Flying Kiwis – February 25
Finn Surman - Portland Timbers (American Major League Soccer)
It took a long time for Finn Surman to finally debut for Portland Timbers. He joined them midseason and they allowed him as much room as possible to settle into his surroundings before finally chucking him onto the pitch for the last game of the regular season. He did well. The fans were impressed. The coach was happy. Portland then went and got tonked 5-0 at home against Vancouver Whitecaps in the playoffs with Surman getting some garbage time minutes at the very end. Terrible result for the club but it did help Surman’s cause heading into 2025 because defensive changes were going to be necessary after that debacle.
It would have been easy to look at Surman sitting on the bench for all those months and conclude that he was struggling at his new club. But that was never the impression given by coach Phil Neville, who made it clear that they saw Surman as a genuine part of their squad moving forward. There was even some expectation he could be pushing starter status to begin the new campaign. Unfortunately he got injured in preseason so we didn’t get to see what plans the Neviller had drawn up for him there... but you know what? First game of the MLS season. Home against those very same Vancouver Whitecaps in search of revenge. And Finn Surman was in that starting line-up despite the lack of preparation. No dramas. He’s just that good.
Portland lined up with a back three and Surman hung out on the right edge of that trio. Familiar things for him... even down to the chilly, wet weather on the Pacific Northeast. You could see from the outset how very uncooked this defence was though, with the Whitecaps easily able to create space via their angled runs. The Timbers needed to survive those frisky stages. Instead the left-CB, Kamal Miller, got himself sent off after only 11 minutes for taking down Brian White who was in on goal thanks to Miller having played him onside and then been unable to match him for speed. With that, the back three became a back four for the next eighty minutes. Only positive is that the foul was outside the box and they were ablet to deflect the free kick wide to stay at 0-0.
They kept it scoreless for a short time but then a goalkeeping giveaway exposed the short-handed Timbers defence and Ryan Gauld made it 1-0 on 24’, finishing under the desperate lunge of Finn Surman. It became 2-0 on 32’ when Pedro Vite slammed in a superb strike from outside the area. That instigated a first-half substitution from Phil Neville, taking off a striker to get a proper fullback in there. Neville also threw on his flash new attacking signing David da Costa at the break and for a few minutes it looked like the Timbers might have some retaliation in them. Then they got sliced on the counter attack for a Sam Adekugbe goal (53’) before Jayden Nelson, who’d set up all three previous goals, got one of his own on 61’.
That was enough for Neville to make further subs with Surman one of those replaced after 66 minutes – new draftee Ian Smith was sent on for a debut in his place. Smith was teammates of Ronan Wynne’s at college and both are now trying to break into MLS, more on Wynne soon. Anyway, Antony Alves did get a goal back for Portland to save complete and utter embarrassment but a 4-1 loss on opening day after an 11th minute red card was still bad enough.
Surman’s performance seemed like one of the bright spots for Portland. He made a few key clearances, was assured on the ball, and looked dedicated and composed despite his inexperience at this level and the situation he found himself in. Him getting subbed was not a performance thing. It was purely because he didn’t have the conditioning to go much longer. Plus the game was gone so Neville decided to give a young bloke (who is actually one year older than Surman) a debut.
Portland had one of their other central defenders, Miguel Araujo (a Peru international) absent for personal reasons against Vancouver. Sometimes that’s footballspeak for “about to be transferred” but in this case it seems to be a green card issue. Dunno when he’ll be back into the picture. Dario Zuparic is out injured for the foreseeable future. Kamal Miller’s going to be suspended for the next game. Neville did say that the rookie Ian Smith was his best player during preseason and that he regretted not picking him to start... and he also said that Finn Surman will remain in the eleven next week. That’s the Neviller’s guarantee, folks.
Phil Neville: “Finn Surman got sixty minutes today. He’s not trained at all, he’s only played thirty minutes. He was really blowing when he came off but he’ll start next week because he’s someone that we have a lot of faith and trust in.”
And so it begins.
