South Coast local boy Joshua Macdonald was the hero for Wollongong Wolves as Jacob Timpano’s side came from behind and a man down to salvage a 1-1 draw with Bonnyrigg White Eagles at Bonnyrigg Sports Club in a riveting PlayStation®4 National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s affair.
Wollongong Wolves were reduced to ten men following David Stojic’s first half red card and fell behind instantly via Yuta Kokado’s deflected strike but restored parity midway through the second half when club new recruit Macdonald sliced through the area to poke home his first goal in hometown colours – his first since making the move from the Western Sydney Wanderers.
Macdonald’s equalizer provoked a frantic reaction from Bonnyrigg who created chance after chance in a one-way second half but were somehow unable to force the ball over the line with goalkeeper Justin Pasfield and the Wollongong outfit atoning for their languid first-half boilover to secure a heroic point on the road.
Midweek exploits in the Westfield FFA Cup may have worn thin on both sides who stuttered through a meagre first half, with Bonnyrigg’s patient approach failing to bear immediate fruit – although talisman Robbie Younis was close to latching onto several aerial deliveries.
Wollongong’s latest recruit Macdonald looked to provide the visitors the attacking spark the affair sorely craved with several darts infield, and the former Western Sydney Wanderer set up David Stojic with a sweet reverse pass midway through the first half for the Wolves midfielder to sting the palms of James Chronopoulos.
The turning point of the match occurred only minutes after Stojic had enjoyed ostensibly the encounter’s sole shot on goal, when the midfielder was handed a straight red card for a dangerous lunge on White Eagles craftsman Bo Hyun Chun.
Emotions threatened to spill over following the dismissal of Stojic and the visitor’s frustration was compounded when Bonnyrigg opened the scoring through a heavily deflected effort from Yuta Kokado.
It took an excellent save from Chronopoulous to deny Timpano’s men a vital equalizer on the stroke of half-time, with the Bonnyrigg custodian producing a fine diving save to keep out Ben Zucco’s daisy-cutter from outside the area – and undoubtedly refuting the ten-men a significant boost in morale heading into the sheds at the break.
But the visitors summoned a herculean second-half showing to remain at the heels of their hosts and Wolves custodian Pasfield was at his best on the hour mark to thwart the White Eagles with a succession of reflex stops in what was a pivotal spell in the encounter.
Having narrowly rode out several waves of Bonnyrigg pressure with Robert Younis uncharacteristically wayward in front of goal, Wollongong astonishingly restored parity through Macdonald, who provided an ice-cool finish inside the box after a well-crafted counterattacking raid.
The forward’s first goal in Wollongong colours sparked euphoric celebrations from the travelling faithful, who faced an almighty onslaught from the home side in the game’s final stages but held resolute to secure a point that felt like three.
“It was probably the best second-half performance I’ve ever seen from the boys and something to be very proud of,” Jacob Timpano said
“We had to really dig deep and it was the perfect reaction to last week’s showing”.
Match Stats
Bonnyrigg White Eagles 1 (Kokado 35’)
Wollongong Wolves 1 (Macdonald 69’)
Saturday 21st May 2016
Bonnyrigg Sports Club
Bonnyrigg White Eagles: 1. CHRONOPOULOS James, 21. CHUN Bo-hyun, 16. GALLAWAY Samuel, 17. GIL Mun-Soo, 10. KOKADO, Yuta, 15. MILLER Raymond, 19. PETERSEN Aaron, 4. ROBINSON Michael, 3. VRANKOVIC David, 9. YOUNIS Robert (13. MCKENZIE James 80’), 7. KONDEK, Greg (11. JOVOVIC Aleksander 56’)
Substitutes not used: 36. KADRIC Asmir, 2. MANSUETO Alexander, 20. SAVICIC, Stevan
Yellow Cards: N/A
Red Cards: N/A
Wollongong Wolves: 1. PASFIELD Justin, 5. BALDACCHINO James, 2. KAWASE Kota, 18. BERNAL Nicolas, 19. MACDONALD Josh, 6. MACKENZIE Zachary, 3. MADDEN Darcy, 23. MATTHEWS Samuel, 7. PRICE Christopher, 10. STOJIC David, 16. ZUCCO Ben
Substitutes not used: 12. COLLISON Daniel, 8. GRIFFIN Brendan, 15. LAZAREVSKI Danny, 17. ZUCCO Ricky, 4. LOMBO Jack,
Yellow Cards: 23. MATTHEWS Samuel 25’, 6. MACKENZIE Zachary 30’, 3. MADDEN Darcy 35’, 16. ZUCCO Ben 62’, 19. MACDONALD Josh 83’
Red Cards: 10. STOJIC David 34’
Player Ratings
3 – Justin Pasfield (WOL)
2 – Zachary Mackenzie (WOL)
1 – Josh Macdonald (WOL)
-By PlayStation®4 National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s reporter Jacob Windon
Bonnyrigg pushed to the limit by Manly
BONNYRIGG White Eagles has survived a second half fightback from Manly United to secure a narrow 2-1 win in its PlayStation®4 National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s Round 4 clash at Bonnyrigg Sports Centre on Saturday.
