Let’s check out the mini reviews from Round 20 of the National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s competition.
Bulls FC Academy 1 v Sydney FC 1 @ Sydney United Sports Centre
The Bulls FC Academy earned a much-needed point in the fight for survival after a dramatic 1-1 draw with Sydney FC at the Sydney United Sports Centre on Saturday Afternoon.
After a rather uneventful start to the game, it was the Sky Blues who drew first blood after a costly mistake from Alex Robinson gave Oscar Fryer the opener.
The Bulls wasted no time in striking back when Jordan Ivancic played Sunday Yona through, with the striker calmly slotting his chance past Adam Pavlesic.
It was a frustrating second half for both teams, with late-game fatigue playing a significant factor that left the final result in a deadlock.
Sutherland Sharks 0 v Rockdale Ilinden 1 @ Seymour Shaw
In what was one of the most intense local derbies for quite some time, Rockdale Ilinden defeated the Sutherland Sharks 1-0 thanks to a Bai Antoniou free-kick as the boys and red and black came out 1-0 victors albeit playing the majority of the match with ten-men at a spicy Saturday evening clash at Seymour Shaw.
Ilinden’s star captain Alec Urosevski, who was celebrating his 200th match for the club, saw his milestone match end in unfortunate circumstances after he was shown his second yellow of the match late in the first-half.
Rockdale coach Paul Dee was also shown his marching orders, but it was Antoniou, an ex-Shark, who broke his former club’s heart with a well-taken free kick in the second half that gave his side the three precious points.
Marconi Stallions 1 v APIA Leichhardt 1 @ Marconi Stadium
Marconi Stallions and arch-rivals APIA Leichhardt shared the spoils in a thrilling 1-1 draw in Round 20 of the National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s competition.
In the longest running derby in football in Australia, sometimes colloquially known as the Italian Derby, both teams showed why they are at the top of the table.
After a scoreless first half, both goals were from errors in the second half. Jordan Swibel put Marconi ahead before a late equaliser from Jack Stewart gave APIA Leichhardt a well deserved point.
Mt Druitt Town Rangers 0 v Blacktown City 2 @ Popondetta Park
It may have come late but Blacktown City scored two late goals to finish off local rivals Mt Druitt Town Rangers with a hard-fought 2-0 victory at Popondetta Park on a chilly Saturday evening in Sydney’s West.
City’s top scorer Jak O’Brien headed home from a superb cross before a very late strike from Mario Shabow saw Mark Crittenden’s men retain the Mayoral Cup for 2023.
Western Sydney Wanderers 2 v Wollongong Wolves 2 @ Wanderers Football Park
Western Sydney Wanderers and Wollongong Wolves played out a fast-paced 2-2 draw at Wanderers Football Park on Saturday night.
The relegation threatened hosts found themselves 2-0 up by the 37th minute through Ariath Piol and Zachary Sapsford.
Alex Masciovecchio gave the Wolves some hope heading into halftime with his goal in the final exchanges of the first period.
Lachlan Scott nailed in a late penalty to get Wollongong back on level terms but there wasn’t enough time for the team to go on and find a winner.
Manly United 2 v Sydney United 58 1 @ Cromer Park
A couple of Seiya Kambayashi set-pieces saw Manly United overcome Sydney United 58 2-1 in a hotly contested battle on a chilly night at Cromer Park on Saturday night.
Kambayashi opened the scoring with another spectacular set-piece inside 20 minutes, before Chris Payne equalised at his old home six minutes later.
In a hard-fought second-half, the matchwinner arrived inside the final ten minutes, as a Kambayashi corner curled all the way into the back of the net.
Much to the delight of the home fans, Manly held on to a result that saw them snap a run of three matches without victory.
Central Coast Mariners 4 v NWS Spirit FC 2 @ Pluim Park
It was the Lachlan Bayliss show at Pluim Park on Sunday as the Central Coast Mariners defeated NWS Spirit 4-2 in the NPL NSW Men's First Grade Competition.
Bayliss was the architect for the opening two goals to Aydan Hammond and Goerge Daniel either side of the half time break.
Spirit fought their way back into the contest through two goalkeeping mistakes to Jack Warshawsky. It looked as though the visitors were going to be the team to leave victorious after a dominant spell, but two quick-fire goals to Lachie Bayliss in the 72nd the 73rd minute saw the home side leave Pluim Park with a crucial three points.
Sydney Olympic 0 v St George City 0 @ Belmore Sports Ground
Sydney Olympic and St George City have drawn 0-0 in a tense encounter at Belmore Sports Ground.
Both sides had opportunities to score off a mixture of attacking product, but neither side could find a way through.
It was the defensive structures and individuals that shone in a match that was void of significant opportunities, bar one to St George City’s striker Marley Peterson in the 81st minute.
MEN'S LADDER ROUND 20
— NPL New South Wales (@NPLNSW) June 20, 2023
Our top three now sit level on 41 points apiece (@apialeichhardt with a game in hand), while @SydneyOlympicFC slip into the bottom four for the first time this season.#NPLNSW #NPLMNSW pic.twitter.com/IB1v8WEqLg