Flying Kiwis – September 23
Callum McCowatt - Silkeborg IF (Danish Superliga)
For Silkeborg to get a draw away against Danish heavyweights FC København was a big deal. For them to get a draw away against FCK with Callum McCowatt scoring a hat-trick? That’s unfiltered history right there. Silkeborg had been 3-1 down after conceding at the start of the second half but it was CM to the rescue on the way to a 3-3 draw, continuing his excellent recent form having now supplied at least one goal contribution in four of his last five Superliga matches (5 goals, 1 assist). He scored one with his left foot, one with his right foot, and then levelled the game with a pinpoint header – not just a hatty but a perfect hatty. Hvor godt!?
Goal one came bright and early as McCowatt dashed onto a through ball down his right wing. His marker slid in ahead of him but didn’t get enough on the ball hence CM was able to run into the area and pick his spot angling infield. 1-0 inside of three minutes. However, FCK picked up a penalty via VAR intervention soon afterwards which Jordan Larsson converted for 1-1 after nine mins. Then Viktor Claesson (33’) and Mohamed Elyounoussi (46’) got amongst it to put Copenhagen in a comfortable position.
Or so they thought, until two instances of defensive silliness shook the win from their grasp. Both times it was the FCK goalkeeper at fault. He was trapped by the press in the 58th minute allowing Younes Bakiz to tackle him and serve up a sitter for McCowatt who was free in the middle. And on 74’ he threw the ball past his fullback and straight to Andreas Poulsen who swung a sweet cross into the danger zone where McCowatt came swooping through with a perfectly timed run and a header that was equally as precise. Yeah, that’ll do it.
FCK went after a winner in the last fifteen but SIF kept them at bay. Great result for Silkeborg as they seek some consistency after a poor start to the league season. Legendary day for Callum McCowatt... whose previous senior hat-trick came six years ago playing for Eastern Suburbs in a 4-0 win against the Wellington Phoenix Reserves.
Callum McCowatt, pre-game: “I don’t know if momentum really matters when you go to Parken, to be honest. It’s a really different game. Such a strong team. They’ve just played a good game last night against a good German team [2-2 vs Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League]. It’s going to be difficult but we enjoy these games the most, probably. It’s always nice. It’s difficult, the fans are onto you, every bad touch they let you know about it. But this is proper football.”
In that same interview, McCowatt was asked about scoring against FCK in the past and he spoke about how it feels like a long time ago. He does have a good record against them though. His second ever goal for Silkeborg was scored at Parken against Copenhagen in a 3-1 in (August 2023). He also scored there in the first leg of their Danish Cup quarter-final in 2023-24 on the way to lifting that trophy (FCK got revenge last season with a 3-0 win in the final). Five goals in nine career games against the club that’s won six of the past ten Danish Superliga championships is pretty superb. Now for the post-game thoughts...
Callum McCowatt: “Yeah, no, it’s nice. It’s my first professional hat-trick so it’s a nice one to cross off. Quite a cool place to do it as well, I think, probably the nicest stadium in Denmark against I’d say the best team in Denmark right now. It’s quite okay. If we’re critical, we’re still conceding too many goals and it’s difficult to win a football game if you’re conceding three goals. But I think a point’s okay.”
As for kiwis scoring hat-tricks at the highest levels... well, Chris Wood’s got a couple in the English Premier League so he’s the pinnacle. Wynton Rufer got one in the Bundesliga with Werder Bremen (and a few more in cup games). Beyond those two legends of the kiwi game it might well be that McCowatt’s three-bagger is next on the list. That includes the women since Amber Hearn never scored three in a Bundesliga Frauen game and it’s not been done in the English WSL by any New Zealander. Times like these remind you how many of our best exports have been defenders. Max Mata for (Sligo Rovers in Ireland) and Maggie Jenkins (ALG Spor in Turkey) have scored hatties within the last couple years though not in comparable leagues to where McCowatt is. Oliver Colloty for Peterhead too though that’s arguably even lower down.