A first half brace to Robbie Younis was enough for the Brian Brown coached side to claim all three points but home fans were forced onto the edge of their seats as a determined Manly United went close to snatching an upset.
It was all Bonnyrigg in the opening stages as Yuta Kokado’s fourth minute shot started what would be one way traffic at Bonnyrigg Sports Centre during the first stanza.
Only Dylan Mitchell knows how the scores remained scoreless when Alex Mansueto threw his name up for miss of the season after 17 minutes
A low cross from Aaron Peterson inside the left hand side of the penalty area found an unmarked Mansueto three yards from the goal line.
An incredible diving effort from Manly shot stopper denied the Bonnyrigg right back as his leg blocked the shot.
Only seconds later and the home side had a free kick on the edge of the area. Robbie Younis stepped up and curled the ball beyond an outstretched Mitchell to make it 1-0 for Bonnyrigg.
A hard tackle on Ken Chun 25 metres out from goal provided Younis with another opportunity to showcase why he is one of the competition’s dead ball specialists.
Again, Younis stepped up. Different top corner, same result as he rustled the back of the net to double the home side’s lead.
Younis thought he had his hat-trick in the 40th minute when he reacted quickest to a whipped in Kokado corner.
Mitchell again came to the rescue for Manly, although there was some doubt whether or not he had kept the ball from crossing the line.
It was a completely different story in the second half as Manly raced out of the blocks.
Within five minutes the lead was seemingly halved.
A first class reaction save from Chronopoulos after a Dejan Pandurevic shot fell to the feet of Brendan Cholakian who hammered into the back of the net.
The offside flag of the assistant referee quickly silenced the cheers of the manly faithful.
In the 63rd minute, Pandurevic and Manly’s hard work finally got the reward it deserved.
Adam Parkhouse delivered a superb ball low into the box from the left as Pandurevic calmly tapped home to make it 2-1.
The away side continued to lift as the second half progressed with the White Eagles dropping deeper and deeper in defence.
Manly kept pushing with Cholakian, Parkhouse and Pandurevic constant threats.
Despite Manly’s efforts it was too little too late for the visitors with the White Eagles holding firm to secure its first home win for 2016.
Brian Brown was a relieved man after the final whistle.
“It was a game of two halves but we’re happy to take all three points,” he said.
“The competition has changed this season and there are no easy teams.
“Other than our opening 20 minutes against Rockdale, Our first half was our best half of football this season.”
Paul Dee had a bittersweet feeling at the end of the match.
“I thought we started the match well but then we concede from two set pieces and go into the break down,” he said.
“ I was very impressed with the way the boys responded in the second half.
“We pressed them, had plenty of chances but couldn’t put them away.
“Disappointed with the result but pleased with the response.”
Something all teams should watch for was the Manly front three of Cholakian, Pandurevic and Parkhouse.
“We believe we’ve got a high level of attacking quality and just need to concentrate on a decisive last touch,” Dee said.
Match Stats
Bonnyrigg White Eagles 2 (Younis 18’, 35’)
Manly United FC 1 (Pandurevic 63’)
Saturday, April 2, 2016
Bonnyrigg Sports Centre
Referee: K Patterson
Assistant Referees: J Adabjou & R Osbourne
4th Official: M Bailey
Bonnyrigg White Eagles: 1. Chronopoulos, 2. Mansueto (14. McDonald), 3. Vrankovic, 4. Robinson, 5. Jenner (6. Zonjic), 9. Younis, 10. Kokado, 16. Galloway, 17. Gil, 19. Peterson (31. Lo), 21. Chun.
Substitutes: 20. Savicic, 18. Douglas.
Yellow Cards: Gallaway 60’, Younis 90’
Red Cards:
Manly United FC: 1. Mitchell, 2. Paull, 3. Lobb (16. Berti), 4. Oughtred, 7. Cooper, 10. Cholakian, 11. Parkhouse, 23. Pandurevic, 18. Bragg (6. Gallagher), 19. Saric (Williams), 22. Giverin.
