It was something of a mixed week for the Capital Football U15 and U16 teams that partook in the Emerging Socceroos competition at the Home of the Matildas in Melbourne, with some sparking performances and results, allied to some defeats along the way.
UNDER-15
The first game of the tournament saw a superb goal from Elliot Head, bending a wonderful finish around the Queensland Maroon goalkeeper for an exquisite strike, but the Queenslanders edged the contest, coming away with a narrow 2-1 success despite Head’s goal.
If that was special, the goal netted by Lucas Villatobas in the nest fixture, when the team was pitted against Malaysia, was even more so. Gathering possession midway inside his own half, Villatobas embarked on a run that took him past a clutch of Malaysian defenders, riding tackles, before despatching a clinical finish in a game that ended in a 1-1 draw.
On Tuesday, the boys suffered a disappointing setback with an uncharacteristic display as they were beaten by a ruthless Victoria White team who punished errors with some well-taken goals in a big victory.
That set up a Quarter Final play-off against Queensland White, and in a match that went the full distance, goals from Andreas Kaskoutas and Anas Elsergany allowed Capital Football to force a penalty shoot-out. Unfortunately, the opposition were to prevail, coming out 5-3 winners on spot-kicks.
Two large wins ended the competition on a high for the U15 boys, Villatobas bagging a ghat-trick in a 5-1 win over NSW Country, with Maxwell Agbonzikilo netting the other two, the same player adding to his tournament tally in the 4-0 win over Tasmania that secured thirteenth place in the rankings. Kaskoutas, Head, and Adam Przydacz, also among the goals.
UNDER-15
Sunday 6 July – Game 1: Queensland Maroon L 1-2 (Head 44’)
Monday 7 July – Game 2: Malaysia D 1-1 (Villatobas 28’)
Tuesday 8 July – Game 3: Victoria White L 0-7
Wednesday 9 July – PQF: Queensland White D 2-2 (Kaskoutas 16’, Elsergany 29’) – lost 3-5 on penalties
Thursday 10 July – PSF5: NSW Country W 5-1 (Villatobas 7’, 16’, 30’, Agbonzikilo 32’, 58’)
Thursday 10 July – 13/14: Tasmania W 4-0 (Kaskoutas 12’, Przydacz 30’, Head 48’, Agbonzikilo 51’)
SCORERS
4: Lucas VILLOTOBAS
3: Maxwell AGBONZIKILO
2: Elliot HEAD, Andreas KASKOUTAS
1: Anas ELSERGANY, Adam PRZYDACZ
UNDER-16
A disappointing start to the trip to Melbourne saw the team lose 0-4 to a strong Queensland Maroon team on Day One, despite several reasonable performance across the team, and a battling attitude to the final whistle.
Things picked up on Monday as the Under-16 squad saw off the challenge of the Charles Perkins X1 with a well-rounded display and a 3-1 victory. Esmail Zahir scored twice in the match, once in each half, whilst Noah Souverain, who had been enjoying a prolific season at club level, added the second goal with the first two efforts struck inside the opening eleven minutes.
The third day of competition saw a competitive performance against Victoria White where a second goal of the tournament from Souverain ensured that the Capital Football team would come away from the fixture with a 1-1 draw and a place in the last eight.
A loss to NSW Navy in the Quarter Final, a 2-5 deficit with Esmail Zahir scoring twice for the Capital Football team, set up a Play-Off Semi-Final with Northern NSW, with the Northern side winning 2-0.
The competition ended as it had begun for the under-16 boys, a 0-6 loss to Queensland Maroon, meaning the team ended the tournament ranked eighth. The newly introduced Fair Play Awards were presented by Tournament Director and General Manager of Competitions, Ezel Hikmet with Capital Football claiming the award in the under-16 category.
UNDER-16
Sunday 6 July – Game 1: Queensland Maroon L 0-4
Monday 7 July – Game 2: Charles Perkins X1 W 3-1 (E. Zahir 6’, 60’, Souverain 11’)
Tuesday 8 July – Game 3: Victoria White D 1-1 (Souverain 45’)
Wednesday 9 July – QF: NSW Navy L 2-5 (E. Zahir 42’, 59’)
Thursday 10 July – PSF1: Northern NSW L 0-2
Thursday 10 July – 7/8: Queensland Maroon L 0-6
SCORERS
4: Esmail ZAHIR
2: Noah SOUVERAIN
