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Olympic stunned by clinical Sky Blues

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It was a hard-fought battle at Belmore Sports Ground on Friday night between Sydney Olympic and Sydney FC, with the young Sky Blues coming away with a shock 3-2 victory over last year’s Premiers and Champions.

Sydney FC were clinical in their execution, with Benjamin Koop, Luke Ivanovic and Joel King all scoring their goals through their fast-paced attack, while Olympic struggled to convert their chances, with Alex Sanchez’s double not enough to match the energetic young Sky Blues.

The first goal came after just ten minutes for the visitors, making the most of a counter attack opportunity.

Olympic skipper Jason Madonis was brought down at half way and while Olympic called for the free kick, Sydney FC kicked into gear on the counter.

Marco Tilio curled an impressive cross into Koop who sent his header powerfully into the back of the net to open scoring.

Sydney Olympic retaliated quickly, equalising just one minute later.

Tom Whiteside sent the ball to Niko Tsattalios who flicked the ball on to Sanchez in a dangerous position.

The Spaniard didn’t hesitate, striking the ball straight past Sydney FC custodian Thomas Howard-Belle to level the game.

Sydney FC took it to two in the 50th minute, with Luke Ivanovic making his way on to the scoreboard.

Ivanovic positioned himself well to receive an overhead ball and strike it into the back of the net.

The visitors found their third in the 55th minute as Hamish Lamberton passed off to King sitting on the 18-yard box, who hit a powerful ball out of reach of Henderson.

Olympic started clawing their way back into the game in the 70th minute, again through Sanchez who netted his ninth for the NPL NSW Men’s campaign.

The hosts dominated the last quarter of the game, creating an abundance of opportunities as they searched for the equaliser.

New recruit Peter Kekeris, signed from the Central Coast Mariners, came close in the 78th minute, curling an impressive shot on target to be saved by Howard-Belle.

They came painfully close in the 81st minute, when Jack Stewart’s shot hit the inside of the crossbar before bouncing on the line and coming back into play.

It was corner after corner for Sydney Olympic as they continued to look for a third right up to the final whistle in what was becoming an increasingly physical game, but the youngsters kept hold of their lead, finishing the game with a 3-2 victory.

Sydney FC coach Jim Van Weeren was impressed with the performance of his young players.

“They [Sydney Olympic] asked a look of good questions from us.

“Fair play to our young boys who came on and stood up and rode the last bit of the game out.

“The boys showed tonight that when they’re on and they can convert their chances then they can win games.”

Olympic coach Abbas Saad was disappointed with the result considered the number of opportunities his team created.

“They had three shots and three goals, we had 30 shots and two goals.

“I’ve never seen anything like it.

“We’ve had a great run in the last month.

“We didn’t play badly today…we’ve just got to convert the chances that we create.”

Match Stats

Sydney Olympic FC 2 (Alex Sanchez 11’, 70’)

Sydney FC 3 (Benjamin Koop 10’, Ivanovic 50’, King 55’)

Friday 17th May, 2019

Belmore Sports Ground

Referee: Craig Fisher

Assistant referees: J. Bell, J. Bitas

Fourth official: R. Mattei

Sydney Olympic FC: 1. Paul Henderson, 2. Thomas Whiteside, 4. Mitchell Stamatellis, 6. Nikola Kuleski (44. Peter Kekeris), 7. Will Angel, 8. Jason Madonis (17. Jack Stewart), 9. Radovan Pavicevic (22. Michael Gaitatzis,), 11. Jinya An, 12. Zachary Mackenzie, 14. Alex Sanchez, 33. Niko Tsattalios

Substitutes Not Used: 19. Darcy Burgess, 20. Eze Consoni,

Yellow Cards: Jinya An, William Angel, Mitchell Stamatellis

Red Cards: Nil

Sydney FC: 1. Thomas Howard-Belle, 3. Benjamin Van Meurs, 5. Patrick Scibilio, 7. Jerry Skotadis, 8. Joel King (14. Thomas Fay), 9. Hamish Lamberton, 10. Marco Tilio, 11. Luke Ivanovic (12. Giuseppe Tilio), 15. Ryan Teague, 16. Paolo Bonanni, 18. Benjamin Koop

Substitutes Not Used: 20. David Malishev, 24. Jake Hollman

Yellow Cards:  Hamish Lamberton, Thomas Howard-Belle

Red Cards: Nil

Player Ratings

3 – Joel King (SFC)

2 – Alex Sanchez (SO)

1 – Ryan Teague (SFC)

Written by Madeline Riley

@madelineriley23

 

Lokolingoy haunts Sky Blues with debut Sharks goal

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A last gasp goal from new recruit Charles Lokolingoy has stunned his former side to help Sutherland Sharks to a 1-1 draw against Sydney FC at Seymour Shaw on Saturday.