Up Next: Portland vs Austin at 4.30pm on Sunday (NZT)
Michael Boxall – Minnesota United (American Major League Soccer)
Other things happened in MLS Opening Week too. Like, for example, Minnesota United losing to LAFC. This was an annoying defeat because the Loons, captained by Michael Boxall beginning his tenth season in MLS, played quite well away in Los Angeles. Kelvin Yeboah ripped one off the post within a very good first twenty minutes. After that, LAFC’s wingers started doing nutmegs and things got more slippery. It still looked like Minnesota Utd were good enough to withstand them... but then Jeremy Ebobisse scored a ripper, top corner from outside the box, and that one moment of magic decided the game. Sang Bin Jeong later had a chance to score a similar one for Minny but he skimmed it off the crossbar. Damn. 1-0 to LAFC.
They tried a lot of different ideas last season under coach Eric Ramsey. It was a disappointing campaign where they had spells of excellent footy but ultimately missed out on the playoffs. Looks like they’ve come into 2025 committed to a back three formation which should suit Boxall nicely as he continues to lay down the law at age 36. He led the team for minutes played in 2024 and there’s no reason why this year should be any different. He’s captaining them, after all. The defenders around him have changed with Morris Duggan and Carlos Harvey having won those spots and new signing Nicholas Romero will be in contention soon too... but Boxy can’t be budged. He did get a yellow card in this match though. It was the first card given to anyone in the 2025 MLS season, so how about that.
Elsewhere, Bill Tuiloma was an unused substitute as Charlotte FC drew 2-2 away to Seattle Sounders. He’s good to go... but centre-backs don’t get substituted very often and they don’t seem to view him as a fullback or defensive midfield option like other clubs have done. One benefit is that Tim Ream is still being used as a left-back which clears room for both Andrew Privett and Adilson Malanda to start thus ensuring that Tuiloma should be the next man up. There’s never been any intimation that they don’t rate him. It’s simply that he’s not seen as a first eleven player ahead of those other dudes. By the way, it was a stoppage time own goal from Seattle that allowed Charlotte to equalise.
And then there’s Ronan Wynne for Atlanta United. Picked with the 53rd overall pick in the latest MLS SuperDraft, Wynne got plenty of game time during preseason where he was used all across the backline, really testing his versatility (he’s a right-back predominantly). Wynne hasn’t gotten a contract with the Atlanta’s MLS squad quite yet but they have left two spots on the roster just in case. To that point, Ronan Wynne is expected to first sign with ATL’s MLS Next Pro team where he should be a regular starter. Remember from Jay Herdman’s time with Vancouver Whitecaps last year that MLS teams can sign reserves players on four-day contracts up to four times across the year in order to fill out the squad when necessary or to give them some extra experience (for the fifth time they’d need to give them a full contract). Expect a few of those stints along the way for Ronan.
Chris Henderson, Atlanta United Chief Soccer Officer: “That’s what we want to do with draft picks and guys who can contribute into the group. I think [Wynne]’s going to get major minutes in with the second team, sign with the second team, and we’ll get a really good look at him.”
Up Next: Sunday at 2.30pm against Montreal CF (NZT)
Chris Wood - Nottingham Forest (English Premier League)
This is what happened the last time that Chris Wood played at St James Park...
A Boxing Day hatty against his old team, that was a legendary day in the career of The Woodsman. He was never likely to repeat that feat this time around... nevertheless, his latest visit to Tyneside was a massive one for him and his club. Nottingham Forest lost to Fulham last week but were able to hold onto third place in the Premier League thanks to other results. Can’t afford to turn losses into losing streaks if you’re trying to qualify for Champions League. Not only was this match an away fixture against a fellow top four contender but it’s the beginning of a four-game stretch that could define their whole campaign. Newcastle (A), Arsenal (H), Ipswich in the FA Cup (H), and Manchester City (H).
Chris Wood was the focus of a lot of the coverage leading into this match, yet it was Callum Hudson-Odoi who provided the first major moment when he stole the ball away in midfield then slammed in a low shot from about thirty metres out to make it 1-0 to Forest after only six minutes. Wood’s initial involvements were all defensive ones, outside of a free kick he conceded for backing into his old mate Dan Burn. He’s used to feeding on scraps – his whole thing is to stay ready and then bury that one major chance that comes his way. Alas, this game was about to take a very dark turn.
