Stallions bombed by energetic Spirit
NWS Spirit FC secured a 1-0 morale booster victory over the Marconi Stallions on Saturday night at Christie Park making it a great week for the hosts who only a few days ago secured its place in the Australia Cup Round of 32.
It was a hard-fought battle between the two, with both sides recovering from mid-week Australia Cup matches.
While they had to wait 71 minutes for it, the home fans erupted at the only goal of the match from Ollie Wiggins, which was enough for the hosts to secure three points.
Marconi could have secured an early lead in the 4th minute through Nathan Millgate, who got on the end of a corner kick to head the ball into the back of the net, however referee Jake Rose ruled a foul on Spirit goalkeeper Christopher Marques by Stallions captain Marko Jesic.
Spirit came close to a goal in the 12th minute through Jacob Chidiac, whose effort flew wide of the woodwork.
The hosts sustained their pressure and created another opportunity moments layer in the 14th minute through Richard Darko, who let off a shot that was comfortably collected by Marconi ‘keeper James Hilton.
Spirit had a great chance to get ahead in the 28th minute through Jared Lum, but his effort soared above the goal.
Marconi’s Franco Maya took a chance in the 31st minute, sending an ambitious half-volley towards the target, however it flew above the crossbar.
Marconi looked poised to open scoring in the 42nd minute as Jesic managed to steal the ball from Spirit before playing to Bouman, who tapped it backwards to Jesic.
Jesic fired at the target, but his shot was collected by Marques.
After heading to the half-time break without a goal, both sides were hungry to make their mark in the second stanza.
Spirit hit the back of the net in the 53rd minute as Jared Lum pounced on a rejection from Hilton, however the hosts’ celebrations were cut short by the linesman’s flag.
The hosts sustained pressure to earn three corners in the subsequent five minutes but weren’t able to capitalise on their opportunities.
After 71 minutes of end-to-end battles, Spirit finally managed to break the deadlock.
Substitute Zachary Cianci stripped the ball from Domenic Costanzo and made a forward run down the right flank to create the opportunity for the hosts.
Jesse Michel tapped it off to Ante Bakmaz, who played to a forward-running Wiggin, who slid the ball past Hilton to open scoring.
Maya sent a shot into the area from the 18-yard-box in the 87th minute to give Marconi a chance but his shot ricocheted off the post.
The visitors had a chance in the 89th minute through a corner but the opportunity fizzled out.
Despite continued pressure they weren’t able to make a last-chance impact on the match, with Spirit securing three points with a 1-0 victory.
NWS Spirit coach David Perkovic was pleased his side could secure the win against a challenging side.
‘It was a bit scrappy to be fair – I kind of expected that with both teams coming off a midweek game,” he explained.
“I felt that the game was in balance, both teams had reasonable but not a lot of chances in the first half.
“Second half I thought we asserted ourselves well and we’ve scored a quality goal – it was really good football for the goal, so I was really pleased.
“Not many times do you get a clean sheet against Marconi because they battled all the way and they overloaded our backline right at the end as well, so I felt that we handled it well.
“I’m grateful that we’ve got really fantastic staff, especially Gary with managing loads and Beck our physiotherapist as well – they do a great job in managing out fatigue.”
Match Stats
NWS Spirit FC 1 (Wiggin 71’)
Marconi Stallions 0
Saturday 8th June, 2024
Christie Park, Macquarie Park
Referee: Jake Rose
Assistant Referees: Patrick Teleki and Thomas Aalders
Fourth Official: Mayson Griffith
NSW Spirit FC: 1. Christopher Marques, 3. Kyle Shaw, 4. Jarred McKinley, 7. Richard Darko, 10. Michael Konestabo, 11. Ollie Wiggin, 13. Simon Nicholas, 16. Ante Bakmaz, 17. Jacob Chidiac (12. Titus Macharia 78’), 19. Jesse Michel, 20. Jared Lum (18. Zachary Cianci 68’)
Substitutes Not Used: 14. Jacob Sullivan, 21. Luis Lobo, 31. Joel Wade, 34. Noah Peacock
Yellow Cards: Lum 30’, Wiggin 87’
Red Cards: Nil
Marconi Stallions FC: 1. James Hilton, 2. Nathan Millgate, 3. Cameron Windust, 4. Anton Mlinaric, 6. Domenic Constanzo, 7. Franco Maya, 8. Daniel Bouman (34. Julian Monge 83’), 9. James Temelkovski, 10. Mario Jesic, 18. George Daniel (39. Luka Knezevic 87’), 23. Brandon Vella
Substitutes Not Used: 14. Dylan Susovic, 15. Aleksandar Duricic, 21. Jakov Malbasa, 40. Patrick Williams
Yellow Cards: Temelkovski 41’, Mlinaric 60’
Red Cards: Nil
Player Ratings
3 – Ollie Wiggin (NWS)
2 – Ante Bakmaz (NWS)
1 – Franco Maya (MS)
-By Madeline Riley
