into this game. Scott Morris in goal, formerly of Hawke’s Bay United. Back three of Jordan Spain, Blake Weston, and Ben Lapslie. Note that Lapslie’s brother Sam started for Cashmere Technical – at least one of them was effectively guaranteed to win that Southern title. Spain’s brother Aaron is also a well known fella, though wasn’t in the Miramar squad this week.
Moving on and Joe Hoole was the holding midfielder while Riley Grover played left wing-back and Noah Billingsley, back this year after his MLS stint with Minnesota United didn’t work out, was on the right. Matt Todd-Smith and Juan Uribe in midfield. Will Pierce and Eddie Wilkinson the strikers. MTS was a standout for Tasman United their last few years. Wilkinson scored a couple goals for Canterbury United in their final term. Funky team that they’ve put together.
Hefty diffo between smoking regional teams 10-0 and taking on the second best team in the Northern League on the road though. Especially on what was already a golden day for Birkenhead after favourite son Alex Greive had scored a last-minute winner for St Mirren that morning. Birko weren’t planning on waiting that long for their own goals – they started off with a hiss and a roar as Hughes stung the palms of Morris in goal amidst plenty of energy and skill. Weston headed wide from a corner for CU after 12 mins, the first proper foray forward for Chch. Birko tried a few long shots. Wilkinson responded with a persevering run leading to a shot deflected for a corner and a Billingsley header wide from that very same corner.
Birkenhead were looking good. Schnell curled an effort on target, then Connor-McClean couldn’t cleanly strike the rebound. But it was arguably Christchurch who had the better moments, even if they were fewer, such as Will Pierce slicing at a ball that conveniently fell his way. With 25 minutes gone the game really began to open up. Christchurch Utd had taken some time to settle but now they’d gotten their calibrations right. Wilkinson kept working hard and he punted another shot wide.
O’Leary thought he deserved a penalty for Birkenhead on 38’ but the ref didn’t oblige. One minute later he did get a whistle however the foul was outside the box... Dylan Hobson curled the free kick into the side-netting. Meanwhile Pierce made a brilliant run only for Cromb to step across and halt him. Wilkinson was even more proficient at skipping past dangling boots than his strike-partner was yet his next attempt was saved by Rodic. Fascinating footy.
Miles Palmer came on for Birkenhead at the half and slotted into midfield. Five mins into the second stanza Hughes scooped up the ball on halfway and took two defenders out of the picture with a quick turn. Hughes was fizzing all over the place with his dribbling and that turn led to a 2v1 situation in which he passed to Connor-McClean... who didn’t even hit the target. ACM also put a couple other shots over the top on either side of that other effort so it wasn’t too much of a shock when Cam MacKenzie came on in his position. Connor-McClean’s a legit goalscorer and proven at this level... but sometimes it’s not your day.
Christchurch Utd had been ominous from corner kicks all day... so it was kinda funny that Birkenhead opened the scoring on 58’ via a corner kick of their own. Hobson with the delivery, Dino Botica with the downward header. No stopping it.
Todd-Smith fired wide for CU before Schnell headed wide for BU. Still going end to end. Thus it came to pass that substitute Mika Rabuka embarked on a magical run to set up Eddie Wilkinson’s first time banger and we were all level again...
That was a wake up call for Birkenhead. Chch were good value for that goal but Birkenhead should have already been a couple ahead were it not for their own misses. They took the necessary advice. Up went the urgency levels and now Birko were lifting in plenty of crosses and shooting on sight. CU coped alright with it, almost taking the lead as a Rabuka snapshot was cleared off the line (by Cromb, pretty sure), right up until they didn’t cope any more. Jackson Woods smacked one towards goal which Morris tipped wide on the dive. But from the corner his punch wasn’t good enough and Everton O’Leary had a crack which was diverted into the net by Chase Taylor. 2-1 after 79 mins.
By this time Christchurch were visibly tiring. Not too many SL games had this kinda ninety minute intensity and Birkenhead took advantage. Morris punched much more assertively from the next corner and still it almost led to a goal as Miles Palmer attempted an outrageous chest and volley from about thirty metres out and it smacked off the crossbar. Eventually Jackson Woods burned his man down towards the goal line and his cross caught the hand of Jordan Spain. Or at least the ref said it did, hard to tell from the replays. Anyway, penalty was given and Miles Palmer did this...
Therefore it ended 3-1 to Birkenhead United. They were good throughout and should have scored a lot earlier, yet kept trucking regardless and dominated the last quarter of an hour to take the points. Strong response to the equaliser too. Everton O’Leary had a quality game, Sam Burfoot is always one of the best on the park, Andy Cromb was solid. Birko really earned that one.
On the flipside, Christchurch United will take plenty of lessons from the defeat and one of those lessons should be that Eddie Wilkinson is going to score goals regardless of opposition. That’ll keep them in most games because you get the feeling that they’re capable of much more than they showed here.
Auckland United vs Melville United
This was already one of the funkiest of all the week one match-ups. Both are fresh additions to this competition (at least since the Premiership era anyway), evenly matched having split their winter meetings with one win each, not to mention several enticing emerging players for each side. But it gained even more prominence when Melville coach Sam Wilkinson referred to his team as “hillbillies” in a pre-game chat with Sky Sports. Excellent motivational areas. The only Waikato team in either NL comp, gotta spark up that underdog mentality.
Auckland United lined up in a 4-3-3 shape typical of Jose Figueira. Mack Waite in goal. Back four (from right to left) of Regont Murati, Ross Haviland, Kurtis Mogg, Harshae Raniga. Michael den Heijer was the holding man in midfield. Will Mendoza and Ignacio Machuca in front of him. Then a front three with Matt Conroy and Oliver Fay on the wings and Joshua Redfearn through the middle. Fay having impressed at the Oceania U19s recently. Mogg fresh from leaving the Welly Nix Academy at the end of last season (which he mostly spent with the A-League squad over in Oz). Den Heijer and Conroy have played professionally in Europe. Raniga has an international cap for Aotearoa. That’s a tasty team.
