Match Report 23 June 2007

JUN

24

The second half of the season opened with perfect conditions for football. Blue skies and no cloud cover. The warm rays of the winter sun beamed down on Neill Road to lure Strathalbyn down the South Eastern Freeway to the home of FC Adelaide. It was a grudge match for the Reserves, after losing its only game thus far to this very side, and a chance for the First Team to continue the momentum gained after a solid performance in the round prior. Here is how it all unfolded….

Reserves Match Report

As the curtain was raised on the return leg of this fixture, FC Adelaide came out eager to settle the score from Round 1. A new face was visible in defence as yours truly stepped up in search of an education from ‘Baby Bird’ and Co. in the back line. Damian ‘D-Train’ Simpson returned in all his tanned glory, fresh from spending time and Baht in Thailand and delivered a solid performance. FC Adelaide controlled the play and dominated the first twenty minutes however it was Strath who had the first shot on target when an unmarked man received the ball outside the box and just cleared the crossbar. Adelaide responded by increasing the tempo and utilizing their superior ball skills. Our passing game was spot on with lots of play on the deck through the back lines, and up the midfield in search of the tall timber up front. The movement on and off the ball finally paid off as Billy “It’s Not Cool” Tsekouras opened our account. A scramble in the box at the end of a hard fought half hour of football finished with Not Cool putting the score at 1-0. The lads remained composed thanks to Baby Bird’s encouragement and some safe play in the centre of the park between Kaka and Sharokh. Kaka had a lot riding on this game, considering he was one half of the duo that coughed up what was a sure victory in the away leg. Fortunately he was redeemed with another excellent performance in the midfield. Syed “The Smiling Assassin” patrolled the left wing like a prison warden, not letting the ball out of his sight and Nick “The Kid” Cosma gelled well with Billy, his new sparring partner up front. The two combined beautifully with some lovely one-twos, sharing the ball with the wingers. Bobby “Ko!Re!Ah!” Kym ran his heart out yet again and FCA’s whole attacking structure were now holding Strath’s defence to ransom. It was not long before “Baby Bird” pumped in a lovely ball from the middle of the park, onto Billy’s head and into the back of the net. 2-0. Zak played an important role in the middle of defence and picked his targets for some well placed passes to propel us even further forward. Milne the News Hen, with a rush of blood to the head, also chimed in with a long range effort that was only centimetres from bouncing over the head of the keeper but it wasn’t to be. After the break, the lads had settled ever so slightly but remained conscious of the danger of letting a good lead slip. The attack intensified. Milney was wide open to accept a superb lay-off from “the Kid” and attempted a Steven Gerrard special from outside the 18 yard box that sprayed wide of the goalmouth. Syed left stars in Strath’s eyes and they could only watch on in awe as he dribbled his way through their defence time and time again. Not long into the half, Billy did the unthinkable and snared a cool hat-trick to make it 3-0. Strath created some opportunities of their own but the FCA defence held firm to eliminate any threats early. Tass “The Angry Dinosaur” Paltos was left with little to do in goal and this gave him the time to reflect on how to deal with his anger problem. The goal fest continued with Paul Kaka crunching his way through a scrap in the 6 yard box to force the ball over the line to make it 4-0. Cosi “The Kid” soon after used his head, literally, with a cracking header at the mid-point of the half to make it 5-0. Daniel Demouzethis on his return from an extended injury break had no trouble readjusting to the new team structure and pulled off several shots. One cracking shot in particular was unlucky not to find the back of the net when it rattled the crossbar. Shane “Spiro” Webster also had his share of the ball and delivered with some fancy footwork to keep the attack going. Baby Bird chirped in with a quick flap of the wings to contribute the sixth and final goal. 6-0. In the dying minutes, the referee Peter “the Pimp” Katsambis called for a penalty. The Pimp stamped his authority on the game in typical fashion, reprimanding a Strath player for trying to take the law into his own hands by picking up the ball in the belief he deserved a free kick. The Pimp was having none of that and proved he had not been affected by his recent sojourn to the Gold Coast. “Tommy Guns” was given the opportunity to convert from the spot. He lined up his penalty and fired a shot at goal but the Strath keeper made a diving save to stop it crossing the line, the whistle blowing moments later.