It was the former Sydney FC ace’s debut match in Sharks colours after only joining the club this week and what a maiden performance it was.

The match was a story of missed opportunities for the home side but Lokolingoy’s strike helped the NPL NSW Men’s cellar dwellers to a vital point.

For Sydney FC, it was almost the perfect game plan.

Substitute Hamish Lamberton nodded home a goal to get them ahead in the 82nd minute but they weren’t able to hold on for the three points, leaving them enough to work for for next week.

Lokolingoy and the Sharks started well with a chance early in the contest from a direct ball.

The striker thrashed the effort wide.

The striker was bright on the ball, burst into the box again on the eighth minute but Lokolingoy was denied by a superb sliding challenge from Patrick Scibilio as the goal was left open.

Down the other end, it was another A-League product, Luke Ivanovic, for Sydney FC that had the Sky Blues first chance. He pushed past a defender, linked with Jerry Skotadis before they found Marco Tilio for the shot.

Ivanovic followed it up with a second effort from a diagonal ball that the striker couldn’t fashion a proper chance from. Sydney FC looked for the direct route to prise open the compact Sharks defence.

Much of the chances in the first half fell to Sutherland Sharks. Matteo Poljak blazed a cutback over, followed up by Raul Romero’s header denied by the flag, as the teams fought for a vital three points tonight.

Lokolingoy had a final pair of chances in the half as he was played through by Jordan Morfitis but shot right at Sydney’s Thomas Heward-Belle then in injury time, he bent an effort wide, as the game paused at 0-0.

From the resumption, both sides looked to have a greater thrust in front of goal.

The Sharks worked Heward-Belle well just before the hour, as he made a reaction save to deny both Lokolingoy and Jeremy Cox.

In the 62nd minute, again Lokolingoy featured for the Sharks.

The striker turned provider as he put in a delightful ball for Morfitis, the attacker couldn’t bend his attempt on goal.

It was a game of few chances and most fell for the home side. Raul Romero clipped a ball into the path of Marc Warren, the veteran defender, who wound it to the back post but Lokolingoy couldn’t profit.

Sydney FC found the lead late into the contest. A well-timed ball that soared to the back post, found the head of substitute Hamish Lamberton, the striker made no mistake and headed home for 1-0 to the Sky Blues.

Pushing forward to find the equaliser, Sutherland thought they had struck gold with three minutes remaining.

Neat interplay opened up the space for substitute Juan Romero, slotted home but the flag was raised again.

The Sharks weren’t to be denied tonight. Again, Juan Romero pushed into the box, took it to the by-line, cut it back for Lokolingoy, who slotted home well, making it 1-1.

Romero continued to weave a spell on the Sydney FC defenders.

The impact substitute placed a ball perfectly on the head of Cox, the marksman couldn’t crane his neck and send the ball goal bound.

The home side finished the better of the two sides but couldn’t find the goal they needed, as the two sides were forced to share the points in a 1-1 draw tonight.

Speaking afterwards, Sharks boss Terry Palapanis reflected on a contest which reflected the story of the Sharks season.

“We create enough opportunities but I don’t know what it is that we cant put them away.

“A point is a point and we move onto next week.

“I was pleased with Charles. He hasn’t played 90 minutes for a while but crested chances and got a goal. I think there is plenty more of them to come from him.”

Sydney FC coach Jimmy Van Weeren remained positive despite the late equaliser as the young Sky Blues battled hard throughout the 90 minutes and matched it with their opponents.

“It’s tough to concede so late in the contest after we found a goal. I think that is one that got away tonight.

“There is definitely enough for us to work on as well following this game. We move onto next week where we look to be better.”