Substitutes: 20. Syron-Mackenzie
Yellow Cards: Cholakian 20’
Red Cards:
Player Ratings
3 – Robbie Younis
2 – David Vrankovic
1 – Dejan Pandurevic
-By PlayStation®4 National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s reporter Nikola Pozder
Tigers winless as Bonnyrigg collects points
APIA is still searching for its first win of the PlayStation®4 National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s season after a heartbreaking 2-1 loss to Bonnyrigg White Eagles at Lambert Park on Friday.
An injury hit APIA outfit were unlucky to take advantage of its chances as Bonnyrigg’s Aaron Peterson snatched the result in the 81st minute.
It was a disastrous start to the match for APIA who were forced into a double substitution only seven minutes into the match.
Injuries to Brett Studman and Sean O’Connell required a drastic reshuffle of the home side’s line up as APIA coach John Carnevale introduced Franco Parisi and Matthew Fsdani to the contest.
Parisi made almost an instant impact to the match when his perfect delivery created a clear opportunity for Tasuku Sekiya in the 14th minute.
However, Sekiya failed to take advantage scuffing his shot straight into the hands of Bonnyrigg shot stopper James Chronopoulous.
The injury bug was passed onto Bonnyrigg in the 20th minute when Greg Kondek went down with a hamstring injury and was replaced by Aaron Peterson.
The addition of Peterson lifted Bonnyrigg and the visitors pushed forward in attack.
APIA paid the price for poor communication in defence in the 27th minute when a marauding run from Sam Galloway opened the scoring for Bonnyrigg.
Galloway wrong footed defender Nathan Millgate and made a 25 metre run unchallenged before he dispatched a powerful shot past APIA keeper Ryan Norval.
APIA immediately mounted a fight back and were unlucky to not to score in the 31st minute.
A double save from Bonnyrigg’s Chronopoulos diffused shots from Corey Bizco and Sekiya.
The home side had one last chance in the final minute of the half but Themba Muata-Marlow’s header was cleared off the line by White Eagles defender Adam Jenner.
Attack, attack, attack must have been Carnevale’s halftime message for his APIA team as the Tigers gunned for an equaliser from the opening whistle.
The high intensity paid off almost instantly when Sekiya hit the back of the net in the 49th minute.
The Japanese import volleyed into the back of the net to make it 1-1 after pin point assist from Franco Parisi.
Orchestrated by Parisi, APIA continued its attacking raid as Bonnyrigg battled to keep in the game.
However, it was the heroics of Muata-Marlow in defence which had fans talking as the APIA centre back cleared a dangerous Robbie Younis header off the line after a Bonnyrigg counter attack.
The counter attack sparked a revival from Bonnyrigg and they began to fight their way back into the match.
It wasn’t long before the PlayStation 4 NPL NSW Men’s Champions were back in front when Peterson hammered home from close range to give Bonnyrigg a 2-1 lead in the 80th minute.
Desperate to take at least a point away from the match, APIA sent everything forward in hope of finding a goal.
Chronopoulos was called into action for the visitors in the 86th minute when his diving saved denied a well hit Nathan Millgate shot.
Ray Miller’s second yellow card in the 87th minute had the visitors down to 10 men for the final stages of the game.
APIA threw everything but the kitchen sink forward to snatch a late equaliser. However, it wasn’t to be for Carnevale’s outfit.
“Despite the loss that would have to be our best performance as a side this season,” Carnevale said.
“The way all the boys maintained their composure after losing two senior players to serious injury in the opening minutes was very impressive.
“While it hurts to come away from that match without any points, I know if we continue to play the way we did today then win’s are just around the corner.”
Winning coach Brian Brown praised former Newcastle Jets and Western Sydney Wanderers defender Galloway for his performance.
“Sam was outstanding today and deserves recognition for the way he played.
“Defensively he was very impressive and he will be delighted to have scored.
“All round it was a great game from the boys especially the defence who did very well to hang on when APIA were desperate for an equaliser.”
Match Stats
APIA Leichhardt Tigers 1 (Sekiya 52’)
Bonnyrigg White Eagles 2 (Galloway 28’, Peterson 81’)
Friday, March 25 2016
Lambert Park, Leichhardt.
Referee: Koder Yagi
Assistant Referees: Matt Reidy and Thomas Lee
Fourth Official: Tristan Harris
APIA Leichhardt Tigers FC: 92. NORVAL Ryan, 2.MILLGATE Nathan, 7. O’CONNELL Sean (10. PARISI Franco 8’), 8. BIZCO Corey, 14. ELASI Nathan (11. MURRAY Jordan 65’),15. STUDMAN Brett (3.FSADNI Matthew 8’), 16.SYMONS Sean, 18. UCCHINIO Adrian, 20.SEKIYA Tasuka, 21.MUATA-MARLOW Themba, 23. OLSEN Nicholas.
