City record their first road win, Warriors beat Strikers in fiery meeting, Hingston double guides Rangers over Knights and South and Zebras fight out a top of the table stale mate in Round 16 of the Victory League.
Launceston City recorded their first win on the road in the Victory League, holding on down at Lightwood Park.
Launceston City won just their second Victory League match and their first away game.
It was an arm wrestle between two teams desperate for points, Trent Pearce had Kingborough’s best chance early in the first half but David Smith on debut in between the sticks tipped it clear to deny a fourth minute opener.
City’s only real chance in the first half was just beyond the half hour mark, where midfielder Toby Omenihu fired wide to the right.
Shortly after the restart, City broke the deadlock; Captain Nathan Bartlett spotted Kingborough’s Andrew Duncan off his line and sent it sailing in over the keeper and into the net.
In the 71st Kingborough went agonizingly close to restoring parity when Lewis Verdouw broke down the right and cut it across to striker Danny Cowen, who fired wide from close range.
City made the hosts pay on 80 minutes, Andy Compagne whipped a ball across from the right to Gukhyeon Kim, who headed a firm shot into the left upright, it bounced back and substitute Adam Hedge scuffed it into his own net as he attempted to clear.
Three minutes later Lions found life as they clutched one back with Verdouw cutting back for Cowen to tap in at back post.
Kingborough pushed hard but couldn’t equalize, as City hold on to claim their second win for the season and their first ever-away victory.
Olympia FC Warriors made it two wins at Valley Road this season with a gutsy win in a fiery affair against Devonport.
Olympia FC Warriors repeated their heroics from earlier in the season and took all three points away from Valley Road.
It was a close encounter between the pair with a fiery second half, in which both teams were reduced to ten men.
Olympia opened the scoring in the 33rd minute, Warren Wadawu cut in from the left win and laid a pass across to Emmanuel Tsakiris, who tapped home from close range.
Right on the cusp of half time, Olympia added another with Alex Holmes netting his fourth goal in three weeks. The tall Centre-Back rose high from a corner and nodded in a nicely weighted Alex Ralph cross.
Devonport returned from half time with positivity and pinched one back early, with defender Corey Vickers heading home from close range in the 50th minute.
Vickers involvement didn’t end in the goal, nine minutes later the defender was shown red along with Olympia FC Warriors’ Lachlan Nichols.
Vickers caught Wadawu with a late studs up tackle and Nichols remonstrated with the pair coming to blows. Referee Brenton Kopra sent both off the field and both teams were reduced to ten men for the remainder of the clash.
In the dying moments there were chances both ways as Devonport pushed hard for an equalizer but the visitors held on for a memorable win.
Northern Rangers came from behind to beat the Knights at NTCA.
Glenorchy Knights again tested the Rangers but were overrun with two second half goals from Rangers Captain Todd Hingston guiding the home side to victory.
It was an action packed start with a goal a piece inside ten minutes, Mynonge Kamba opened for the underdogs, getting them off to a flier with an early goal before Nick Lanau-atkinson leveled from a low Shane Brassington cross.
Todd Hingston proved to be the hero for the Rangers in the second half, finishing two goals to see the northerners win 3-1.
South Hobart and Tilford Zebras fought out a top of the table 0-0 stalemate to all but kill the Zebras title hopes.
In a do-or-die match for the Zebras, South Hobart and Tilford Zebras fought out an entertaining 0-0 draw, making history with the first 0-0 draw in the Victory League’s short history.
It was a thrilling contest that ebbed and flowed and finished with drama, with an 89th minute dismissal that could see the ladder leaders without their first choice keeper for their Westfield FFA Cup Round of 32 match.
Although it was a goalless game it was anything but dull, it was a cagey clash with two fine defences on show, Russell Courtney starred at the back for the Zebras and South Hobart’s defence of Matt Lewis, Liam Scott and Hugh Ludford restricted Alex Leszczynski’s influence, as neither side found the back of the net in an arm wrestle at Darcy Street.
Brayden Mann looked likely to open the scoring in the 17th minute but a last ditch tackle from Kurt Engels kept it level. The Engels were involved at both ends as just four minutes later Ethan Engels almost gave Zebras an advantage, if not for South Hobart’s keeper Kane Pierce, who tipped wide the dangerous effort on goal.
A manic minute of goalmouth action in the 52nd minute very nearly produced the Zebras the goal they had been searching for, with Ethan Engels firing in a volley that was saved well by Pierce. Before the follow up produced two dangerous balls across the box that flew wide of Zebras strikers at back post, before South Hobart could eventually clear.
Andy Brennan was the most likely avenue for South Hobart and he went close in the 65th minute, bursting wide only to strike across the face.
In the 68th minute, Zebras had the best chance of the game, with Adam McKeown firing off a bullet of a volley at goal from a long Dwayne Walsh cross, but the Zebras striker picked out the South Hobart keeper to perfection and guided it straight into his arms.
In the 87th minute, two efforts saved South Hobart from conceding, with Pierce punching clear a dangerous corner before Andrew Clark rattled off a shot that was blocked on the line by South Vice-Captain Liam Scott.
In the dying stages, disaster struck for South Hobart, losing their keeper Pierce for verbal in the 89th minute, the hosts made a quick change to bring on back up keeper Mark Moncur for the final moments. Ken Morton’s men held on to shut out the desperate late efforts of Tilford Zebras to snare a win in their pursuit for the title.
The 0-0 draw was not what the Zebras needed, with the gap between the top two teams remaining at six points, making pinching the title a very difficult task for the Hobart side. The result did however do a favour for Olympia though, who now join Zebras at six points adrift, with a showdown with the ladder leaders in Round 20.
The late red card was Pierce’s second for the season, which means a minimum two game suspension, which could see him miss South Hobart’s Westfield FFA Cup match against Tuggeranong United next week.
Click here for more news from Football Federation Tasmania.