Up Next: Silkeborg vs Vejle at 3am on Monday (NZT)
Grace Wisnewski – FC Nordsjælland (Danish A-Liga)
It was only five weeks ago that Grace Wisnewski debuted for Nordsjælland yet she’s already surpassed her minutes tally from all of last season with Lexington SC. Other than the opener when she was named to start but was a late injury scratch, she’s gotten at least half an hour in every game for FCN across the three different competitions they’ve played. We’re talking about nine games in the space of five weeks and she’s been heavily involved throughout. Don’t worry about the ACL recovery, that journey belongs to the distant past. Don’t worry about a lack of match fitness, she left those worries behind when she escaped America. 498 minutes across and entire year with Lexington. 557 minutes in barely over a month with Nordsjælland.
That includes two Champions League qualifiers during which she scored against Sparta Praha to spark a three goal comeback after being 4-1 down when she was subbed on. They lost that game on penalties... but FCN managed to win their consolation game against FK Aktobe to drop down into the brand new Europa Cup competition instead.
Wiz only played half an hour off the bench as they won 3-1 against KuPS (Finland) in the home leg of their first round qualifying tie. That was last week and it put them in a good spot ahead of the return fixture last Thursday NZT. An early concession in that match did briefly have the home fans dreaming of an upset as they closed the aggregate scoreline to 3-2. But not to worry. Cecilia Larsen quickly cancelled that one out and then Grace Wisnewski did this...
There you go, another continental competition and another goal. The Wiz has now scored in both Champions League and Europa Cup qualifiers this season. Excellent production for a midfielder. FCN went on to win the match 5-1, giving them an 8-2 aggregate success, with Wisnewski played ninety minutes in that second leg. Katie Bowen’s Inter Milan also progressed after winning 4-1 and 1-0 against Scottish champs Hibernian... however Bowen didn’t play in either leg. Unused sub both times. They did switch to a more defensive-minded back four for the second leg away but Bowen has been a right-back for this club before so that’s not the reason. Oh well, at least they’re still in the hat. Wisnewski can therefore claim to be Aotearoa’s first ever participant and first ever goalscorer in this competition.
There will be one more two-legged qualifying round before we reach the competition proper, which will continue in the same way with two-legged knockouts starting with a round of sixteen all the way until the home and away finals. Nordsjælland have been drawn against Gintra (Lithuania) in the final round of qualifying while Inter Milan will face Vllaznia (Albania). Arguably both are easier ties than what they faultlessly overcame in the previous round.
Up Next: Wednesday at 5am, Kolding vs FCN (NZT)
Katie Kitching - Sunderland / Hannah Blake & Michaela Foster – Durham FC (English Super League 2)
Those were the words from Mickey Foster ahead of a clash with her Footy Ferns teammate Katie Kitching in a derby away against Sunderland on Friday night local time. This turned out to be Kitching’s night to shine though.
From the Durham perspective, they were without an injured Mariana Speckmaier and thus decided upon a tactical reshuffle, with Foster starting in a back three and Hannah Blake dropping to the bench to make way for the extra defender. That shape didn’t really work for them so they changed it back at the break with Foster moving into midfield up until they made a few subs (including Blake being chucked on) twenty minutes later pushing Foz to central defence in a four. Foz is a master of many positions... though she doesn’t usually get to play this many of them in one game.
While that was happening, Kitching was operating as an attacking midfielder for Sunderland and getting all over the park seeking to create things. She drifted out wide on the right to instigate the move for the opening goal, eventually finished off by Emily Scarr (53’). Then, near the end of a very competitive game, she took matters into her own hands with a banger to make it 2-0...