Substitutes not used: 19. HASEGAWA Kenta, 1. LIBAND Tonu,
Yellow Cards: N/A
Red Cards: N/A
Bonnyrigg White Eagles: 1. CHRONOPOULOS James, 3. VRANKOVIC David, 4. ROBINSON Michael, 5. JENNER Adam (2. MANSUETO Alexander 73’), 7. KONDEK Greg (19. PETERSON Aaron 20’), 9. YOUNIS Robbie (6. ZONJIC Nikola, 90’), 10. KOKADO Yuta, 15. MILLER Ray, 16. GALLOWAY Sam 17. GIL, Mun-Soo, 21. CHUN Ken
Substitutes not used: 14. MCDONALD Taylor,, 20. SAVICIC Stevan.
Yellow cards: 5. JENNER Adam 15’, 21. CHUN Ken 58’,15.MILLER Ray 84’ 90’
Red cards: 15. MILLER Ray 90’
Player Ratings
3- Sam Galloway (BWE)
2- Aaron Peterson (BWE)
1- Tasuka Sekiya (APIA)
Rockdale and Bonnyrigg share the spoils
PlayStation 4 National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s 2015 Champions’ Bonnyrigg White Eagles have fought back from a two goal deficit with only 10 men on the park to secure a 2-2 draw with Rockadale City Suns.
Rockdale seemed set for a round one victory at their Ilinden Sports Centre home until a spirited fightback from Brian Brown’s Bonnyrigg outfit.
Alex Canak and Blake Riccito were straight to business for the Suns as the pair put Bonnyrigg keeper James Chronopoulos under pressure after only five minutes.
In the ninth minute it was Canak, a former White Eagle, who capitalised on a Chronopoulos error to knock home the ball for a 1-0 Rockdale lead.
Bonnyrigg felt they had levelled the game in the 18th minute when Robbie Younis found the net.
The celebrations didn’t last long with the linesman’s flag ruling the burly striker offside.
Bonnyrigg were slowly working their way into the match and several long range efforts ensued.
Brave goalkeeping from Rockdale’s David Bradesevic ensured the home side maintained their lead when he saved a headed effort from Robbie Younis.
Rockdale doubled their lead in the 37th minute through Hristijan Tanoski when the marksman clinically finished a Canak cross on the back post.
The Suns were looking good for their lead until the 42 minute when Hesketh was adjudged to have handled the ball in the area.
Up stepped Younis to reduce the deficit from the spot.
It was scant justice for the Suns.
However, it again proved you can never rule the White Eagles out of the mix as the half-time break arrived with the match just starting to simmer nicely.
Bonnyrigg came out firing in the second period with David Vrankovic and Younis peppering Bradesevic in the Rockdale net.
The Suns looked markedly lethargic on the resumption but the Bonnyrigg’s poor shooting kept the game in the hands of the home team.
Bonnyrigg looked down and out when Nikola Zonjic was sent off after he received a second caution on the hour mark.
Neat one-two passes between Blake Ricciuto, Toufic Alameddine and Alex Urosevski forced Chronopoulos into save after save.
Rockdale’s good work was undone six minutes from time when Hesketh took down Michael Robinson in the box.
Robbie Younis stepped up to level the game from the penalty spot
Half chances came and went with no further addition to the score as the spoils were shared
The result left both coaches somewhat perplexed.
“Our first 15-20 minutes, I though was exceptional and had we gone into the break 2-nil up it changes the dynamic of the team talk,” Rockdale assistant coach Matt Ribarovski said.
“Conceding a cheap penalty just before the break always hurts and changes things.
“The feeling is we lost two points as opposed to gaining one.
“There were a few heavy legs out there but overall we’re pleased with the boys who turned up and played today. If we can keep this going we won’t have too much to complain about.”
White Eagles coach Brian Brown added: “I thought it was a good game for the spectators although we didn’t turn up to play until 15-minutes into the first half to be honest”.
“When we got going I felt the boys were outstanding and to come back from two down and playing with 10-men I have to give our guys credit.
“It was a really open game and the keepers did extremely well. To go away with a point under the circumstances isn’t too bad.”
