Sharks grab epic point at the death
Sutherland Sharks FC have delivered an extraordinary finish albeit with ten men, at Hensley Athletic Field to pull back two goals in added time to snatch an improbable 2-2 draw with Hakoah Sydney City East on Saturday night.
Mitchell Stamatellis broke the deadlock with 15 minutes remaining before Anthony Frangie doubled Hakoah’s lead from the spot as Sutherland saw defender Nicholas Littler sent from the field for a second yellow card.
The game was seemingly beyond the visitors, but skipper Jacob Tratt grabbed what appeared to be little more than a consolation goal in injury time, before Nick Olsen completed the comeback with the final kick of the game.
The game opened up quickly, and the first chance perhaps came too soon for Dom Cox, who ran onto a loose ball across the top of the box but blasted his shot high over the bar.
Nick Olsen and Joshua Da Silva made themselves busy in the midfield for Sutherland but Hakoah had the better of the early chances, as Takayuki Noji scurried down the right and fired a shot narrowly across the face of the goal.
The visitors’ first meaningful attempt came from a corner, with Olsen running underneath a clearance to smash a looping volley back towards the far post. Thankfully for Hakoah, Anthony Bouzanis was quick to react in his goal to tip the ball away.
Hakoah may have been comfortable in possession but were unable to do very much with it as the match slid towards halftime, with the action slow in the middle of the pitch as light faded. Yet as the break approached, the hosts sparked into life; Dom Cox and Mitchell Stamatellis both hitting the woodwork in the final moments to put Sutherland on notice.
The visitors came out with a new energy in the second half and had a terrific chance to break the deadlock when Olsen slipped Leroy Jennings through on goal, but the onrushing Bouzanis spread himself to block the shot.
Harry Jones had the ball in the net for Hakoah midway through the half but celebrations were cut short by an offside flag. Still, the home side wouldn’t have to wait long to start them up again, as Stamatellis – a constant threat – flicked on a free kick to edge Hakoah into the lead.
A comeback was a tough task for a Sutherland team that had yet to find a finishing touch, and it appeared near impossible after Nicholas Littler stumbled over his man in the box to give away a penalty and earn himself a second yellow card. Anthony Frangie cooly dispatched the spot kick to double Hakoah’s lead with ten minutes remaining.
Frangie very nearly added a third in the closing minutes but was denied by a fantastic diving save by Ryan Norval, before Sutherland drove up the other end and grabbed a goal through Tratt in the second minute of four added on for injuries and stoppages.
As the fourth minute passed, Hakoah won a free kick and Stamatellis inexplicably kicked the ball into touch to give away possession. Sutherland won a late free kick of their own, which bounced out of the box and down for Olsen to sweep inside the far post through a sea of legs, sealing the comeback with the final kick of the game.
A bitterly disappointed Gavin Rae had few words after a remarkable final four minutes that saw his team drop two points.
“It was a weak mentality that gave it away,” he said.
“They should never have been in the game. Two nil up with five minutes to go, something needs to change about our mentality.”
“To be two down, a man down, everything, to come back from that shows great character,” said Sutherland’s Grant Lee. “To get ourselves in that situation isn’t so great.
“It was a disappointing first half and a much better second half. We tried to change things up, we went three at the back and we were on the ascendancy and much more dominant. All credit to the boys, they were great. It makes it a lot easier to enjoy my Sunday now.”
Match Stats
Hakoah Sydney City East 2 (Mitchell Stamatellis 75′, Anthony Frangie 81′)
Sutherland Sharks FC 2 (Jacob Tratt 92′, Nick Olsen 94′)
Saturday March 24, 2018
Hensley Athletic Field, Eastgardens
Referee: T. Danaskos
Assistant Referees: A. Giev, J. Bell
Fourth Official: N. Farmer
Hakoah Sydney City East: 1. Anthony BOUZANIS, 2. Connor SHADDOCK, 3. Michael KOUTA, 4. Bradley WALKER, 5. Mitchell STAMATELLIS, 8. Oliver GREEN 14. Anthony FRANGIE (13. Robert EZEKIEL), 17. Harry JONES, 19. Dom COX (6. Cameron DRAPER), 20. James COMBES, 60. Takayuki NOJI
Substitutes Not Used: 18. Jordan KOTON, 25. Max EPHRAIM
Yellow Cards: Nil
Red Cards: Nil
Sutherland Sharks FC: 12. Blair BROWN, 10. Joshua DA SILVA, 6. Lachlan EVERETT, 20. Keisuke HAYASHI, 8. Lachlan HUGHES (13. Robert WATSON), 15. Nicholas LITTLER, 1. Ryan NORVAL, 22. Nicholas OLSEN, 16. Ryoga SUYAMA (17. Leroy JENNINGS), 2. Jacob TRATT, 9. Adrian VRANIC (11. Hristijan TANOSKI)
Substitutes Not Used: 21. Nikolas LOE, 26. Harry SUTHERLAND
Yellow Cards: Nicholas Littler 29′, 80′, Hristijan Tonoski 90′
Red Cards: Nicholas Littler 80′
Player Ratings
3 – Nicholas OLSEN (SS)
2 – Anthony BOUZANIS (HSCE)
1 – Mitchell STAMATELLIS (HSCE)
-By National Premier Leagues NSW reporter Max Grieve