Yet another brilliant goal from a woman who scores so many of them. That’s her second goal in three games this season and it doesn’t even feel like she’s hit her stride yet. Having said that, this game was not over when that Kitching shot swerved into the net... because Durham promptly went up the other end and won a corner kick which Mickey Foster struck with her trademarked inswing and before it was flicked over the line by Beth Hepple for 2-1. Can’t call it an assist because a defender diverted it before it got to Hepple but it was a goal that Foz created all the same. That gave them a few more minutes in which to chase an equaliser... but a few minutes wasn’t enough. Sunderland hung on for the 2-1 victory.
Katie Kitching: “Yeah really good, I just heard everyone scream ‘shoot!’ so I decided to let it leave my foot and, yeah, really happy with it. Glad my team got the win in the end. We know derbies like these, goals are scored late in games, so it was a really important goal and I’m just glad to get the win.”
That win puts Sunderland second with seven points from three matches. Durham have won one and lost two. Elsewhere, Grace Neville played another full game on the right side of defence as Ipswich Town got on the board with a 0-0 draw against Charlton Athletic – a very good point against a team that’d won two in a row beforehand.
However there was no Indi Riley for Crystal Palace in their 2-1 win away against Nottingham Forest. She was an unused substitute for the second time in three matches, having started the one in between. Jamie-Lee Napier, Indi Riley, and Abby Larkin have each had a start on the right – oddly, the one that Riley played was the one where they played with a back four instead of a back five. Indi Riley also spoke recently about her dealings with concussions, apparently she’s had five of them in the last six years including one at the end of last season which took two months to fully recover from.
Up Next: WSL Cup begins midweek... Sunderland are away to Liverpool on Thursday at 6am in their opening group game (NZT)
Chris Wood - Nottingham Forest (English Premier League)
Chris Wood doesn’t usually play the domestic cup games, or at least he doesn’t start them, so it was no shocker to see him left out of Nottingham Forest’s midweek EFL Cup third round tie away to Swansea City. Completely normal stuff for him – last season he watched from the bench as Forest were knocked out on penalties by Newcastle United in their only League Cup game and when they gassed it all the way to the semis of the FA Cup... the only game that Wood started was the semi-final itself. This match offered Ange Postecglou a valuable opportunity to rotate his side and get a feel for what his depth players can do. Fair enough. The only shame about it was that Swansea’s Marko Stamenic was still injured and unable to partake against his old team.
Despite Postecoglou’s ten changes (with Morato the only player who started both this and the 3-0 loss to Arsenal), Forest looked well in charge leading 2-0 at half-time thanks to a double from striker Igor Jesus – a slightly worrying Woodsman development amidst all the chat of Big Ange preferring a more mobile centre-forward. He might have scored more except he got subbed for Arnaud Kalimuendo at the break, no doubt to allow the boss a look at him in action too. But NFFC got sloppy in the second half, conceding a goal with just over twenty to play – courtesy of Aussie international Cameron Burgess – before they somehow conspired to toss it all in the bin by conceding twice more in stoppage time to lose 3-2. Zan Vipotnik on 90+3’, Cam Burgess again on 90+7’. Incredible scenes. That’s the end of Nottingham Forest’s League Cup efforts for another year.
After which Nottingham Forest drew 1-1 with Burnley in the Premier League. Neco Williams put Forest ahead after two minutes and then Jaidon Anthony levelled the game after twenty. Neither team could find a winner from there. This was Postecoglou’s third game in charge and it was here that we began to see a few fingerprints of his coaching on the team, particularly some lovely one-touch passing moves in the attacking third.
That’s probably not what people immediately think of with Chris Wood but he can do that stuff, generally he likes his quick cheeky layoffs when he’s in hold-up mode... plus his presence in the middle helps draw defenders away from others. More pesky was the fact that Ange picked wingers to cut inside onto their strong feet rather than get wide and whip crosses towards the Woodsman. He did have one huge chance after Elliot Anderson slipped one into his feet around the penalty spot but his shot on the turn was a tame one and easily saved (a consequence of an underhit first touch).
That was Wood’s only major moment in the 75 minutes that he played, although he glance another effort wide at the near post before being subbed off to boos from the Burnley crowd. Bit of a harsh way to treat their record Prem goal scorer... but we know there’s always a section of any crowd that lacks perspective.