Match Stats

Sutherland Sharks FC 1 (Lokolingoy ‘89)

Sydney FC 1 (Lamberton ‘84)

Saturday, May 11 2019

Referee: K. Patterson

Assistant Referees: R. Osborne & M. Price

Fourth Official: H. Fenton-White

Sutherland Sharks FC: 3. WARREN Marc, 4. O’SHEA Patrick, 8. POLJAK Matteo, 9. COX Jeremy, 10. ROMEO Raul, 11. MORFITIS Jordan (7. ROMERO J ‘73), 12. BROWN Blair, 14. LOKOLINGOY Charles, 18. EVANS Mitchell (26. ALEKSIK ‘57), 19. SUTHERLAND Harry, 21. ERCAN Tarik (2. CHENG ‘87)

Substitutes not used: 25. CLARKSON Brodie, 38. TEMELKOVSKI James

Yellow cards: nil

Red cards: nil

Sydney FC: 1. HEWARD-BELLE Thomas, 3. VAN MEURS Benjamin, 4. MCGING Liam, 5. SCIBILIO Patrick, 7. SKOTADIS Jerry, 8. JOEL KING, 10. TILIO Marco, 11. IVANOVIC Luke, 15. TEAGUE Ryan (12. TILIO G ‘61), 17. TALBOT Callum  (6. VAN DER SAAG ‘45), 18. KOOP Benjamin (9. LAMBERTON ‘68)

Substitutes not used: 20. MALISHEV David, 24. HOLLYIAN Jake

Yellow cards: nil

Red cards: nil

Player Ratings

3 – Charles Lolokingoy (SS)

2 – Marc Warren (SS)

1 – Hamish Lamberton (SFC)

By National Premier Leagues reporter Justin Davies (@JustDavies90)

APIA too slick for Sky Blues

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Chris Payne helped APIA Leichhardt Tigers get back to winning form with two goals in their 3-1 win over Sydney FC on Saturday night.

Payne scored either side of halftime before setting up Franco Parisi for APIA’s third, while Benjamin Koop came on late to score a consolation goal for the hosts.

The Tigers were made to work for their win, with Ivan Necevski putting in a particularly impressive performance between the sticks.

Hamish Lamberton was a nuisance to the APIA defence early on and had a terrific chance to open the scoring when he was played clean through on goal, but the striker lost the ball between his feet and could only scuff a weak shot at Ivan Necevski.

Lamberton had another good opportunity shortly after, but Camil Abouchaaya was alive to the danger on the edge of the box and was quick to slide in and put the ball out for a corner.

Sydney FC might have threatened to break the deadlock but were left reeling when Chris Payne tapped the ball home for the Tigers just before the half hour mark.

Franco Parisi played a clever ball in for Joshua Symons on the left, who squared the ball to Payne for a simple finish and a 1-0 lead.

The hosts should have hit back a few minutes later; Lamberton latched onto a loose ball at the top of the box and tried to lob the onrushing Necevski, but the keeper stood up well and made a fantastic save to ensure his side went into the halftime break ahead.

Sydney FC began the second half with a free kick that Harry van der Saag sent dipping narrowly over the crossbar, but the hosts were dealt a sucker punch only a few minutes later.

Payne picked the ball up from Adrian Ucchino at the top of a crowded penalty area and drove across the goal, taking the keeper out before sliding a shot back inside the far post.

Jake Hollman looked as though he might hit back for Sydney midway through the second half when he arrived first to a low cross at the near post, but Necevski was perfectly positioned to block the shot and smother the ball before it rolled between his legs.

APIA turned up a gear as they tried to take their opponents out of the game with a third goal. Payne might have had a hat-trick, but Thomas Heward-Belle was able to scramble to palm away a spectacular looping volley from distance.

Payne went clean through on goal shortly after but unselfishingly squared the ball for Franco Parisi to tap into an empty net, giving the Tigers an unassailable lead.

Still, there was time for Benjamin Koop to score a consolation goal for the hosts; the substitute sliding in to poke home a clever ball from Marco Tilio.

Sydney FC’s Jimmy van Weeren was encouraged by his side’s performance despite the result, but said there’s work to be done before next week’s match against Sutherland Sharks.

“We had some good chances early on, in the first twenty minutes we had two good chances, and then we got done the other way,” he said.

