Monaro Panthers ended O’Connor Knights unbeaten run at twenty-six games and gained a potential psychological foothold ahead of next week’s Australia Cup Qualifying Final with a 3-1 win at O’Connor Enclosed, all three of their goals being scored in the opening quarter of an hour.
Even discounting the shadow of the Final, which loomed large over this fixture and perhaps influenced team selection, the Panthers were the better side and took the lead after 100 seconds as Roko Strika met a Christian Kreskas free-kick with a header that gave Knights goalkeeper Seb Arranz no chance.
Strika turned provider in the eleventh minute as he won a header that started a move culminating in Tyson Livermore sliding a pass into Jenno Ceruti who picked his spot to double the lead.
Ceruti was causing the Knights defence all sorts of problems with his pace and power as the attacking quartet dovetailed superbly, increasing the lead moments later. A stray touch from Daniel Roberts was pounced upon by Strika who burst through to confidently finish.
The shell-shocked Knights saw off the Panthers for the rest of the half, their best chance falling to Aisosa Ihegie who was repelled by Jacob Quinn after accelerating past his marker to create the chance.
After the break the league champions were much better in possession, albeit with Monaro having backed off their high press, and were able to grab a consolation late on. Substitute Alen James, introduced after signing from Canberra Olympic got the faintest of flicks to a Jackson Paesler corner for a debut goal, but it was too late to spark an unlikely comeback.
Tigers FC and Tuggeranong United shared the spoils at the Australian Institute of Sport as their clash ended 1-1 meaning that both teams lost some ground on those above them in the NPL table.
The visitors recovered from their home loss to Gungahlin United last week and were in front after just seven minutes thanks to a debut goal from 16-year-old Steve Nealon, signed from Canberra Croatia U23 and cleared to play as the transfer window opened on Saturday morning.
Nealon was on hand to finish off a move that began with a Euan Peterkin long ball that allowed Matt Williams to square for Nealon to force his shot past Kristian Nel and into the net. The retreating Marko Milutinovic suffered a nasty injury in attempting to clear, the game held up for several minutes as the central defender received lengthy treatment.
When the action got back underway, the Tigers had a goal ruled out in first-half stoppage time, Nikos Kalfas having the ball in the net, the celebrations cut short. But the striker was pivotal to the leveller six minutes into the second-half.
A clipped ball into almost exactly the same channel that Williams squared for Nealon, allowed Kalfas to do the same for Alessandro Pena who swept past Callum Cook. Tuggeranong had a good shout for penalty waved away late on as both teams had to settle for a draw.
A penalty scored two minutes from half-time by Atiya Waraga earned Canberra Croatia three precious points and inflicted a first on-field defeat of the season on Gungahlin United at the Australian Institute of Sport.
Waraga stepped up to strike home his first NPL goal of the season after Daniel Barac had been upended by the otherwise superb Aiden Munford in the Gungahlin goal, the ‘keeper hauling down the Croatia striker as he broke clear of the home defence following a period of Gunners supremacy.
The penalty might have been the only goal of the encounter, which was played at a breakneck pace, but that was more down to the excellence of the two defensive units, and Munford’s ability to make some top-class stops, illustrated by a brace of second-half efforts to repel Keegan Vucetic and Waraga.
Vucetic ought to have killed the game off when he scampered clear of a broken offside trap, but his finish was repelled by Munford, diving to his left. Later, Vucetic appeared certain to score as he was found free inside the penalty area with Munford stranded, only for Christian Junna to head off the line.
Earlier in the game Gunners forward Lukman Ahmed-Shaibu saw a snapshot go wide, Daniel Olaoye witnessed his well-hit effort magnificently blocked by Parris Bangweni, whilst Daniel Subasic denied the winger a shot on goal after he had cleverly rolled Bangweni to make space.
A last-gasp goal-line clearance from Nicholas Subasic proved crucial as Canberra Olympic held on to defeat Yoogali SC 4-3 at Solar Mad Stadium in Griffith and emerge six points ahead of their opponents on the league table, taking a sizeable leap towards safety in the progress.
Olympic led 2-0 early on after scoring twice in near identical fashion inside the opening half of the first stanza. Both goals came from in-swinging corners from the Yoogali left defensive channel, the first stabbed into the roof of the net from close range by Harry Truman, the second steered home by defender Izach Clements after Truman’s prod had been blocked.
Yoogali responded well to this adversity and scored just their fourth goal of the season before half-time as Ryan Zanatta manufactured room at the top of the Olympic penalty area three minutes after the second goal to rattle home a fine low finish into the bottom corner of the net.
The match was delicately poised, but Olympic always seemed to have breathing room and restored their two-goal cushion via a fine strike from Stephen Domenici, however Yoogali hit back again as Mason Donadel embarked on a mazy run that ended with a deflected effort off debutant Virgil Moutaud looping over Usai.