Newcastle got level on 23’ when Lewis Miley found a bit too much space in the box in a second-phase situation. Wood got closest to closing him down but Miley picked out his spot for 1-1. Two minutes later they scrambled in another through Jacob Murphy to flip the game on its head. Then it got worse when Ola Aina was judged, after a VAR intervention, to have blocked a cross with his arm and Aleksander Isak squeezed the penalty down the middle to make it 3-1 after 32 minutes. That was Isak’s 18th goal of the season, drawing him level with Chris Wood, and he went ahead of Woodsy when he promptly flipped in his second of the day on 34’. There was a deflection on the shot but the movement from Newcastle was immaculate, going from a rollout by the keeper to a goal in seconds. Nottm Forest were 1-0 up after 22 mins... and 4-1 down after 34 mins.
They were better in the second half (couldn’t be any worse). Anthony Elanga wasn’t able to make an acrobatic tap-in early the stanza or they would have gotten one back nice and quick. A goal did come eventually though. Chris Wood had been helpful in keeping the pressure on by refusing to let Newcastle clear a bouncing ball outside their area and that led to Forest winning a corner kick. That kick was flicked towards the far post where Wood recovered it, whipping it back into the middle where Nikola Milenkovic flicked it home from close range. Third assist of the season for The Woodsman – see, he’s more than just a poacher.
That goal had the expected consequence of Newcastle tightening up to protect what they had. Forest continued to pick away, with Wood always a willing challenger, but the half-chances kept falling to non-New Zealanders who couldn’t put them away. And, to be fair, there weren’t even very many of those. Ryan Yates scrambled in a third goal right on ninety minutes to give Forest a hint of a comeback... but there just wasn’t enough time left.
Very good second half to make it respectable, and that goal difference salve could yet come in handy, but a 4-3 loss doesn’t do them much good. This is only the second time that Forest have lost consecutive EPL games this term – the other being against Newcastle and Arsenal in November... and they play Arsenal next. Fortunately, Manchester City, Chelsea, and Bournemouth all lost so once again Nottingham Forest remain three points clear in third despite a loss. But it’s getting crowded.
Up Next: Thursday at 8.30 against Arsenal in the Prem, then Tuesday at 8.30am for the Ipswich FA Cup fifth rounder (NZT)
Callum McCowatt - Silkeborg IF (Danish Superliga)
Despite returning to the bench this week, Callum McCowatt still had a fun time as Silkeborg went visiting Viborg. They subbed him on for the last quarter of an hour so he missed the topsy-turvy stuff from earlier as Viborg took the lead in the fifth minute but SIF battled back to be leading 2-1 at the break. Goals for Mads Larsen (30’) and Younes Bakiz (37’). But it was still a game in the balance when McCowatt entered and helped take his team over the line in triumphant fashion. A Viborg own goal on 83’ made it 3-1 and then, a couple minutes later, striker Tonni Adamsen tackled the last Viborg defender just past halfway and ran through on the keeper, very unselfishly passing to the open man to his right. That open man was Callum McCowatt. Easy tap-in for his first Superliga goal of the campaign.
McCowatt does have a goal and assist in the Danish Cup so it’s not been a complete dry spell. He missed most of the first three months due to injury and has mostly played as a substitute since so that’s why he wasn’t in amongst the contributions. Always nice to score a goal though, regardless of the circumstances. McCowatt was a willing support runner in a situation where he might have gotten away with not making that effort, and he was duly rewarded by an extremely generous centre-forward (whom he also used to play alongside back at Helsingør, chur to the bro).
More importantly, this was a 4-1 win for Silkeborg. Perfect response to losing 1-0 against last-placed Vejle a week ago in their first game since the winter break. There have been lots of draws in there but prior to this win Silkeborg had only won 1/12 league games so to win as emphatically as they did here was wonderful. Even better for featuring a Callum McCowatt goal. These three points put them back in the top six with three matches left to ensure they make the cut for the championship rounds. Two of those three games are against teams in the bottom three – including Dalton Wilkins’ Sønderjyske... Wilkins was absent again as Sonders lost 3-2 to Nordsjaelland this week. Pretty sure he must be injured.
