APIA Leichhardt end season with a bang
The game itself between APIA-Leichhardt and Blacktown Spartans may not have meant much in terms of the finals series but for both teams pride was at stake.
The Tigers too were out to continue their winning run given that under coach Billy McColl they had won four games from four attempts. And they didn?t disappoint, sending McColl out with the perfect record of five wins from all five games that he was in charge.
After the game an elated McColl spoke about the difficult game against the Spartans and with pride and passion about APIA Leichhardt in general.
?It was a battle out there today,? he said. ?We wanted to win because it was the last game at home at Lambert Park and we wanted to send Danial Cummins off [retirement] on a high note.
?I am always happy to come back to the club but I feel a bit like an Italian boomerang.
?This club will go from strength to strength next year and once we get our new surface and we appoint our new coach, you will see the kids develop. They will finish in the top half of the competition and be one of the best teams over the next ten years.?
The first real opportunity of a rather dull first-half fell to Jacob Ott who in the 20? minute blasted a dangerous shot just over the crossbar from outside the box.
APIA-Leichhardt did indeed finish the first-half with a late flurry of opportunities. Michael West in the 41? minute found that he couldn?t penetrate the wall-like orange and black defence with his shot from fairly close range.
In the 44? minute the best opportunity of the half fell to the Tigers; Brad Bartels sent in a delightful cross from the right into the middle for Ethan Galbraith, but the tall marksman couldn?t find the target thanks to the handy work of Carlos Saliadarre between the posts.
In the second-half, on 62? minutes Bartels was brought down in the penalty-area by Djordje Degenek, who actually injured himself in the process, and referee Michael Weiner had no hesitation in awarding the spot kick. Up stepped the retiring Danial Cummins but his rather weak attempt was saved, but not held, by Saliadarre and Mun Soo Gil, charging into the box, managed to force the ball home for the Tigers.
In the 72? minute APIA-Leichhardt almost doubled their lead when Bartels, with a powerful shot, sent the ball just wide of Saliadarre?s net.
Chris Bedzo replied for the visitors shortly afterwards with a powerful drive from outside the box but his attempt ended up just wide. It was the best the Spartans could offer in the second-half.
APIA-Leichhardt?s second goal came in the 82? minute when a cross from the right was met by Mark Byrnes and the former captain of the Australian under-17 team had no hesitation in heading home.
From this point onwards the Spartans were shut out of the game and APIA had secured another courageous victory.
After the game Spartans player Luke Boyd expressed his frustration about the ground but with the new surface due over the summer, then that is well and truly a moot point. However, he also expressed satisfaction about the season as whole given that the Blacktown Spartans had just finished their first season in the NSW Premier League after securing promotion from the NSW Super League.
?You can?t do much on a ground a like this,? he said. ?We did run out there and tried to win but coming here you almost need a completely different team to compete on a field like this.
?A lot of young guys in our squad hadn?t played in this league before so we did alright this year, but maybe we could have done a little better in those close games where we only lost by a goal.
?It?s a good first season anyway and Ben (DeHaan) will build this team up for next year because he?s a good coach and we should do well.?
Match Stats
APIA-Leichhardt Tigers 2 (Mun Soo Gil 63?, Mark Byrnes 82?)
Blacktown Spartans 0
Sunday 2nd September, 2012
Lambert Park, Leichhardt
Referee: Michael Weiner
Assistant Referees: Sebastian Brennan and Wayne Crabb
Fourth Official: Sam Grasso
APIA-Leichhardt Tigers: 21.Anthony Costa; 2.Mark Byrnes, 4.Mun Soo Gil, 5.Michael West, 6.Danial Cummins (13.Paul Galimi 89?), 7.Stephen Kayes, 9.Ethan Galbraith (14.Nick Taneski 89?), 12.Brian Griffin-Colls, 15.Bradley Bartels (11.Adam Raciti 87?), 18.Brendan Reilly, 20.Gyu Re Lee.
Substitutes Not Used: 1.Stefan Giglio, 17.Sam Salameh,
Yellow Cards: Galbraith 86?
Red Cards: Nil
Blacktown Spartans: 1.Carlos Saliadarre; 2.Michael Khoury, 5.Luke Boyd, 8.Djordje Degenek (15.Louis Bozanic 71?), 9.Chris Bedzo, 10.Chris Gomez, 14.Jonathan Castano-Acero, 22.Andre Carle (11.Steven Veleski 79?), 23.Chris Bush, 27.Jacob Ott (7.Chris Gaitatzis 59?), 36.Tomislav Herceg.
Substitutes Not Used: 17.Peter Hubbard, 40.Daniel Sadaka
Yellow Cards: Nil
Red Cards: Nil
-By Joe Russo