Olympic needed a moment, and they got one with ten minutes remaining. Luca Florez found Subasic who beat Darren Bailey and squared for Michael John, off the substitutes bench, to turn home at the second attempt and register his fiftieth NPL goal.
Yoogali still weren’t done though and find another to set up a grandstand finale. Usai punched clear Bailey’s free-kick, but only as far as Joshua De Rossi who controlled and crashed home an unstoppable finish.
RESULTS
ROUND 9
Saturday 1 June
O’Connor Knights 1 (James 85’) Monaro Panthers 3 (Strika 2’, 15’, Ceruti 11’)
Tigers FC 1 (Pena 51’) Tuggeranong United 1 (Nealon 7’)
Sunday 2 June
Yoogali SC 3 (Zanatta 25’, Moutaud 52’ (og), De Rossi 87’) Canberra Olympic 4 (Truman 12’, Clements 22’, Domenici 50’, John 80’)
Gungahlin United 0 Canberra Croatia 1 (Waraga 43’ (p))
TABLE
| P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | PTS | ||
| 1 | Gungahlin United* | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 21 | 10 | +11 | 18 |
| 2 | Monaro Panthers | 9 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 16 | 7 | +9 | 17 |
| 3 | O’Connor Knights | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 8 | +6 | 16 |
| 4 | Tigers FC** | 8 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 18 | 7 | +11 | 15 |
| 5 | Canberra Croatia | 9 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 18 | 14 | +4 | 14 |
| 6 | Tuggeranong United | 9 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 16 | 19 | -3 | 11 |
| 7 | Canberra Olympic | 9 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 18 | 25 | -7 | 6 |
| 8 | Yoogali SC | 9 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 6 | 36 | -30 | 0 |
TOP SCORERS
13: Lukman AHMED-SHAIBU (Gungahlin United)
5: Archie MCGREGOR (Tigers FC), Nick PRATEZINA (Canberra Croatia), Roko STRIKA (Monaro Panthers)
4: Jenno CERUTI (Monaro Panthers), Luca FLOREZ (Canberra Olympic), Aisosa IHEGIE (O’Connor Knights), Davaadelger OKTYABRI (Tuggeranong United)
3: Micheal ADAMS (O’Connor Knights), Ben BASSER-SILK (Monaro Panthers), Stephen DOMENICI (Canberra Olympic), Alen JAMES (Canberra Olympic/O’Connor Knights), Amilio KISTA (Tigers FC), Niko KRESIC (O’Connor Knights), Sam WALKER (Tuggeranong United), Own GOALS
2: Augustine BANGURA (Gungahlin United), Daniel BARAC (Canberra Croatia), Joshua DE ROSSI (Yoogali SC), Nic EMANUEL (Tuggeranong United), Michael JOHN (Canberra Olympic), Michael KATSOULIS (Gungahlin United), Tyson LIVERMORE (Monaro Panthers), Joshua PEDERSEN (Tuggeranong United), Niko PERINOVIC (O’Connor Knights), Michael PICCOLO (Canberra Croatia), Jordan REZEK (Tuggeranong United), Daniel SPARROW (Canberra Croatia), Daniel SUBASIC (Canberra Croatia), Nik TANESKI (Tigers FC), Harry TRUMAN (Canberra Olympic)
1: Jack BITANI (Tigers FC), Samson CARR (Tigers FC), Izach CLEMENTS (Canberra Olympic), Elie DARWICH (Canberra Olympic), Adam DE FRANCESCHI (Monaro Panthers), Axel GARBIN (Yoogali SC), Jack GREEN (Gungahlin United), Jeremy HABTEMARIAM (Gungahlin United), Thomas JAMES (Canberra Croatia), Nikos KALFAS (Tigers FC), Jack LEVERETT (Tuggeranong United), Zac MCLAREN (Monaro Panthers), Marko MILUTINOVIC (Tigers FC), Shinzaburo NAKAYAMA (Canberra Olympic), Steve NEALON (Tuggeranong United), Daniel OLAOYE (Gungahlin United), Jackson PAESLER (O’Connor Knights), Alessandro PENA (Tigers FC), Euan PETERKIN (Tuggeranong United), Sam ROESTBAKKEN (Canberra Olympic), ROMEO (Gungahlin United), David SESELJA (Canberra Croatia), Patrick SHORE (Canberra Olympic), Julian SMITH (Gungahlin United), Tony SPASESKI (Canberra Croatia), Keegan VUCETIC (Canberra Croatia), Atiya WARAGA (Canberra Croatia), Shandon WHITEHEAD (Gungahlin United), Ryan ZANATTA (Yoogali SC)
*Gungahlin United deducted three points for field an ineligible player in the 3-0 win against Tigers FC
**Tigers FC awarded a 3-0 win, and three points, for Gungahlin United fielding an ineligible player