Igor Jesus got a run for the last fifteen and had a header expertly saved near the end. Decent game of footy despite the heavy rain although the 1-1 draw means that Postecoglou is still searching for his first win with the club. Perhaps that’ll come in the Europa League when NFFC return to continental competition after thirty years away. Not Big Ange though... he won this competition with Tottenham last season.
Up Next: Real Betis vs Nottm Forest at 7am on Thursday in the Europas; Nottm Forest vs Sunderland at 5.30am on Sunday back in the Prem (NZT)
Marko Stamenic - Swansea City (English Championship)
That didn’t take long. They said it was only a minor groin injury that had kept him out of the All Whites games as well as Swansea City’s 2-2 draw with Hull City and then that crazy EFL Cup win over Nottingham Forest. Pity he had to miss the Forest game given the obvious personal point he had to prove against the team that he spent preseason with, but at least the lads got it done on his behalf...
Happily, Stamenic was back for the weekend’s trip to face Birmingham City and there was no easing him in. He went straight into the base of that midfield where he played the full game... which they lost 1-0.
Swansea City were the better side in the first half with Zan Vipotnik missing a really good chance before scoring another that was harshly disallowed, however it turned in the second spell as Birmingham began to run all over them. It seemed as though Swansea had done enough to leave there with a point from a 0-0 draw until nearly four minutes into stoppage time when Stamenic was booked for a debatable foul just on the other side of halfway, Birmingham knocked the ball wide and then long into the area, Patrick Roberts sent a wonderful cross into the middle, and Lyndon Dykes headed it into the bottom corner for a very late winner. Damn. Always tough to swallow when you lose that late.
Marko Stamenic: “We had moments where we looked like we could get what we wanted from the game. We didn’t get the reward for those moments, and the one we did get was given offside but ultimately I don’t think you can make it about any one decision. The second half was a different sort of game and it didn’t go our way, so we have to find the way to move forward and learn from this. We have to bounce back, we have a strong squad. We know the games come thick and fast, we will review this and get ourselves ready for Millwall... I feel good, the motivation was big especially with that away support we had. I want to give everything I can and fight for this club. I am enjoying myself so much here, and I said from the beginning I will die for the badge so if I have cramp or feel sore I will push through to help the team as much as I can.”
Bummer of a result but at least he played which is more than we can say about the rest of the Championship quartet. Millwall’s game versus Watford wasn’t until Monday night local time and that allowed enough room for Crocs to recover from the toe injury that caused him to be a late scratch in their EFL Cup shootout loss against Crystal Palace. But that only meant he was back to the bench as Steven Benda had one of his better performances in a 1-0 victory. In other words, a minor injury meant that Crocombe didn’t get to play against a Premier League opponent, the team got knocked out of the League Cup, and by the time the FA Cup rolls around there’s a good chance that Lukas Jensen is back in contention. There is a midweek round next week if Alex Neil feels keen on some rotation but otherwise it looks like Crocombe’s next appearance will be in national team colours.
Liberato Cacace remains injured with Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson talking about “a few weeks” for this fresh knock to heal, meaning he potentially won’t be playing those All Whites games in October either. He was definitely missing when Wrexham conceded a couple more goals against Norwich... although this time they scored three of their own to win 3-2. That’s the third time this season, across all comps, that Wrexham have won a match 3-2 plus they’ve also had a shootout win after a 3-3 draw. If they can tighten up that defence then this could be a serious team - a reminder that they haven’t conceded at all in the 162 minutes that Cacace has played. A further reminder that this is the first time in his entire career that he’s had to miss games due to injury.
Phil Parkinson: “Libby's going to be out a few weeks unfortunately. It is a real blow for us. I played it down last week because he did so well at Millwall. I brought him off to protect him and he's got a tendon problem in his other hamstring. He's not a player who's had injuries before in his career, his record's good, but sometimes when you're coming back from one injury, you overcompensate a little bit and he's picked up another one. He's a player our home fans haven't seen yet, his two appearances have been away, but we have just got to get him back as soon as we can. Libby's a player our supporters are going to enjoy watching when we get him out there.”
