Let’s check out the mini reviews from Round 23 of the National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s competition.
Central Coast Mariners 2 v Wollongong Wolves 2 @ Pluim Park
The points were shared at Pluim Park as the Central Coast Mariners and Wollongong Wolves played out an entertaining 2-2 draw on Saturday afternoon.
Central Coast Mariners had to fight back from conceding to get back in the contest. Bailey Brantman equalised for them in the 42nd minute before Jordan Segreto handed them the lead in the 67th but they were forced to share the points.
For Wollongong Wolves, it is a point which could have been all three. Takumi Ofuka swept home the opener in the 25th minute before they were pegged back. Jake Trew made it 2-2 with his back post finish and the visitors surged home but couldn’t find a winner.
NWS Spirit FC 0 v Sydney Olympic 0 @ Christie Park
NWS Spirit FC and Sydney Olympic shared the points on a blustery Saturday evening at Christie Park.
A match of few moments, neither side were unable to capitalize on their chances throughout the game having to settle for a share of the points.
APIA 2 v Western Sydney Wanderers 1 @ Lambert Park
APIA Leichhardt have defeated Western Sydney Wanderers 2-1 at Lambert Park in an exhilarating, intense affair to maintain their stronghold on the competition.
An early goal from Jack Armson after a beautiful through-ball from Joshua Symons opened the scoring, before the Wanderers equalised in the 25th minute with a clinical Marcus Younis strike.
The game featured heavy quality and intensity throughout, and it was the league leaders who secured the three points with a goalkeeping error after a cross from Jack Stewart seeing APIA go ahead and remain in front for the remainder of the match.
St George City 4 v Bulls FC Academy 1 @ Penshurst Park
After the last meeting between the two clubs ended in a 0-0 draw, St George City FA has taken the spoils in a 4-1 victory in a dominant performance in windy conditions at Penshurst Park on Saturday night.
Yerasimakis Petratos was at the centre of attention for the opening two goals. Breaking the deadlock, the forward slotted the ball into the back of the net after a lovely assist from Paolo Mitry- after he intercepted the ball in the middle of the field.
For the second goal, he began the passage of play that ended with Franco Maya crossing it to Nathan Roberts, making it 2-0 just before half-time in the 45th minute.
Adding to the Bulls’ woes, Paolo Mitry would make the score 3-0 in the 52nd minute before Preston Oritz put the nail in the coffin in the 82nd minute,
Not to be outdone by his teammates, Presley Ortiz buried the ball into the goal, scoring his third goal in consecutive matches.
After being scoreless for 86 minutes, the Bulls would manage to drag a goal back through Ali Auglah. Coming back into the team, Auglah curled the ball past the wall off a free kick on his left foot into the front post, making the score 4-1 to end the game.
Manly United 1 v Marconi 1 @ Cromer Park
A late Harry McCarthy equaliser inflicted a further dent upon Marconi’s Premiership title aspirations, as they shared the points with a fast-finishing Manly United in a 1-1 draw at Cromer Park on Saturday night.
Despite a game where the chances stacked up in favour of the home side, it appeared as though Marconi were on track for a tight victory thanks to Kyle Cimenti’s 27th-minute tap-in.
That was until Harry McCarthy popped up in the first minute of second-half stoppage time to bring the Cromer Park crowd to their feet and snatch a point for the Northern Beaches club.
It meant a second-straight draw that saw Marconi’s gap extend to ten points shy of ladder-leading APIA Leichhardt, while Manly bounced back to extend their buffer above the bottom two to seven points.
Rockdale Ilinden 1 v Mt Druitt Town Rangers 0 @ Ilinden Sports Centre
Rockdale Ilinden heaped more misery on Mt Druitt Town Rangers with a 1-0 victory thanks to a debut goal from Ian Ramsay on a sunny wintery afternoon at the Ilinden Sports Centre.
The victory pushed Paul Dee’s side to second on the National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s ladder while the loss added more pressure to Mt Druitt’s fight to stay in the top tier competition moving two points clear of 15th placed Western Sydney Wanderers.
After terrific build-up work from several of the Ilinden players and a scrambled half-clearance, Ramsay was able to majestically sweep home the opening, and only, goal of the game in a match full of spurned chances.
Sydney United 58 2 v Sutherland Sharks 1 @ Sydney United Sports Centre
Having gone almost a month without a victory, the boys from Edensor welcomed back their crafty midfielder in Glen Trifiro who scored a trademark free-kick in the first half to calm the home fan nerves.
The Sharks however kept at it and got their just reward late in the second half when Luke Sauer opened his account for 2023 and Panny Nikas’ troops thought they’d done enough to secure a point.
Drama unfolded soon after as the hosts were awarded a penalty in the 84th minute which Chris Payne missed thanks to a brilliant save by keeper Marko Bulic.
The game was destined for a score-draw until United 58 substitute Alessandro Lacalandra stepped in and scored right on full-time that secured all three valuable points for the home side.
Blacktown City 3 v Sydney FC 0 @ Landen Stadium
Blacktown City produced another impressive performance to down Sydney FC 3-0 at Landen Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Jak O’Brien scored late in the first half to give City a halftime lead before Travis Major and Lachlan Campbell added further to the scoreline.