Up Next: Sønderjyske vs Silkeborg at 2am on Monday (NZT)
Liberato Cacace – Empoli FC (Italian Serie A)
The team photo at the start was probably the highlight of the day for Empoli. It all went pear-shaped from that point onwards as they got smoked 5-0 at home by Atalanta. Admittedly, that’s a title-chasing team... but the defeat combined with a win for Parma (who beat Bologna 2-0) means that a long overdue inevitability has finally occurred: Empoli have dropped into the relegation zone. 2 points from 11 games will do that to ya.
Same as last game, Libby Cacace was deployed as the left centre-back in Empoli’s back three. But they lost 3-0 last week and they lost 5-0 this week so maybe it’s best he returns to the wing in their next game. Which is against... ah, yes, against Juventus in the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia. To be fair, the eight goals in two games and the Cacace CB stuff are both a symptom of a deeper injury crisis at the club. That bright start to the season now feels like a long time ago. Non ha un bell'aspetto, bruh.
Atalanta were awesome in this game, taking control in the back half of the first half through a deflected own goal (27’), a back-post Mateo Retegui finish (33’), and a slippery bit of work from Ademola Lookman (43’). Empoli tried to steady the ship in the second half but Lookman scored again (54’) as he shaped up Cacace on the run. Cacace managed to steer him wider but Lookman’s shot beat the keeper anyway. Davide Zappacosta then topped it off with a smart finish from 18 yards (74’). Cacace had one half-chance while it was 3-0 but he scuffed it slightly wide. Let us never speak of this game again.
Up Next: Thursday at 9am against Juventus in the Coppa Italia quarters, then Monday at 3am against Genoa in Serie A... both are away games (NZT)
Oscar Faulds - Union Titus Pétange (Luxembourg National Division)
Third game in Luxembourg, second goal. Oscar Faulds scored off the bench on debut for Union Titus Pétange in a 2-0 win against Mondercange. He then started his second match and played 63 minutes in a 0-0 draw against Jeunesse Esch. Third game he was back to the bench away to Bettembourg, where UTP were 1-0 down after 55 minutes but equalised soon afterwards. Bettembourg then got a red card and Faulds was very quickly summoned to take advantage of that situation. Chucked on after 65 minutes. UTP took the lead after 73 minutes. Faulds made it safe with a goal on 81 mins. Oscar Faulds has played 118 minutes in the Luxembourg National Division and already has two goals, plus his team is undefeated in the games that he’s played. So far so good.
Up Next: Union Titus vs Victoria Rosport at 4am on Monday (NZT)
Kees Sims - GAIS (Swedish Allsvenskan)
Another League Cup start for Kees Sims and this time he got a clean sheet to go with it. Probably helped that opponents Karlbergs had a man set off right before half-time while the game was still scoreless. GAIS had started the more proactive side but Karlbergs came into it later in the stanza, with Sims required to make a very sharp near-post save from one chance and a goalline block from another. But a nasty tackle in the midfield drew a straight red for Karl Johan Ward (44’) and GAIS took over from there, eventually winning the match thanks to simple finishes from Edvin Becirovic (64’) and Ibrahim Diabate (81’) .
That’s two wins out of two in the group stage. The Swedish League Cup is mostly a glorified preseason thing but they are still competitive fixtures hence Kees Sims is getting competitive minutes. IFK Norrköping, the other Allsvenskan club in this group, have also won 2/2 but GAIS have a slightly better goal difference so they’ll book passage to the knockouts if they draw when the two meet next week. Otherwise it’s winner takes all since only one club advances from each group. After that there’ll be another month before the league season begins, during which GAIS will fit in a couple more friendlies. Sims will be the backup keeper again in 2025 with Mergin Krasniqi still on board (and Krasniqi’s set a clear standard as the undoubted number one)... but KS recently signed a contract extension through 2028 so they clearly believe in him. As they should. He’ll get his chances along the way, same as he did last year.
