Olympic win in thriller as fight against relegation continues
Sydney Olympic have breathed life into their survival hopes with a crucial 3-2 win over Wollongong Wolves on Saturday evening at Belmore Sports Ground.
It was a true end-to-end clash with chances plenty for both sides, though it was the Blues that reigned supreme and secured a vital win to boost their goal of avoiding relegation as they now sit just one point behind St George FC.
Olympic got off to a great start as they took the lead in the 12th minute, thanks to a strong finish from winger Sebastian Kukucka after he received the ball from the right side and cut in before striking it sweetly into the bottom right corner.
The Wolves managed to bring it level in the 35th minute through captain Lachlan Scott, who took the ball into the box during a quick attack and finished it into the bottom right.
Wollongong then pounced on Olympic losing possession in their defensive third to seize the lead in the 39th minute, with Kazuya Yamamura passing across to Hugo Cornish in the box for a simple finish.
The Blues brought it back in the 45+3rd minute through some Kukucka magic.
The winger danced down the right flank in a brilliant run wherein he nutmegged two Wollongong players en route to entering the box.
He then sent the ball across goal to fellow winger Kaan Nizam, who then proceeded to send it into the bottom right to bring it level.
Olympic came close to going ahead early into the second half when Daniel Wong was played through beautifully by Adam Bugarija in the 48th minute, but Wolves keeper Max Cunial stepped up and produced a strong save to keep it 2-2.
Wong had another golden chance to put the Blues ahead in the 63rd minute after latching onto a through ball from Armenakas, but Cunial’s left foot intervened to stop his shot.
Wong eventually got his goal in the 65th minute in remarkable circumstances.
The forward again forced a save out of Cunial after being played through by Armenakas, though this time the phase continued as Nizam had a scuffed effort on the rebound that went sky-high and hit the crossbar before ricocheting towards Bugarija.
The midfielder then headed the ball forward to Wong, who subsequently smashed the ball into the net from point-blank range to give Olympic the lead.
The Wolves nearly levelled it in the 82nd minute through a chance by Alex Masciovecchio, though Olympic keeper Filip Kurto intervened with a crucial save.
Bugarija unleashed a shot with venom in the 84th minute to test Cunial, and the Wolves shot stopper again stepped up to keep his team in the game.
Olympic coach Michael Mileto was pleased with the result though acknowledged they can still improve as they head into the remaining games.
“With the changes we’ve made, we’ve been performing well. We need to take more chances, still some defensive problems and poor in transition moments, but overall happy,” Mileto told Football NSW.
Reflecting on the club getting the victory on Ziggy Gordon’s 100th game, he noted:
“We tried to not worry about that and park that for afterwards, but the boys knew it was there and they dug deep for him.”
Match Stats
Sydney Olympic 3 (Sebastian Kukucka 12’, Kaan Nizam 45+3’, Daniel Wong 65’)
Wollongong Wolves 2 (Lachlan Scott 35’, Hugo Cornish 39’)
Saturday 11 July
Belmore Sports Ground
Referee: Jack Nelson
Assistant Referees: Lance Greenshields and Blake Eastwood
Fourth Official: Thomas Aalders
Sydney Olympic: 4. Joshua Hong, 5. Ziggy Gordon (58. Daniel Wong 46’), 6. Jok Akuien, 7. Seth Clark, 8. Kaan Nizam (34. Marcus Fernandez 90+6’), 10. Panos Armenakas, 12. Zac Zoricich, 16. Bailey Callaghan, 20. Filip Kurto, 21. Adam Bugarija, 23. Sebastian Kukucka (35. Peter Grozos 81’)
Substitutes Not Used: 14. Jacob Tresoglavic, 24. Faraz Rahimi, 40. Anthony Carreras
Yellow Cards: Nil
Red Cards: Nil
Wollongong Wolves: 2. Jake Shaked (14. Noah Mathie 29’), 5. Banri Kanaizumi, 8. Sebastian Duarte, 10. Flynn Madden (21. Liam Bell 69’), 11. Sebastian Hernandez (25. Alex Masciovecchio 69’), 13. Hugo Cornish (77. Dylan King 46’), 15. Dax Kelly, 18. Kazuya Yamamura, 19. Max Cunial, 24. Lachlan Scott, 44. Yuto Fujita
Substitutes Not Used: 1. Jacob Hastings, 3. Kristian Butkovic, 16. Lucas Trajcevski,
Yellow Cards: Nil
Red Cards: Nil
Player Ratings:
3: Sebastian Kukucka (SO)
2: Max Cunial (WOL)
1: Panos Armenakas (SO)
-By Dimitri Kallos