“It’s disappointing, for the players it’s disappointing because at halftime they knew they’d played well and maybe didn’t deserve to be down, but that’s the reality of football, so a good learning moment again.

“Next week is another really good test for us, Sutherland have a really good squad but it’s another game we can win.”

“It was a really good performance from the boys,” said APIA’s John Calleja. “I could relax a little bit!

“They certainly followed instructions. Sydney are a great team. We knew they weren’t going to be easy. We went hard in the first half; we put pressure on them and really forced the issue.

“We’ve copped a bit of criticism in the last few weeks for our results and our performances, so we were pretty determined to go out and put in a good performance today.”

Match Stats

Sydney FC 1 (Koop 89’)

APIA Leichhardt FC 3 (Payne 28’, 52’, Parisi 85’)

Referee: T. Danaskos

Assistants: M. Price, J. Adabjou

Fourth official: I. Libri

4th May, 2019

Lambert Park, Leichhardt

Sydney FC: 1. HEWARD-BELLE Thomas, 6. VAN DER SAAG Harry, 4. MCGING Liam, 14. FAY Thomas, 5. SCIBILIO Patrick, 12. TILIO Giuseppe, 10. TILIO Marco, 9. LAMBERTON Hamish (18. KOOP Benjamin), 7. SKODATIS Jerry (24. HOLLMAN Jake), 16. BONANNI Paolo, 23. MCCARTHY Harry (15. TEAGUE Ryan)

Substitutes not used: 30. PABLESIC Adam, 17. TALBOT Callum

Yellow cards: Skodatis 35’

APIA Leichhardt Tigers FC: 5. AZZONE Nicholas, 7. DIAZ Tynan (17. GULISANO Samuel), 21. KOUTA Michael, 12. MCILHATTON Sam, 1. NECEVSKI Ivan, 10. PARISI Franco (14. HUGHES Lachlan), 6. PAYNE Christopher, 4. SYMONS Joshua, 16. SYMONS Sean (19. NASRABADI Dominion), 18. UCCHINO Adrian, 23. ABOUCHAAYA Camil

Substitutes not used: 22. TUXFORD Blake, 43. FIORESE Gian

Yellow cards: J. Symons 60’

Player Ratings

3: Christopher Payne (ALT)

2: Ivan Necevski (ALT)

1: Adrian Ucchino (ALT)

Sydney United 58 too strong for Sky Blues

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Peter Simonoski has continued his incredible return from injury scoring twice to  help Sydney United 58 to a 3-1 victory against Sydney FC at Lambert Park. 

Simonoski hit the back of the net on each side of the half-time break to take his tally to five goals in two games and lift United 58 to consecutive wins.

The victory catapults Sydney United to third on the ladder but tied on points with second placed APIA Leichhardt.

A lighting start from Sydney FC gave them the lead after only eight minutes but they were unable to maintain the intensity as the Sydney United took control of the contest.

A sensational solo strike from Uraguayan import Sebastian Gallegos gave them a 2-1 lead at the break before Simonoski wrapped up the win only seven minutes after the restart.

Blistering temperatures made for a sluggish start from both teams but it didn’t take long for the Young Sky Blues to find their grove and go on the ascendency.

A misread by United 58 goalkeeper Thomas Manos eight minutes in opened the door for Swibel to outrun the custodian after a lofted ball into the box before sliding the ball into an empty net.

The goal proved to be a wake up call for United 58 who bounced into action straight away and found their reply only six minutes later.

A looping corner kick into the box was tapped in at the far post by Simonoski on his second effort after an initial effort was denied by Howard-Belle.

It would be the start of what would turn into a busy day at the office for the Sydney FC goalkeeper with wave after wave of United 58 attacks forcing Heward-Belle into action.

Six minutes from the interval the visitors took the lead thanks to a moment of magic from Gallegos.

The Uruguayan received the ball 40 yards from goal and slalomed his way through two Sydney defenders before firing a rasping shot from just inside the penalty area into the back of the net.

The goal was the culmination of United 58’s dominance at the back end of the opening stanza and set them into the break on top on the scoreboard but also in control of the game.

It was a position which carried on after the interval as the Miro Vlastelica coached Reds raced out of the blocks and stretched their lead within eight minutes.