What about Tyler Bindon, you ask? Good question. He was nowhere to be seen again as Sheffield United fell to a 1-0 loss against Charlton, conceding in the 90th minute, in new/old manager Chris Wilder’s return to the dugout. Mark McGuinness and Japhet Tanganga were the centre-backs while Ben Mee was on the bench. Bindon’s absence last week in the 5-0 defeat to Ipswich that marked the end of Ruben Selles’ short tenure in charge can be put down to not rushing him back after the international break... but this one cannot. This was Wilder picking the tried and true, in as much as he could, and Bindon was not part of that vision.
We shouldn’t be shocked by that. He’s only played a handful of Championship games and lost every one of them, looking very much like a young player trying to find his feet after a jump upwards. Sheffield United are desperate for results and allowing him time to adjust is not an indulgence they can really afford at the moment. Bindon got those previous starts because of his existing trust with Gaffer Selles. Now Gaffer Wilder has come in and everything is different. It was already a wee bit sketchy when Wilder talked in his (re)introductory press conference about the “ambitious” signings that the club has made, going through a bunch of names without ever mentioning TB...
Chris Wilder: “Would I have signed Japhet Tanganga? One hundred per cent. If Robbo [Jack Robinson] had gone, would I have signed Ben Mee? One hundred per cent. The club tried to sign Chiedo [Ogbene] before he went to Luton. He was living in Kelham Island and the club tried to do it, but they missed out on it. I see his career and his profile and he's a good Sheffield United player. [Tahith] Chong we all know about, Mark McGuinness we all know about. He played over the road [for United’s rivals Wednesday] and did very well for the team down the road. He's a good player, an experienced Championship player. It's putting them all together. Nils, I would have signed Nils... the boy from Sweden. They're good signings that we can develop with our academy players, with players we've signed. Young Alex Matos has got a great CV from Chelsea and he'd have been on the radar as well. The group that's been put together is a talented group now. The key is for them to show it and me to try and bring that out of them. And 100 per cent I believe we can do.”
Okay so where does that leave Tyler Bindon then? It leaves him lining up alongside Nils Zatterstrom for the U21s is where it leaves him. Premier League Development second tier footy against Huddersfield Town. Those two were the centre-backs in a 3-1 victory with Tyler Bindon scoring the third goal. It’s not what he would have envisaged when he signed with the club on loan a few months back but this was a decent chance to play some pressure-free football and showcase to his new boss what he does and hopefully he did exactly that.
Up Next: Swansea City vs Millwall at 11.30pm on Saturday (NZT)
Gabi Rennie - Eskilstuna United (Swedish Elitettan)
Ah would you look at that, more Gabi Rennie profundity. She scored after 57 minutes and then she added a second goal in stoppage time as Eskilstuna United won 2-0 against Örebro SK. Two more goals for her tally and three more points for her club. This takes Eskilstuna Utd back on top of the Elitettan (on goal difference) after Uppsala only drew this week, continuing the charge towards promotion. If they get there then their kiwi right winger is going to have a lot to do with it – she’s got 5 goals and 9 assists after 18 games.
In the interview at the end of that clip, Rennie mentions that she’d missed a few chances lately so this double came at a good time having only scored once in her last ten league matches. All through that time she’d still been hurling fantastic crosses into the area and breaking defensive lines and generally just making things happen. It’s not like she was slumping. But a match-winning brace is always nice for the confidence, as she said. Another jewel in the crown of her excellent season.