Up Next: GAIS vs Norrkoping at 3.15am on Monday (NZT)
Elijah Just - SKN St. Pölten (Austrian Erste Liga)
Back at it after the long winter break... and he promptly got injured. Elijah Just only lasted 37 minutes of St. Pölten’s trip to Lustenau before signalling to the bench and dropping to the ground. This happened off the ball. It wasn’t a case of a stinger challenge or anything. There was no obvious origin point at all which suggests a muscle issue, though hopefully not a bad one since he didn’t appear to be limping too badly. Even still, this would have to put his place in the All Whites squad for the World Cup Qualifiers in serious doubt.
The consolation is that at least St. Pölten went on to win the match. Claudy M’buyi Kabamba scored after 51 minutes and that was the only thing between the two sides. 1-0 to St. Pölten. Add this to the four wins in a row that they had leading into the winter break and they’re up to fifth on the ladder. Not very likely to challenge the top two, Flyeralarm Admira and SV Ried, who are running away with the division... but the Wolves are only three points behind third and in good form. With luck, Eli Just will be back in a hurry and they can keep this up. He was looking sharp in a central playmaker role prior to the injury, drifting around and creating overloads.
Up Next: Saturday at 6am away to Amstetten (NZT)
Grace Wisnewski – Lexington SC (American USL Super League)
It’s a women’s international window but apparently the USL Super League doesn’t respect such occasions. They’ve been playing right through it... which is good for Grace Wisnewski as she builds up her match fitness after a long stint out due to the ACL tear she suffered at the start of the previous Wellington Phoenix season.
Lexington SC were very careful with Wiz in the first half of the campaign. She only appeared in four out of 14 matches, getting a mere 94 combined minutes. Did score a goal though. The USL Super League is split into two phases, so it then took a break for a couple of months. The action only resumed last week... with Wisnewski getting nine minutes as a sub in a 2-1 loss to Carolina Ascent before, happy days, being given her first start for the club away against Fort Lauderdale...
This was also the first team picked by former assistant, now interim head coach Maren McCrary after she stepped up in place of Mike Dickey who was reassigned after losing that first game back. Not sure exactly what the deal is there, he’s no longer head coach but the club is “in discussions regarding his continued involvement with the club” according to their statement. LSC are dead last in the USL Super League with the worst defence in the competition so the change was surely results-driven. Gotta wonder if it might also be what allows Grace Wisnewski to play a much bigger part. She tore her ACL in November 2023 so it’s been 14 months, she’s gotta be physically ready for more footy by now. Perhaps the old coach didn’t rate her enough (in which case he’s gotten what he deserved).
Wisnewski only played the first half. They subbed her off at half-time, though that was probably similar to the Finn Surman thing where she hasn’t played much recently and had hit her fitness limit. Wiz played as a midfielder in an attacking role in behind their striker. Lots of running, looking to press. Lots of getting into the box for (inaccurate) crosses. The substitution could also have been a tactical thing because, despite her workrate, the Wiz hardly touched the ball as LSC weren’t often able to progress through the midfield and tended to try to hit the striker direct instead. Well, they subbed her off at half-time with the scores at 0-0 and then ended up losing 2-0. Lesson learned.
Up Next: Lexington vs Brooklyn at 1pm on Sunday (NZT)
Tyler Bindon - Reading (English League One)
Really enjoying this new hyper-focus on Tyler Bindon’s efforts after Reading FC every game. Ever since he signed with Nottingham Forest, there’s been a scouting spotlight on him. We even had a bunch of Englishfolk getting excited over his Emerging Talent nod at the Halberg Awards last week. All the while, no matter what’s going on around him, Bindon serves up 7/10 or better performances for his club team. Usually better.
This week was only different in that Reading’s 0-0 draw against League One leaders Birmingham City probably has to go down as one of their finest defensive outings of the whole campaign. It was certainly a showcase for their two central defenders. This game not only featured Amadou Mbengue making a remarkable goal-line clearance to deny what otherwise would have been a tap-in goal but also Tyler Bindon later got in on the action with an unreal header off the line, somehow not only getting rid of the ball but also avoiding smashing his noggin on the crossbar. He actually ended up hanging off the crossbar like he was swinging on the monkey bars down at the playground. His keeper caught him on the way down...
