Wolves keep finals dream alive with win over Wanderers
Wollongong Wolves FC kept their NPL Men’s NSW finals hopes alive with a hard-fought 3-0 victory over the Western Sydney Wanderers at Macedonia Park on Sunday afternoon.
The Wolves produced a clinical display, with goals from Sebastian Hernandez and Marcus Beattie and an Emile Katrib own goal securing all three points.
Both sides made a bright start in the windy conditions with attacking, end-to-end football being played with Wolves midfielder Flynn Madden blazing a shot wide and Wanderers striker Awan Lual firing a shot over the bar.
Following the frantic start, the match settled down with the Wanderers starting to control the game with the Wolves relying on counter attacking opportunities.
The Wolves suffered an early blow with star Japanese midfielder Kazuya Yamamura going off injured in the 17th minute.
Wolves striker Lachlan Scott went close to opening the scoring in the 23rd minute when his volley was cleared off the line by Ricky Fransen after good lead up work and a cross from the left by winger Alex Masciovecchio.
Scott was causing headaches for the Wanderers defence and he played a huge part in the opening goal for the Wolves in the 27th minute. The captain did brilliantly to control a high ball inside the box and then played the ball across goal, with the ball turned into the net by Wanderers defender Emile Katrib.
The goal sparked the Wanderers into life with Alaat Abdul-Rahman and Jai Rose becoming more influential on the match, with Rose forcing Wolves goalkeeper Max Cunial into a good save after a shot from distance.
The Wolves went close to doubling their lead just before half-time when a free-kick by midfielder Yuto Fujita was headed down by Banri Kanaizumi with the ball falling to Scott. The striker did well to get a shot away from close range that forced goalkeeper Tristan Vidackovic into a good save as he quickly came off his line and smothered the angle.
The first-half came to end with the Wanderers applying solid, sustained pressure, however they were failing to create any clear-cut opportunities as the Wolves maintained their slender lead.
The home side finished the half with six shots and three on target, while the Wanderers had five shots with two on target.
The Wolves made a fast start to the second-half and doubled their lead in the 51st minute thanks to winger Sebastian Hernandez after he struck a long range shot into an empty net after goalkeeper Vidackovic had lost the ball following a tackle by Masciovecchio on the edge of the box.
The Wanderers went close to getting a goal back only a few minutes later when Lual beat the offside trap and raced onto a long ball and was one-one-one with Cunial. The young goalkeeper did brilliantly as he produced an outstanding save with his feet to force the ball wide.
The Wolves hit the Wanderers on the counter and added a third goal in the 62nd minute when midfielder Marcus Beattie placed his low shot in the bottom left corner from the edge of the box after good work from Scott who beat numerous defenders and produced a nice lay off.
Cunial was called into action again in the 73rd minute as he produced a good diving save from a Georgio Hassarati shot from the right side of the six yard box.
The Wanderers continued to push numbers forward as they chased goals to get back in the game, however the Wolves defence remained strong as they held on for a hard-fought 3-0 win.
The victory keeps the finals dream alive for the Wolves as they rise up the NPL Men’s NSW ladder to sit just two points out of the top six ahead of a final round showdown at home against Manly; while the Wanderers will end their season with an away match against Blacktown City FC.
Match Stats
Wollongong Wolves FC: 3 (Emile Katrib own goal 27’, Sebastian Hernandez 51’, Marcus Beattie 62’)
Western Sydney Wanderers FC: 0
Sunday August 23, 2026
Macedonia Park
Referee: Tom Seldon
Assistant Referees: Matthew McOrist and Amirhossein Hosnani
Fourth Official: Oscar Waterson
Wollongong Wolves FC: 2. Jake Shaked, 5. Banri Kanaizumi, 8. Sebastian Duarte, 10. Flynn Madden (7. Oliver Morgan 70’), 11. Sebastian Hernandez (21. Liam Ball 78’), 15. Kristian Butkovic (4. Dylan Ryan 70’), 18. Kazuya Yamamura (17. Marcus Beattie 17’), 19. Max Cunial, 24. Lachlan Scott (C) (14. Willem Robaard 78’), 25. Alex Masciovecchio, 44. Yuto Fujita
Substitutes not used: 1. Jacob Hastings, 77. Dylan King
Yellow Cards: Flynn Madden 24’, Sebastian Duarte 40’, Oliver Morgan 90+3’
Red Cards: Nil
Western Sydney Wanderers FC 1. Tristan Vidackovic, 4. Ricky Fransen, 5. Jesse Cameron, 6. Oscar Morrison (C), 7. Alaat Abdul-Rahman (19. Ewan Gasowski 74’), 8. Corey Da Cruz (11. Johnny Pavlovic 60’) 9. Awan Lual (28. Georgio Hassarati 60’), 10. Jai Rose, 17. Joshua Cetinic (25. Marko Radovancevic 60’), 30. Anderson Back, 31. Emile Katrib (26. Bradley Marszal 74’)
Substitutes not used: 3. Thomas Cutuk, 40. Ashton Crawford
Yellow Cards: Emile Katrib 39’, Joshua Cetinic 49’
Red Cards: Nil
Report by Joel Martelli