Up Next: Big game away vs Umeå at 1am on Monday (NZT)
Alex Paulsen - Lechia Gdansk (Polish Ekstraklasa)
Another week of Alex Paulsen and another win for Lechia Gdansk... the magic is rubbing off already. No clean sheet for AP this time, in fact he conceded three goals in the 4-3 win away against Pogon Szczecin. But he also made six saves as Lechia rallied back from 1-0 and 2-1 down to win their third game out of four (having not won any of their first five beforehand).
Of the goals that Paulsen conceded, one was an unreal volley that was fizzed in from about ten yards out. No chance there. The second was a pinpoint lifted finish from a 1v1 situation. Again, not much a keeper can do about that. The third was a consolation penalty in the last gasp moments of the match. Fair enough. Thanks to this uptick in form we can happily report that Lechia are no longer last in the Ekstraklasa standings. Even with their five point deduction they’ve climbed ahead of Piast Gliwice and could be clear of the relegation zone as soon as next week if they can repeat the dose.
Up Next: Some cup activities against Pogon GM in the Polish Cup on Thursday at 1am, then it’s Koronoa vs Lechia on Sunday at 12.45am (NZT)
Suya Haering - Carl Zeiss Jena (German Bundesliga)
Suya Haering made 12 Bundesliga appearances for Turbine Potsdam last season and all of them were in losses. The only draw that Potsdam managed was, funnily enough, against Carl Zeiss Jena but Haering was an unused substitute that day. Maya Hahn started though... that’s also funny because the only game that Potsdam won all season was a 2-0 victory against Viktoria Berlin in the DFB-Pokal and guess which club Hahn now plays for (Viktoria drew 1-1 against Wolfsburg II in the 2.Liga this week, meaning they’ve drawn 4/5 games so far... Hahn played the full match). The only two teams who failed to beat Turbine Potsdam in games last season were the clubs that signed their two departing kiwi players.
In the 817 minutes that Haering played in the 2024-25 Bundesliga, her team conceded 33 goals and scored only three. She started in a 9-0 loss to Eintracht Frankfurt, in a 7-0 loss to Hoffenheim, and in 4-0 defeats against Wolfsburg and FC Köln. But you know what? They only lost 2-0 when they played Bayern Munich and that was probably one of Haering’s best performances.
In other words, she had some prior form as her new club Carl Zeiss Jena hosted Bayern in the third round of fixtures in this new campaign... and while she didn’t start, she was still trusted with the last twenty minutes off the bench, chucked on to help CZJ hang on to a desperate clean sheet. They kept just 27% of possession. They took three shots compared to 28 from their opponents. They had zero corner kicks whereas Bayern had 12 of them (and it was 42 crosses to 0 overall). Bayern played them off the park but simply could not score. Haering and co did the business for an unexpected 0-0 draw. First point of the season for Jena. Great stuff from Haering who has featured in all three games (and got a yellow card right at the end of this one).
Up Next: CJZ vs Union Berlin at 5am on Weds (NZT)
Joe Bell – Viking FK (Norwegian Eliteserien)
Viking were without captain and talisman Zlatko Tripic for the visit of Molde while he served the second game of his suspension... but they did have Joe Bell, who was back in the starting eleven after only playing off the bench immediately after the international break. He came on and set up the equalising goal in that match (2-2 vs KFUM) and with Tripic not playing against Molde that meant it was Captain Bell who led them onto the pitch.
Led them onto the pitch and then led them to a very important victory. For the first twenty minutes, they could have been 2-0 down with how Molde got after them. But Viking became more effective at dealing with those quick attacks and snatched a goal from some transitional play of their own after an hour. Simen Kvia-Egeskog was the man who scored it. Meanwhile Captain Bell completed 66/71 passes getting more touches of the ball than any other player on the pitch. He made three interceptions. Curled in some dangerous corner kicks. Covered plenty of turf. And walked off the pitch at the final whistle with a 1-0 win in his pocket.