As for Melville, Oliver Colloty was a Golden Boot winner at the Oceania U19s. He started up front with Stafford Dowling while Ryen Lawrence operated a little deeper. 36 year old club legend Aaron Scott was in midfield with Quinton Kipara (Liam Hayes was suspended so Scotty had to do a job further forward than usual). Wing backs were Jerson Lagos and Campbell Brown. Back three of Sean Liddicoat, Raheem Hunter, and Luke Searle. The always dependable Max Tommy wore the gloves. Lining up in a 3-4-1-2 formation.
Both teams had very young attacking groups who wanted to play quick in transition and that instantly led to some end-to-end activities at Keith Hay Park (which had apparently drained nicely since they’d had to move the women’s game away from there a day prior). Some great work from Mendoza with a switch to Conroy led to a low cross that Fay managed to reach but Tommy made the save. Then he also saved the follow-up from Mendoza. First major opportunity for Auckland United and it would not be the last. Conroy had a few pops at goal. Fay was looking an almighty handful. Size was not the strength of those dudes but they moved the ball swiftly and had Melville scrambling at the back.
Then again, Melville had some pace up top themselves and Stafford Dowling didn’t hesitate to let his mullet feel the cool Auckland air as he stretched out on the break. Couple of long shots. Also one chance where Dowling forced a decent stop but maybe could have passed to Colloty in the middle for a better look. At times it was a two-man show between that pair as Melville defended with big numbers.
Conroy stung a low cross just beyond Redfearn for AU. Then it was his turn to try and guide a Mendoza cross in but he was partially blocked for a simple save. Mendoza was pulling all sorts of strings and should’ve had an assist as he fed in Redfearn... who missed the target entirely with only the keeper to beat peeling in from the right side of the area. Did everything perfect until the shot. Then Murati pinged a firm effort. Saved. Conroy on the rebound. Also saved. Dunno how Melville made it through the first half hour unscathed but they did.
In fact they made it all the way to the half unscathed having been able to push the game further from their own goal after that initial phase, which helped ease the pressure. An injury to Matt Conroy meant he was replaced by Will Stephen after 42 mins. Bummer to see – especially as he’d been so electric to that point. Stephen had a deflected effort just before the break which fell for Oliver Fay who somehow couldn’t get a proper touch after sneaking around his marker. Anything on target and it was surely a goal from there.
Frantic stuff, man. Thirty seconds into the second half Hunter was booked for taking out Fay. Machuca’s shot from the free kick was well saved by Tommy, yet again. United did seem to be finding more space now as the territory levelled out and Melville committed forward. So Melville responded by upping the physicality – there was one absolutely crunching tackle by Liddicoat on Stephen in particular. Don’t wanna condone it... but still love to see it.
Kipara and Lagos both had useful strikes at goal. By the way, Jerson Lagos? Over 200k followers on TikTok so there ya go. Josh Galletly came on for Melville, their other supreme young gun (who unlike Colloty didn’t make the U19s squad... but he must’ve been close). He supplied a bit more energy though it wasn’t like Melville were lacking in any way on that count. The work rate they showed across the team was crazy, as Auckland United began to tire and go to their bench in the final twenty the Waikato team, if anything, ramped it up further. Aaron Scott moved deeper into the backline as they switched things up with subs and that had them looking as secure as they had all day.
With a bit more luck they’d have taken the lead as Dowling was able to come through a challenge from Haviland to smash one across goal that hit Mogg on the chest and by nothing more than pure fortune deflected right into Mack Waite’s chest. Could so easily have been an own goal. Or, you know, Dowling could’ve cut it back to the open Colloty. Ah well.
A very eventful nil-all draw was looking more and more likely. The experience at the back for both teams was on the verge of winning out... as Auckland United were on the verge of continuing on from the five consecutive clean sheets they kept to finish off the regular season. A draw would have been about fair for both sides. United had the better chances but failed to take them. Melville scrapped hard for everything and deserved their point. But who ever said football was fair? Nobody, that’s who. Which is why this happened...
There was some lovely work from Murati to angle infield and slip a pass to Nic Zambrano (off the bench) who in turn did well to get body position against his marker. But for Max Tommy to charge him down then see the ball bounce back off Zambrano and into Sean Liddicoat and then creep over the line before Liddy could stop it... bloody hell. All the great attacking moments we saw from both teams in this match and it was decided by a 93rd minute deflected own goal. Makes you think about that Kurtis Mogg one earlier that had bounced into the keeper’s grasp. Brutal way for Melville to lose... though tell ya what if they battle like that every week then they won’t lose too many more. Strangely this keeps up a trend of Melville not having drawn a single game all year.
Auckland United’s women’s team have been thrilling to watch with the calibre of their young attacking talent. Can confirm that Auckland United’s men’s team are no different. Oliver Fay was superb in how he seemed to glide around the field avoiding challenges and making things happen. Hopefully Conroy isn’t too badly injured because he was looking sharp. And Will Mendoza was more than a mission to contain. Plus you have to give big credit for this result to Ross Haviland and especially Kurtis Mogg at the back who were fantastic. Reggie Murati had a good game too.
For Melville, Max Tommy still might’ve been man of the match despite that late concession and Luke Searle and the evergreen Aaron Scott were huge for them also, although it was the overall team effort that had to have inspired the fanbase. They weren’t the only team to lose to a late own goal this week so, you know, gotta cop it and come back stronger.
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