This guy turned 20 less than a month ago. Only four players in the entirety of League One have played more minutes than he has this season and you have to go all the way down to 126 on those rankings to find another player born in 2005 or later (Josh Feeney of Shrewsbury Town). What Bindon is doing merely by playing this much at this age is amazing. Then you get to what he’s doing with that playing time, with defensive actions like that one, and Nottingham Forest have got themselves a good’un. What a talent.
As for the overall Reading FC situation, this point means they’ve now gone five matches undefeated and are only three points outside the playoff positions with 14 games remaining. By no logic should a team in this financial predicament, with such a ridiculously young squad, having had to replace their manager mid-season, having lost their top scorer without being able to replace him last month, be anywhere near the playoff picture. And yet they are. He’s far from the only factor in all this but add that to Tyler Bindon’s achievements too.
Up Next: Sunday at 4am away to Wigan Athletic (NZT)
Max Crocombe - Burton Albion (English League One)
The Brewers played twice in the past seven days, also logging a midweeker. The midweeker was a 1-0 win away to Stevenage and the weekend’s fixture was a 1-0 win away to Lincoln City. Two away games. Two clean sheets. Two wins. Not too many saves required from Super Max in there that but that’s only because the defence did what they needed to do – especially in the Stevenage game where they had to hang on for the last half hour with ten men. Crocombe got a yellow card for timewasting towards the end of that one. He is, after all, one of the world’s great timewasters. Nobody cops a booking for slowing down restarts like he does. No goalkeeper is more susceptible to cramping in the last few minutes than Crocs. He is a master of the craft.
This turnaround from Burton Albion has been spectacular. These guys didn’t win a single game until November – they only had two wins after 25 matches. Burton Albion were so far adrift they couldn’t see land. Yet after only taking 15 points from those 25 games, they’re now on a run of: WWWDDLWW which has netted them 17 points from eight games. All of a sudden they’re only two points away from climbing out of the relegation zone. Max Crocombe was one of the Brewers’ best even when they were losing every week so we can’t credit him with the resurgence but at least he’s getting to experience some victories. On current form they should be able to stay in the division. Never would have even considered that possibility a few months ago.
Also grinding out a few good results lately has been Northampton Town. Nik Tzanev was between the sticks for both a 2-0 loss to Wrexham and also a 2-1 comeback win against Bristol Rovers. He was the backup keeper when things began but then the other bloke got injured and Tzanev got busy and 15 consecutive starts later he’s usurped the bro as the new number one. Northampton are four points above Burton/relegation. Oh and after having his Northampton Town loan cut short in January due to persistent injuries and not enough playing opportunity, Matt Dibley-Dias made his return to the pitch with Fulham’s U21s this week. Sounds like he bossed it in a 2-2 draw against Everton, playing a little over an hour and picking up where he left off last year. U21s is probably all he’s going to be able to get for the rest of this season but Dibs is eligible to play Premier League for Fulham if the stars so align.
Sadly, Mansfield Town are heading in the other direction. They’ve been atrocious lately, getting just one point from their past ten games. A 3-0 loss to Lincoln City and a 2-1 loss to Wrexham were their latest outings. Ben Waine got six mins against Wrexham and nothing against Lincoln. We’re currently at 376 minutes across 20 matches for Waineo with Mansfield Town. Only 2/20 appearances were starts. Plymouth Argyle didn’t bother recalling him in January when they had the chance, despite them having an option on his contract for one more season after this. Kinda feels like he’s fallen down the back of the sofa like loose change.
Up Next: Burton Albion vs Mansfield Town on Sunday at 4am (NZT)
Marko Stamenic – Olympiacos (Greek Super League)
Marko didn’t end up playing... but with an All Whites squad due to be named pretty soon it’s worth a mention that he was back in the matchday squad for Olympiacos in a crunch-game against PAOK. Stamenic had missed the previous four matches due to an unspecified injury. Happy to see him back available. Would have been happier if they’d subbed him on at some stage but at least Olympiacos did emerge with a 2-1 win to keep them top of the table after 24 matches whilst effectively removing fourth-placed PAOK from title contention.