That win lifts Viking back level at the top of the Eliteserien ladder after Bodø/Glimt only drew 1-1 against Rosenborg. B/G’s Champions League efforts have now begun whereas VFK are out of European competition and therefore have their midweeks empty with eight rounds of the Eliteserien remaining. VFK and B/G are both on 49 points. Brann are six points back with a game in hand. Viking don’t have a great track record when it comes to seeing title challenges through to the finish line but there’s every chance that Bodø/Glimt drop further points. This club has never had a better chance to win the Norwegian championship.
Up Next: Sarpsborg vs Viking at 5am on Sunday (NZT)
Michael Boxall – Minnesota United (American Major League Soccer)
You know what that is? That’s Minnesota United playing 120 minutes of tough midweek football in the US Open Cup semi-finals, seeking a chance to compete for the club’s first ever trophy... only to concede with the last kick of the game and lose 2-1 against Austin FC.
They’d gone behind in the seconds before half-time when their keeper wasn’t able to prevent a 1v1 shot from creeping under him and Boxy’s sliding clearance on the line was too late. But were able to strike back when Joaquin Pereyra smashed in a wonderful free kick equaliser after 67 minutes to take it to extra time. With both teams pushing the pace on the counter, and this game coming a few days after they’d each been in action in MLS, it was understandable that once it went to extra time the tiredness began to take hold.
Penalties felt like an inevitability until Bongi Hlongwane suddenly found himself sprinting in behind for MU... only to fail to convert past the keeper with four minutes left. They were left to rue that miss when Austin FC capitalised on a goalkeeping parry back into danger with ten seconds remaining. Bloody hell. They might have lost on penalties anyway but to lose the way they did was brutal.
Boxy played the entire two hours so that’s why he was rested on the bench for the visit of Chicago Red Stars three days later. Him and a few others. But the backups didn’t do the job and they were 2-0 down at half-time. Coach gave them ten more minutes to figure it out and then made a quadruple substitution sending on Boxall, Pereyra, Hlongwane, and Robin Lod. Didn’t work. They conceded once more and lost 3-0 to cap a terrible week, oh well.
Portland Timbers also lost, beaten 1-0 away to Houston Dynamo. Ninety minutes for Finn Surman. He was good but this was a difficult fixture and the Timbers continue to struggle for consistency... they’ve only twice won consecutive MLS games this year and never more than two. They’ve got four more games to keep themselves in the playoff spots (Minnesota United are third in the West). Over at Charlotte FC, they were beaten 2-0 by New York City FC to snap a nine-game winning streak. That streak began with Bill Tuiloma in the starting eleven but he hasn’t played since his hamstring injury in August, returning to his familiar spot on the bench these past few weeks. Tyler Boyd also didn’t play but his Nashville SC team did win 3-1 against Philadelphia Union in the other US Open Cup semi so they’ll get the chance that Michael Boxall’s dudes were denied with a cup final appearance in a few weeks.
Up Next: Colorado vs Minnesota at 2.30pm on Sunday (NZT)
George Stanger - Kilmarnock (Scottish Premiership)
Speaking of cup defeats, here was another one. Kilmarnock scored two equalisers against St Mirren in the Scottish League Cup quarters, including an 86th minute penalty, but then lost in a shootout after extra time. 2-2 final score. 5-3 on penalties. George Stanger played 110 minutes before finally hitting the wall. That was a bummer but at least Stanger seems to have earned his way back into the first eleven.
If they’d advanced then they’d have played Motherwell in the semi-finals. Instead Eli Just and company will been St Mirren in a very favourable final four draw with Celtic face Rangers contesting the other semi. Motherwell won 1-0 against Aberdeen thanks to a Regan Charles-Cook goal after 63 minutes but Eli Just missed this game with an unspecified injury knock. Only game that he’s missed this year but the lads got the job done without him (albeit with a little less class in possession than usual). Motherwell are still undefeated this season, by the way, having drawn all five Premiership games and won all five League Cup games (including one via penalties during the group stage... probably should count as a draw but the idea still stands).