Jordan Roberts flashed a shot across the face of goal but Simonoski managed to slip away from his marker to redirect the ball into the back of the net.

At 3-1 Sydney United were well and truly dictating the game with the Sky Blues’ efforts to fight their way back proving easier said than done.

70 minutes in two clutch saves from Heward-Belle kept Sydney’s slim hopes alive as he punched away a dangerous corner before flicking a Simonoski effort over the bar with an acrobatic effort.

Gallegos thought he had won a penalty 72 minutes in after he went down in the box but his appeals proved fruitless.

Marco TIlio’s play on the left side of Sydney’s attack was creating headaches for United defence with the pacy and skilful midfielder weaving in and out of defenders but unable to deliver a cutting final pass.

A brilliant block from Fragogiannis denied a well hit shot from Hamish Lamberton as Sydney pushed late to snatch a draw.

Manos pulled off a courageous head first dive to punch away the ball off the feet of Lamberton in the 80th minute to deny a brilliant chance for Sydney FC.

An energetic final few minutes from the Young Sky Blues created a few half chances but they were unable to claw back the deficit as the Visitors clung on for a vital three points.

United 58 boss Vlastelica was very pleased with his side’s showing and singled out Simonoski’s showing in his second week back in the first team.

“It was a slow start but they fought their way back into the game and I think minus those opening few minutes we controlled the match.

“It was a good performance for the team and it’s always nice to claim back to back wins.

“Peter Simonoski has made a great return to the team with five goals in two weeks. He is still finding his feet but his contributions have been something we have been very happy with.”

Sydney FC coach Jim van Weeren said his side paid the price for lapses in concentration.

“We took the game to United 58 from the opening whistle and I was really pleased to see that from the players,” he said.

“Unfortunately we weren’t able to make the most of our early lead.

“We just a lacked a bit of discipline and Sydney United took full advantage. Overall it wasn’t the best performance from us but there was plenty of positives we can build from.

Match Stats

Sydney FC 1 (Swibel 9’)

Sydney United 58 3 (Simonoski 17’ 52’, Gallegos 39’)

Saturday, April 27 2019

At Lambert Park, Leichhardt

Referee: Craig Fisher

Sydney FC: 1. Thomas Howard-Belle, 3. Ben van Meurs, 4. Liam McGing, 5. Patrick Scibilio, 6. Harry van der Saag, 7. Jerry Skotadis, 10. Marco Tilio, 12. Giuseppe, Tilio (23. Harry McCarthy 74’), 13. Jordan Swibel (9. Hamish Lamberton 15’), 14. Thomas Fay (16. Poalo Bonanni 74′ ), 15. Ryan Teague

Substitutes not used: 30. Adam Pavlesic, 34. Aaron Milnaric

Yellow Cards: 

Red Cards: 

Sydney United 58 FC: 21. Thomas Manos. 3. Jordan Roberts (9. Patrick Antelmi),  5. Anthony Tomelic, 7. Peter Simonoski, 8. Matthew Sim, 10. Sebastian Gallegos (14. Nicholas Stavroulakis 86’), 11. Yianni Perkatis, 15. Tariq Maia, 17. Matthew Bilic, 18. Glenn Trifiro, 22. Yianni Fragogiannis

Substitutes not used: 1. Daniel Sadaka, 13. Sam Perre,

Yellow Cards:

Red Cards:

Player Ratings: 

3- Simonoski (SU58)

2-  Gallegos (SU58)

1-  Heward-Belle (SFC)

Important Information regarding Sydney FC v Sydney United 58

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Sydney FC, Sydney United 58 FC and Football NSW have agreed that all National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s fixtures at Lambert Park tomorrow will be played behind closed doors.

A number of exclusion zones have been implemented at Lambert Park due to remediation work required on the grandstand along the Marion Street side of ground.

As a consequence, Sydney FC, Sydney United 58 FC and Football NSW made the decision in the interests of spectator safety.

Strictly only players, Football NSW registered officials and media with accreditation will be permitted entry to the venue.

Football NSW VIP cards will not gain entry tomorrow.

The U20s (11am) and 1st Grade (1pm) game will be streamed live on Football NSW’s National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s Facebook and Football NSW YouTube social media channels.