Day: June 20, 2016

South Melbourne FC returned to winning form with a 1-0 home win over FC Bulleen Lions at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday evening. An early goal from Marcus Schroen proved the difference as Chris Taylor’s side maintained its three-point lead at the top of the PS4 NPL Victoria ladder.

South came into Sunday’s game on the back of an embarrassing performance against the Bentleigh Greens in FFA Cup qualifying. There were two forced changes as captain Michael Eagar and Matthew Foschini were both suspended (Eager for his red card against Bentleigh and Foschini for accruing five yellow cards in the league). Tim Mala partnered Luke Adams at centre-back, whilst Amadu Koroma, Andy Kecojevic and Marcus Schroen all made starts. Under 20s right-back Joshua Hodes and forward Brandon Jansz were both promoted to the First Team bench but neither was able to get onto the pitch.

The home side began the game well as it sought to make amends from last Tuesday night’s match. Milos Lujic had an early chance but fired his shot over the crossbar in a sign of intent. On 16 minutes, Schroen popped up to score what was the winning goal. Matthew Millar’s header off Nick Epifano’s corner fell to Schroen, who prodded the ball past Griffin McMaster on the second attempt after defender Bhardi Hysolli’s initial block on the line. Bulleen had a couple of chances to level proceedings but Nikola Roganovic made two excellent saves. The first save denied Ersin Kaya after he was put through by captain Matteo Ballan and the second was a fingertip save to deny Felix Rosman from scoring via a header.

Two substitutes almost got on the scoresheet for their sides in the second half. Former South player Andrew Cartanos – who had recently transferred to Bulleen from Heidelberg – curled a shot wide of Roganovic’s far post. Manuel Herrero – or Manolo as he is simply known – replaced Schroen on 67 minutes and produced an excellent run and shot that was well saved by McMaster, denying the Spaniard an excellent goal on his league debut for South.

The full-time whistle confirmed a 1-0 win to South in a scrappy match. Importantly, Taylor’s side returned to winning ways in the league and maintained their three-point advantage over the Bentleigh Greens on top of the ladder. Other promising signs included South’s defence keeping a clean sheet without its captain Eagar and the influential Foschini at defensive midfield. Both players will be available for selection for the upcoming game against Richmond, giving Taylor the opportunity to further strengthen his team.

South’s Senior Women were on show before the Senior Men and they recorded a 3-0 victory over the Melbourne Knights thanks to goals from Renee Laszczak, Caitlin Greiser and Sara Alberici. The Women’s Reserves lost 2-4 against the Knights with Lauren Boyd scoring both of South’s goals. The Men’s Under 20s game against FC Bulleen Lions was postponed and will be played at a later date.

FINAL SCORE: SOUTH MELBOURNE 1-0 FC BULLEEN LIONS (HT: 1-0)

Goal Scorer:
1-0: Marcus Schroen (16′)

South Melbourne FC:
1. Nikola ROGANOVIC (GK) / 12. Amadu KOROMA, 2. Tim MALA, 5. Luke ADAMS, 11. Brad NORTON (C) / 77. Stephen HATZIKOSTAS / 17. Marcus SCHROEN (15. Manuel HERRERO 67′), 18. Matthew MILLAR, 22. Andy KECOJEVIC, 7. Nick EPIFANO (14. Chris IRWIN 88′) / 9. Milos LUJIC.
Unused Subs: 21. Zaim ZENELI (GK), 25. Brandon JANSZ, 28. Joshua HODES.

FC Bulleen Lions:
1. Griffin McMASTER (GK), 3. Will ABBOTT, 4. Samual BORGHESI, 5. Alon BLUMGART (2. Andreas GOVAS 56′), 6. Bardhi HYSOLLI, 8. Matteo BALLAN (C), 9. Michael DISASI (33. Davide CARDAMONE 80′), 12. Christian CAVALLO (11. Andrew CARTANOS 65′), 18. Felix ROSMAN, 20. Andrew MULLETT, 23. Ersin KAYA.
Unused Subs: 16. Nathan TIDMARSH, 21. Tom BANFIELD (GK).

SMFC Melbourne City Toyota Man of the Match: Tim Mala
Venue: Lakeside Stadium
Date: Sunday 19 June 2016

South Melbourne FC’s Senior Women returned to winning ways with a 3-0 win over the Melbourne Knights at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday afternoon. 

Coming off the back of their first two losses of the league season against Melbourne University and Eltham Redbacks, Coach Socrates Nicolaidis was keen for a positive result against the Knights. The team featured some faces recently missing from the pitch, with Shannon Foden and Alex Cheal both returning from injury.