Match Stats
Rockdale City Suns 2 (Canak 9’, Tanoski 37’ )
Bonnyrigg White Eagles 2 (Younis 42’ pen, 84’ pen )
Sunday, March 13 2016
Ilinden Sports Centre, Rockdale
Referee: Steven Lucas
Assistant Referees: Raymond Osborne & Janush Adabjou
Fourth Official: Sam Grasso
Rockdale City Suns: 1. BRADASEVIC David, 2. PETKOVSKI Daniel, 3. HESKETH Steven, 5. REID Paul (18. DASCAL David 85’), 6. RICCIUTO Blake, 8. CANAK Alex, 10. MAKRILLOS Peter (7. UROSEVSKI Alex 54’), 11. TANOSKI Hristijan (9. MACALLISTER Dylan 86’), 15. PETRILLO Nick, 16. SAVOR Isaac, 17. ALAMEDDINE Toufic
Substitutes Not Used: 12. EL HAFIANE Idriss, 22. BAZI Andrew
Yellow Cards: 3. HESKETH Steven 32’, 2. PETKOVSKI Daniel 56’, 11. TANOSKI Hristijan 68’, 5. REID Paul 80’, 6. RICCIUTO Blake 88’
Red Cards:
Bonnyrigg White Eagles: 1. CHRONOPOULOS James, 3. VRANKOVIC David, 4. ROBINSON Michael, 6. ZONJIC Nikola, 7. KONDEK Gregory (19. PETERSON Aaron 66’), 9. YOUNIS Robert, 10. KOKADO Yuta (5. JENNER Adam 66’), 15. MILLER Raymond, 16. GALLAWAY Samuel (2. MANSUETO Alexander 90+2’), 17. GIL Mun-Soo, 21. CHUN B0-Hyun
Substitutes Not Used: 13. MCKENZIE James, SAVICIC Stevan
Yellow Cards: 15. MILLER Raymond 73’, 4. ROBINSON Michael 76’, 6.ZONJIC Nikola 19’, 60’
Red Cards: 6. ZONJIC Nikola 60’
Man of the Match
3 – Alex Canak (RCS)
2 – Robbie Younis (BWE)
1 – Blake Ricciuto (RCS)
-By Micky Brock
CLUB FOCUS: BONNYRIGG WHITE EAGLES
There will be a slight change of the guard for the PlayStation®4 National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s champions.
The Bonnyrigg White Eagles bid adieu to premiership captain Chris Tadrosse in the best possible way with a grand final win against Blacktown City, and he was joined in the outgoing list by Ben Spruce, Dylan Fox and Tynan Diaz.
“They’re four stalwarts of the team,” coach Brian Brown said.
“We signed Michael Robinson from Wollongong, Greg Kondek from Spartans and Ken Chun from Thailand and now we’ve picked up Sam Gallaway from the [Western Sydney] Wanderers senior squad.
While the outs are big ones, the players retained does not make for bad reading for the reigning champions.
Goalscorer supreme Robbie Younis returns, while Ray Miller, Aaron Peterson, Nikola Zonjic and imports Yuta Kokado and Mun-soo Gil are all back to help Brown defend their crown.
Brown admitted he was concerned with how he would plug the gap of the players gone, even with those he has brought in, but has been pleasantly surprised by how it has all come together in pre-season.
“The ones that have come in have been our best players in the pre-season games,” he said.
“I’m really happy with the way we’re tracking … even if we have had a few little niggly injuries and stuff.”
As usual with ‘Bomber’ Brown, the White Eagles will be out to win everything they play in.
“The expectation this year is to win everything we compete in, but I think the standard of competition and standard of coaching and players is improving all the time,” he said.
“I think it’s going to be tough, not unlike any other year but I’m really confident.
“We’ve got a few young boys coming through. Taylor McDonald made his debut in last season’s grand final and we’ve got another lad from our under-18 side called Hayden Tucker and he’s got a lot of potential.”
And with the season final upon us, and even at 58 Brown is relishing the dawn of a new season and a new challenge.
“It is always an exciting time,” Brown said.
“I’m just really looking forward to playing games for points again and the challenge that comes with it.”
PLAYER TO WATCH: Robbie Younis
Anyone who has scored in excess of 70 games in 101 appearances needs to be watched and watched closely. Robbie Younis fired the White Eagles to glory last season and his predatory instinct and overall ability to bring his team-mates into the game is second to none and will be crucial to the club’s chances of success once again.
SQUAD: James Chronopoulos, Bo Hyun Chun, Jake Douglas, Samuel Gallaway, Mun-Soo Gil, Adam Jenner, Yuta Kokado, Gregory Kondek, Alexander Mansueto, Taylor McDonald, James Mckenzie, Raymond Miller, Aaron Peterson, Michael Robinson, Hayden Tucker, David Vrankovic, Robert Younis, Nikola Zonjic