Nikas brilliance downs Strikers

Cometh the man, cometh the hour, Sydney United 58 have once again been rescued by the individual brilliance of Panny Nikas to gift the Reds a home tie in next weekend’s PlayStation 4 NPL 2016 Grand Final against the Edgeworth Eagles.

The charismatic talisman stepped up and scored two goals in the second half after the Strikers hit the lead in the 36th minute courtesy of a Trent Clulow header in the opening half.

It came off the back of a memorable hat-trick by Nikas last weekend when Sydney United 58 downed Adelaide City 5-4 but once again raised the discussion why the star attacker has not been snapped up by Hyundai A-League club for the new season.

The game had a number of twists and turns as both teams showed their brilliance having provided some well-structured play throughout the course of the game.

The action kicked off as early as the second minute when Nikas hit a free-kick that sailed well over the bar after Strikers hard-man Greg Henslee fouled Glenn Trifiro just outside the box.

Henslee was then involved in the thick of the action as the big defender had the visitors first chance but he skewed his shot well over the bar in the 8th minute.

The home side thought they had their first goal on the eleven-minute mark and it was the deadly combination of Nikas and Trifiro who rallied, but the latter seeing his shot shade just wide of the post.

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