The fixtures only get crazier from here because on Thursday Olympiacos host the first leg of the Greek Cup semi-final and then on Monday they play the second-placed team in the Super League. Both of those matches are against AEK Athens. After that there’s a Europa League round of sixteen tie against Bodø/Glimt of Norway and then comes their last Super League game before it splits into the championship rounds. That’s followed by the second legs for each of those two cups and in between those two second legs is an international window in which New Zealand will compete for World Cup qualification. Gigantic areas for Marko Stamenic. Even though he hasn’t been playing much, any minutes are massive in these types of fixtures. Plus nothing endears you to coaches and fans more than big performances in big games.
Up Next: Greek Cup semi-final first leg against AEK Athens at 7am on Thursday; Super League away to AEK Athens at 7.30am on Monday (NZT)
Andre De Jong – Stellenbosch (South African Premier Soccer League)
Haven’t had an ADJ highlight for a wee while so here he is setting up a Devin Titus goal in a 3-2 win away against TS Galaxy...
This goal put them 1-0 up but they were 2-1 down after 65 minutes when ADJ was substituted. Fortunately, Ashley Cupido scored a double in the last ten minutes for the comeback victory. The Stellies needed that, having been stumbling on the domestic front since cracking into their Confederation Cup fixtures. They followed this result with a 1-1 draw against Richards Bay in which ADJ began on the bench but they subbed him on at half-time while trailing by a goal. A 78th minute penalty salvaged things. The Stellies don’t play their Confed Cup quarter-final legs until early April so for now it’s all about trying to climb back up the PSL table from their current position of eighth.
Up Next: Weds at 6.30am against Magesi, then Sat at 6.30am against Polokwane City (NZT)
Moses Dyer - Galway United (League of Ireland Premier Division)
Whoops, maybe next time. Galway United still won this game 2-1 against St Patrick’s Athletic so no worries there. Only had 33% of possession but Patrick Hickey’s first half double did the deed. Dyer played 71 minutes and got a yellow card. He’s started both games since the Irish season began.
Oskar Van Hattum, on the other hand, dropped to the bench for Sligo Rovers as they were beaten 3-0 away by Drogheda United. He got about twenty minutes as a sub. Sligo’s lost both matches so far so there is work to be done. Down a division, Norman Garbett was fit enough to get subbed on after 83 minutes in Dundalk’s 1-0 win against Finn Harps. First time he’s played since hurting his hamstring late last year. Good to have him back – that’s now more minutes than his brother has played this year.
Up Next: Drogheda vs Galway at 8.45am on Saturday (NZT)
George Stanger – Ayr United (Scottish Championship)
File this one under: Bugger. It was Ayr United vs Livingston, second against third on the ladder... and Livingston won 2-1 thanks to a direct free kick in the sixth minute of stoppage time. Ayr Utd thought they’d at least done enough for a point after Marco Rus equalised in the 73rd minute but nope. Lost it at the end. Cracking goal, to be fair.
The two teams therefore swap places on the table while first-placed Falkirk’s own victory sees them move four points clear at the top. Very much not ideal for Stanger and the lads as they seek promotion. Granted, only top spot gets promoted automatically so the only difference between second and third is getting to skip straight to the playoff semis without a quarter-final. This was the first defeat for Ayr United since December, snapping an eight-game unbeaten streak. Stanger plays basically every minute for them.
Up Next: Time to bounce back against Airdrieonians at 4am on Sunday (NZT)
Zac Jones – Haverfordwest County (Welsh/Cymru Premier)
Thiiiiiiis guy. A 1-0 win against Cardiff Met consolidates Hwest’s position in third and they could yet climb up to second with a couple of games left, seeing as they’re only three points behind Penybont who’ve failed to win any of their last four matches (including a 0-0 draw against Haverfordwest). The New Saints are running away with the championship but everything else is up for grabs, including European qualification and the higher up that Hwest finish, the better seeding they’ll get in the playoffs. No goalkeeper has kept more clean sheets this season than Zac Jones who has 14 cleanies from 26 appearances. He’s only conceded 14 goals in total. That’s as many clean sheets as goals conceded. That’s more clean sheets than games without clean sheets. How about that?
Up Next: The toughest remaining fixture, away to TNS at 1.15am on Sunday 9 March (NZT)
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