The squad’s actions in the first ten minutes set the scene for the rest of the match. They pressed high, made aggressive runs down both flanks and held the majority of possession. Despite playing the majority of the first 45 minutes in the attacking half of the pitch, South was unable to find the back of the net and it was 0-0 at half time.

After the break, the girls started off with the same attacking pressure and were rewarded early on. Caitlin Greiser found space in the box to go one-on-one with the keeper. Her shot was blocked but the ball rebounded to the edge of the area for Renee Laszczak to side-foot it into the net and give South the lead.

Eliza Gleadell caused problems for the Knights as she constantly used her pace down the right to get in behind the defence and feed the ball into the area. The routine continued and on 60 minutes, following multiple chances, the net was again sent flying backwards into the advertising hoarding. It was Greiser latching on to the cross from Gleadell and with the Knights keeper stranded, Greiser doubled South’s lead.

South continued to press forward in front of the Lakeside crowd, which was building as part of the club’s double-header. The team continued to have chances in front of goal but the pressure they put on the Knights defence went unrewarded.

The final goal came on 83 minutes when South won a free kick twenty-five yards out in front of goal. With designated free kick taker Stella Rebholz travelling her way around Europe, forward Sara Alberici stepped up to do the honours. Her strike was well-lofted towards the right post. The Knights keeper moved well to palm it down from above head height but the clearing kick from the defender saw the ball rebound back off the keeper and over the line. The referee officially credited the goal to Alberici, who increases her lead at the top of the South Women’s golden boot tally.

After the match, smfc.com.au spoke with goal scorer Caitlin Greiser, who shared her thoughts on the game. “It was a great game out there today. It was our second double-header with the senior men’s team and this time we were able to show the supporters what we are capable of doing. Again we had many chances in front of goal that we weren’t able to put away, however seeing a 3-0 win on the Lakeside scoreboard is encouraging.”

Shannon Foden returned to the pitch for the first time in nine weeks following injury. “I thought we did well through the midfield with some good linkages of play. They didn’t have a lot going forward but our defence held really strong. There are some areas we can improve on going forward but we did link up very well through the middle of the park, which is what Soc wanted us to focus on.

[Today was] definitely a positive result and the girls can go into next week and the catch-up rounds with their heads held high. At training this week, we’ll again focus on passing and moving the ball, specifically throughout the middle of the park. It’s mainly us fine-tuning our play at the moment but the win today is definitely a boost as we head into the second half of the season.”

Shannon also reflected on her time away from the game and returning after a nine week absence. “I am a lot fitter than I thought I was and almost managed to run out a full first game. Nine weeks out doesn’t help but the girls have been really supportive and that has been good.”

South’s Senior Women host the Ballarat Eureka Strikers at Lakeside Stadium next Sunday. In the Round Two meeting between the sides, South left Morshead Park with a 4-2 win but Ballarat have recorded good results since then and South will need to be on their toes to maintain their top-two position on the ladder. Kick off is at 2pm this coming Sunday 26 June.

Male NPL Teams (U12-Seniors)

Seniors: SMFC 1-0 FC Bulleen Lions (Schroen 16′)
U20s: SMFC v FC Bulleen Lions – Postponed
U18s: SMFC 4-2 Springvale White Eagles (Karasawa x2, Egan, Own Goal)
U16s: SMFC 2-1 Springvale White Eagles (Baker, Morgan)
U15s: SMFC 1-0 Springvale White Eagles (Singh)
U14s: SMFC 4-0 Springvale White Eagles (Zeitoune x2, Abdou, Baker)
U13s: SMFC 1-0 Springvale White Eagles (Chong)
U12s: SMFC 3-0 Springvale White Eagles (Asani, Durso, Own Goal)

Female State League Teams (U12-Seniors)

SL1 (Seniors): SMFC 3-0 Melbourne Knights (Laszczak 47′, Greiser 60′, Alberici 84′)
SL1 (Reserves): SMFC 2-4 Melbourne Knights (Boyd x2)
SL2: SMFC 5-5 Elwood City (Van Berkel x3, Plessa, Sinclair)
SL3: SMFC 3-3 Langwarrin (Van Den Bulk x2, Crowley)
SL4: SMFC 3-0 Beaumaris (Forfeit win)
U16s: SMFC 3-0 Templestowe United (Goal Scorers TBC)
U14s: SMFC 5-3 Spring Hills (Scoloro x2, Louloudis x2, Ciancio-Knauer)
U12s: SMFC 0-2 Ashburton