Up Next: Dundee United vs Kilmarnock at 3am on Sunday (NZT)
Matthew Garbett - Peterborough United (English League One)
He may be the Prince of Peterborough but Matt Garbett let others take the spotlight this week as Peterborough won 1-0 away against Plymouth Argyle. It was Garbs with the killer through ball for Jimmy-Jay Morgan to dash into the area and get fouled for a penalty... but Harry Leonard missed the spot kick. No dramas there because Morgan scored following up on a parried save a little while later to give Posh the lead after half an hour. Turned out that was all they needed. Plymouth were denied a few times by good saves and equally good defence as Peterborough United held on for a second win in a row. Garbett played 82 minutes before they took him off after being shown a yellow card.
One point from their first seven games... now two wins in a row. The Garbett Glow is starting to take hold. This run of form has gotten Peterborough out of last place with designs on climbing a lot higher. Port Vale have also won two games in a row but that situation is less fun because those two wins have come without Ben Waine even making the matchday squad. It’s ruthless to say this given how he’s only played 184 minutes in League One for PVFC... but it looks like he’s missed his chance. And it’s not easy to predict when the next chance might come around in a squad that’s now got quite a lot of competition for attacking places. If they’re nice, they’ll let him play some part against Arsenal in the EFL Cup on Thursday morning at 7am NZT.
Catching up with a few other loose ends, Sarpreet Singh didn’t play this week either. He was on the bench for TSC as they lost 4-2 away to Čukarički. They were pretty messy in defence and also played the last quarter of an hour with ten men after substitute Bojan Dimoski was red carded. That’s probably part of why Singh got lost in the shuffle, although this was the third game in a row that he’s been on the bench. Ben Old got fifteen minutes for Saint-Etienne in a 3-2 win over Stade Reims, cool to see him trusted while they were closing that one out. ASSE are in first place of Ligue 2 after six rounds and yet to lose a game.
Ryan Thomas delivered another quality effort for PEC Zwolle but they lost 2-0 against Go Ahead Eagles. Jamiro Monteiro was sent off within two minutes of kickoff and even though Zwolle were still the more proficient team for most of that match despite playing with ten men... they ended up conceding twice in the last ten mins. Sticking in the Netherlands, Emma Pijnenburg got a few more minutes late in Feyenoord’s 1-0 loss to Ajax in the Women’s Eredivisie. Only five minutes but it took until December for her to make two appearances last season so she’s ahead of schedule.
Up Next: Peterborough vs Lincoln City at 3am on Sunday (NZT)
Kate Taylor - Dijon FCO (French Première Ligue)
Following a tough loss last week against Paris FC, going down 2-0, Dijon were in a spot of bother trailing 1-0 at home against Montpellier in game two. Paris FC finished one spot ahead of them last season so that previous loss wasn’t unexpected... but the reason Dijon managed that brilliant fourth-placed effort was because they were so good at putting away the teams beneath them yet it wasn’t seeming that way against Montpellier.
Fast-forward to the end and goals from Nadia Krezyman (67’) and Lina Gay (88’) earned a 2-1 win. All is well again. Kate Taylor played ninety minutes in central defence. It was a quiet game from her but that’s only because Montpellier didn’t create a lot outside of the penalty for their goal (which was their goalkeeper’s fault rushing out needlessly). Taylor is one of four Dijon players who’ve played all 180 minutes thus far.
Up Next: Dijon vs Strasbourg at 4am on Sunday (NZT)
Marco Lorenz - Eastern SC (Hong Kong Premier League)
You know what that is? That’s Marco Lorenz playing ninety minutes in the AFC Cup, aka the second tier continental competition in Asia (their version of Europa League), against Japanese powerhouse Gamba Osaka. They lost 3-1 and got a red card in the second half but there’s nothing to be ashamed of there. Very good effort from the Hong Kong club, to be honest, and an amazing scene for Marco Lorenz to be part of having been playing Northern League games for Auckland United up until a couple months ago.
Up Next: There’s a Senior Shield quarter-final against Hong Kong FC on Saturday at 7pm (NZT)
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