THE BOTTOM LINE: A good way to open the second half of the year. 9 wins straight with still plenty of gas left in the tank. This team remains humble but at the same time is aware of the prize that could be theirs if they continue to work as hard as they have been. For the first time this season we do not have the competition’s highest goal difference after Iggie’s beat Comets 16-0 over the weekend. A high conversion of scoring opportunities will be needed in the next rounds to maintain the buffer we have enjoyed over the first half of the season.

First Team Match Report

The First Team opened the season with a victory in the away leg of this fixture. They saw this game as a good way to wipe the slate clean on the first half of the season and start putting some runs on the board for the charge to the end of the year. Last week’s result served as a confidence booster however the team were looking very relaxed from kick-off and found themselves quickly under pressure. After 10 minutes FCA found themselves 1-0 down when an unlucky fumble inside the box led to the ball falling at a Strath player’s feet. The supporters were nervous and from their expression, so too were the players. The defence tightened. Soteriou, Geezer, Selinis and Keg all played hard yet fair. Geezer played some lovely touches through the middle of the park and the favour was returned soon after, giving Geezer an opportunity for a cross which, at some point in the air turned into a shot. It was reined by the keeper, but only just. The ball was stuck to Ferrrrrnando’s feet in the midfield and he combined with the Georgiou double of Super Stevie and The Gentleman to push the ball toward our attack. Mr. Volley Fournakos had some good opportunities and The Spartan seemed to be playing deeper, content to try and set up his team-mates rather than go for the glory shot. Free Kick Falidis returned to the park with some clever touches and it seemed as though we were destined to peg one back. Instead, Strath increased their lead to go 2-0 up and panic set in. At the half, it was rumoured that coach Ziatas made use of a certain four letter expletive a whopping 57 times. FCA could not afford to lose this game; the coaching panel knew it and the supporters knew it. After the 40th @#%! the players were getting the picture. This game was crucial and the football that had been played in the first half was less than ordinary. As they had done in the past, the lads lifted. The intensity increased, the hunger grew stronger and you could smell a comeback. The ball was kept to the deck and passes were to the feet. FCA could not afford to lose possession. A few shots were made but Kieran was also forced to make a few saves so it was definitely not all one-way traffic. Falidis tried a free-kick that deflected and looked to threaten the goal but the ball sailed just wide. G had a couple of attempts from outside the 18 yard box only to see them cleared by the flood that was Strath’s defence. The referee obviously didn’t like the G’s aftershave that day, booking him for what appeared to be a clean challenge and refusing to talk to him for the rest of the afternoon. Incidents like these served to increase FCA’s hunger at the ball. Time was running out and frustration was mounting on the sidelines until… The Rezarection. A silky smooth touch off Reza’s boot floated into the box. There was a scramble for the ball and The Gentleman stood tall to deliver with a low drive past a sea of legs and the keeper. 2-1. The Gentleman collected the ball quickly from the back of the net. It was a sign of the urgency to get a result in a game crucial to the rest of the season. Several more decisions went against FC Adelaide and the supporters became quite vocal. Every minute without the ball was a minute lost. FCA applied plenty of pressure in the attack and forced a few corners but no player was able to convert. Keg’s head would have been on the end of one cross in front of goal if he had only had an inch more of neck. The ball spilled to the defence and “Mr. Dependable” Selinis gathered pace and surged forward into a quick one-two on the right wing. As the ball was returned to him a few quick strides found him just outside the 18 yard box. He fancied his chances and went for goal. Bang! Bottom left corner. 2-2. A loss no longer threatened but all knew that a draw would not be good enough today. Tense supporters cried “one more, one more” trying to spur the players that extra inch. Time was against us in the end and only one point was gained after the 90 minutes.

THE BOTTOM LINE: There was no spark in the opening term. There was no voice and first touches were shaky. You cannot deny the heart shown to claw back into the game and draw level but from a statistical basis Strathalbyn should have been a team we conquered on the day. As coach Ziatis told the team, games will not be simply given to us. We need to want to win and fight to do so. Going forward it is important for the team to retain focus and the supporters to keep the faith.

By Jonathan Milne

P.S. Apologies to Sharokh’s Mum for spelling his name with a Shoe in previous weeks.