Soccer
BAXTER’S 3-0 derby win over Somerville Eagles on Saturday has secured the winner’s league status while condemning the loser to relegation. A major State League restructure next season has severely impacted promotion and relegation rules in State 4 and State 5 divisions. While the State 4 champion is promoted, there’s no promotion in State 5.
In State 4, teams finishing in second down to sixth spots remain in State 4, while teams finishing seventh to 10th drop into State 5, and the bottom two teams drop into a new State 6. Chelsea, Baxter, and Rosebud will play in State 4 next season, Somerville will play in State 5, while Frankston Pines will play in State 6.
Chelsea lost 3-1 at home to Monash University on Saturday after a standard turn and finish in the box from league top scorer James Stinson had given Chelsea a half-time lead. Gus Macleod’s men had been in cruise mode in the first half, but there was a dramatic momentum swing after the break, and they had no answer to the visitors’ onslaught.
At Westernport Secondary College, Baxter winger Keegan Myatt opened the scoring against Somerville and had an assist for the second goal. In the 36th minute, Charlie O’Connell kept the ball in play, then played it back to Ali Zamer Noor, who squared the ball for Myatt, and his shot into the bottom corner made it 1-0.
Myatt set up Jack Bradbury in the 55th minute to make it 2-0, and the sealer came in the 82nd minute. Robbie O’Toole motored down the right, then whipped the ball in to Austin Sporys, who skipped past two defenders and hammered the ball home.
Rosebud thumped visitors Sandown Lions 7-2 on Saturday. Sandown was very competitive for the first 45 minutes, with Rosebud taking a 3-2 lead at the break. The Budders came out revved up and overpowered the Lions in the second half with a great team performance highlighted by some brilliant passages of play which tore the Lions defence apart.
Connor Wharton capped a terrific display with a well-deserved hat-trick, Mark O’Connor’s great form rewarded with two super finishes along with Ethan Hunt and Barney Johnson getting on the scoresheet. Luke Tsantefskis continued his stellar season dominating the midfield, ably supported by Julien Dos Santos, Charlie Gunning, and Riley Gill.
Meanwhile, Pines should have beaten Mentone last weekend but had to settle for a 1-1 draw away from home. Zia Jalali was on target for Pines, who felt they were on the wrong side of some decisions from an assistant referee.
In State 1, it may be another season of what could have been for Mornington and its continuing quest to win promotion to Victoria’s elite club competition. On Saturday, it defeated visitor Old Scotch 3-0 but remains in third spot, a point behind Bayside Argonauts.
The first of a Kieran Dover double came in the 14th minute when Matt Hennessey sent him through, and he had no problem beating advancing Old Scotch keeper Bryden Plowright. Dover doubled the lead 10 minutes into the second half when he volleyed home after a Ziggy Razuki diagonal.
The final blow was struck by defender James Clark in the 68th minute following another Razuki cross that Clark volleyed. In Saturday’s final round, Adam Jamieson’s side are at home to league champion Malvern City, while Bayside Argonauts host bottom club Gippsland United.
In State 2, Peninsula Strikers are on the threshold of promotion with Skye breathing down their necks. On Saturday, Strikers put in one of their best performances of the season when belting Knox City 5-0 at Knox.
Strikers led after five minutes when Ethan Goulding won possession and he calmly squared to Campbell Steedman, who slotted home into the bottom corner. Not long after, it was 2-0. Wayne Gordon played an excellent ball wide to Cooper Andrews, who slipped past the defender and delivered an inch-perfect cross onto the head of the arriving Sammy Maggs.
Before the break, it was 3-0 when a wicked Gordon corner was headed home by Jamie Davidson. In the first minute of the second half, Steedman intercepted as Knox tried to play out from the back, and he made no mistake rifling the ball into the back of the net to make it 4-0.
In the 58th minute, Matt Harrington rounded out the scoring after superb pressure from Maggs forced a turnover in the box, and Harrington slotted home coolly. Last Thursday night, Skye won 2-1 at home to North Caulfield.
Although the visitors had nothing to play for, it was clear from the get-go that they came to make life very difficult for the hosts. In the 16th minute, a long Nic Millar throw found the head of Daniel Attard, who flicked the ball all the way into the far corner to give Skye a 1-0 lead.
In the 25th minute, North Caulfield capitalised on a mix-up at the back and levelled through Joshua Hodes. The home side had to wait until the 79th minute to break the deadlock courtesy of Elliott Craig’s left-foot strike following an Emmanuel Scarlett cross.
Ten minutes of additional time were safely navigated, and Skye claimed all three points to ensure that the promotion battle is taken to the final day.
In State 5, Seaford United may have engineered the great escape with a barnstorming finish to the season. Seaford’s 4-3 away win over Aspendale last weekend and Mount Eliza’s 0-0 away draw against Endeavour Hills Fire allowed Seaford to leapfrog Mount Eliza into second spot. The top two teams retain their State 5 status next season.
On Saturday, Seaford striker Zain Ahmad broke the deadlock early after a Hayden Hicks long ball sailed over the defence, and Ahmad converted his one-on-one. Dylan Waugh doubled the lead in the 25th minute after a Blake Hicks throw-in was flicked on by Tristan Stass, allowing Waugh to tap home from close range.
Aspendale hit back late in the half via a James Macnab free-kick hammered into the bottom right-hand corner. Waugh made it 3-1 in the 61st minute when he headed past home team keeper Matthew Self, and Ahmad made it 4-1 in the 77th minute, but Aspendale refused to lie down.
In the 82nd minute, substitute Pablo Borboa made it 4-2 with the goal of the game, a magnificent volley into the top right-hand corner. Four minutes later, Ryan Mravljak played the ball across the box, and it fell to Samuel Timuska-Carr, who steered it home. Shortly after, Seaford’s Luke Murray was sent off, but despite this, the visitors’ resolve couldn’t be broken.
A win this weekend at home against second-bottom Cleeland United ensures Seaford’s league status remains intact for next season.
League champion Fortuna 60 faced a competitive Mount Martha on Saturday in Morwell, and although the home team won 3-2, visitors’ head coach Charlie Platt was lauding his players’ performance. “I’m very proud of my boys and they gave the champions a real scare,” Platt said.
League top scorer Damon Scott from Fortuna only featured for 38 minutes after he talked himself into a second caution and a send-off. “We had chances in the second half and deserved something from the game,” Platt added. “The best side lost today.”
Mount Martha’s scorers were Mitch Hawkins and Daniel Bancroft. Platt’s side will finish last and drop down two levels to the newly created State 7 next year. They’ll be joined by Aspendale, who also finished in the bottom half of the table.
NEXT WEEKEND
Saturday, 6 September, 3pm
- Mornington v Malvern City, Dallas Brooks Park
- Peninsula Strikers v Casey Comets, Centenary Park
- Skye Utd v Knox City, Skye Recreation Reserve
- Somerville Eagles v Chelsea, Westernport Secondary College
- Baxter v Lyndale Utd, Baxter Park
- Springvale City v Rosebud, Ross Reserve
- Endeavour Utd v Frankston Pines, Reema Reserve
- Keysborough v Mount Eliza, Coomoora Reserve
- Seaford Utd v Cleeland Utd, North Seaford Reserve
- Mount Martha v Bunyip District, Civic Reserve
- Pakenham Utd v Aspendale, IYU Reserve
