Stallions smash Sharks in statement win ahead of finals
A dominant first half display guided Marconi Stallions to a 3-0 win over Sutherland Sharks at Marconi Stadium on Sunday afternoon in the final round of the regular season, delivering an ominous warning as they warm up for their Elimination Final clash against rivals Sydney United 58 this Wednesday evening.
The Stallions struck three times in the opening period to seize control of the clash and, despite not securing a top two finish due to APIA’s win over Sydney Olympic, showcased the threat they pose heading into the finals.
Marconi’s first challenge will be a tense elimination final at home against Sydney United 58 on Wednesday night.
The match started perfectly for the Stallions as they went ahead in the ninth minute after a corner delivery fell to Aleksandar Duricic, who struck it sweetly into the back of the net.
The assistant referee initially raised the flag but it was eventually awarded following a consultation between the officials.
Marconi doubled their advantage in the 32nd minute after Matej Busek passed the ball to Jordan Swibel, who released a beautiful curling strike from just outside the box that settled into the top right corner.
The hosts followed it up with a third in the 34th minute when Jake Trew dribbled from the right side towards the left and gave the ball to fellow winger Busek, who received the ball and brilliantly drove past a couple of defenders to get into the box before placing it into the bottom right.
Sutherland nearly found their first in the 55th minute after Tye McGowan played an excellent through ball towards Leo Mazis, with the ball deflecting towards Maki Petratos who took a shot on goal that ultimately went straight at keeper James Hilton for an easy save.
The Sharks came even closer in the 59th minute after a sumptuous cross to the back post was headed by Jack Robinson towards Mason Fernandez in the six-yard box, whose volley seemed destined to go in the net only for Sebastian Kiceec to produce a crucial block.
Jordan Roberts went for the spectacular in the 74th minute as he released a strike towards the top left corner, though the effort went just wide and rattled the side netting.
Dom Costanzo nearly gave the Stallions their fourth of the game in the 81st minute after cutting in and curling a shot towards the bottom right, but Sharks shot stopper Sebastian Arranz committed himself wonderfully to keep it out.
Marconi coach Peter Tsekenis praised his players for their display, particularly given he rotated heavily to give match time and save some other players from getting suspended for yellow card accumulation ahead of the finals.
““We were just focusing on making sure that some of the boys got some minutes. We rested some boys that had yellow cards. We had five players on yellow cards so we wanted to make sure they were involved in the semi-finals,” Tsekenis told Football NSW.
“The boys that played did a good job and we won convincingly.”
The Stallions coach noted they must be wary of Sydney United 58, whom they will face on Wednesday, but stressed they must keep their attention on getting themselves ready for the clash.
“Any team that is in the top six, you know they have got some quality and, on any given day, any team can beat anyone. We have just got to focus on recovering from this game. We have just got to make sure we focus on ourselves, get ourselves right and be ready for Wednesday.”
He highlighted their defence, which is the best in the competition at only 29 goals conceded (one better than NWS Spirit), as the key they must build on as they seek to win the finals series.
“Our defence has been the basis of our foundation, so we will focus on that. We got a clean sheet today which is great. We will focus on that and then work on scoring goals.”
Match Stats
Marconi Stallions 3 (Aleksandar Duricic 9’, Jordan Swibel 32’, Matej Busek 34’)
Sutherland Sharks 0
Sunday 31 August
Marconi Stadium
Referee: Hayden Michlmayr
Assistant Referees: Matthew Harris and Isaac Riggs
Fourth Official: Luke Chapman
Marconi Stallions FC: 1. James Hilton, 2. Tyren Burnie, 9. Kyle Cimenti (17. Damian Tsekenis 73’), 12. Julian Monge, 13. Tass Mourdoukoutas, 14. Jake Trew (6. Dom Costanzo 64’), 18. George Daniel, 21. Jonathan Soares (23. Brandon Vella 79’), 24. Matej Busek, 47. Aleksandar Duricic (35. Sebastian Kiceec 46’), 99. Jordan Swibel (10. Marko Jesic 73’)
Substitutes Not Used: 20. Patrick Williams
Yellow Cards:
Red Cards: Nil
Sutherland Sharks FC: 30. Sebastian Arranz, 6. Mohamed Ahmed, 10. Maki Petratos, 15. Matthew Moric, 19. Tariq Maia, 20. Jacob Tresoglavic (3. Jordan Roberts 38’), 23. Mason Fernandez (9. Jaden Gasking 62’), 27. Matthew Jackson (12. Jack Robinson 46’), 44. Tye McGowan (40. Riley Fowler 84’), 77. Leo Mazis (49. Marcus Fernandez 62’), 88. Brendan Gan
Substitutes Not Used: 16. Luke Rolland
Yellow Cards:
Red Cards: Nil
Player Ratings:
3: Matej Busek (MS)
2: Tyler Burnie (MS)
1: Tass Mourdoukoutas (MS)
-By Dimitri Kallos
