Reserve Grade – Western Sydney Wanderers 4-0 Newcastle Jets
Looking to recover from a close Sydney Derby loss in Round 1, the Wanderers aimed to control proceedings from the start against the Newcastle Jets. Through the positioning of Jaxon Taylor and the aggression of Jye Mokluk, the Jets found themselves under pressure early, but strong efforts from Jake Vidakovic and Rumeth Herath in defence made the early going tough for their opponents.
Eventually Mokluk was able to strike, pouncing on a Newcastle clearance to hit the scoreboard. With their tails up and an enthusiastic Mokluk, the Wanderers kept the Jets under the pump. Controlling territory and possession generated more chances from the red and black and Mokluk pounced on a stray goal kick to grab his second, before bullying the ball over the line minutes later to seal a first half hat-trick and 3-0 lead at the half.
With the sting gone from the match, a few changes from the Wanderers saw Mokluk shift to goal keeper and Patrick Nolan move into midfield. The match settled into a more even tempo, with Newcastle finding themselves further upfield, but Vidakovic was unable to convert on forays into the red and black box, with Herath unable to connect on some promising crosses. Instead, the Wanderers would add to their total with a solo effort from Nolan to add the finishing touch to a composed and comfortable performance to take all three points.
The result sees the Jets still searching for their first goal of the season while the Wanderers would be buoyed by a dominant performance and their first win of the season.
Match stats:
Western Sydney Wanderers 4 (Mokluk 9’ 13’ 16’, Nolan 30’)
Newcastle Jets 0
Premier League – Newcastle Jets 1-1 Western Sydney Wanderers
Full of confidence after a strong performance against the sky blues last week, the Wanderers went into their match with the Newcastle Jets looking to start strong. The early moments saw a well organised red and black outfit look to capitalise, but the calmness of the Newcastle defence was able to defuse their early advances. With captain Dimitri Liolio-Davis pulling the strings from the centre, the Jets soon found their form and put the Wanderers under pressure.
A hard-working Andy Waite in the Wanderers goal made sure things stayed even, fighting off 10 minutes of sustained pressure but a late flurry from the red and black wasn’t enough to break the deadlock before half-time.
The second half followed the same script to begin with, with the Jets pushing Liolio-Davis forward, letting Ryan Seck move into the centre to hopefully gain more control. Still, a strong start from the Wanderers found a chance from out wide. Winning a dead ball opportunity, Jordan Crane hit a cross between defenders, and instead of the ball finding Ben Keyte at the far post like in the first round, the ball caught Newcastle goal keeper James Kim’s rear guard and rolled between the posts to give the Wanderers a deserved lead.
That seemed to be the spark they needed with the Newcastle Jets finding their passing range and controlling possession through a combination of strong passes and confident dribbling. The intensity of the Jets rose to another level and after being well-organised for 30 minutes, the Wanderers found themselves scrambling to cover an increasingly dangerous Newcastle side. Finally, with five minutes remaining the ball fell to Liolio-Davis with Waite stranded alone in the Wanderers’ goal. Striking with the front of his guard, Liolio-Davis evened the score up and had the momentum well and truly on his side.
With so little time left, the Jets didn’t have long enough to convert this into a winning goal, and despite a late flurry of activity, both teams would have to settle for a hard-earned point.
Match stats:
Western Sydney Wanderers 1 (Own Goal 22’)
Newcastle Jets 1 (Liolio-Davis 35’)
Reserve Grade – Hills United 3-1 Sydney FC
With both teams coming off victories in the first round, Hills and Sydney would be looking to claim top spot and set up their seasons. Sydney FC, organised by a smart Joshua Ryan looked dangerous early, with good passes and positioning putting the Hills United players on the defensive.
The trio of Samir Eshani, Matthew Mallows and Lachlan Ninham were good enough to withstand the sky blues early and eventually launch on a raid of their own. With effectively their first chance of the game, Mallows found Eshani from the sideline for a calm finish inside the far post, but this didn’t dent Sydney’s confidence too much just yet. Still not quite in their groove, Hills had to withstand some intense pressure to survive the half unscathed, despite the best efforts of Ryan and Fletcher Ball from the sky blues.
For Hills, the halftime break came at just the right time. Halting Sydney’s momentum and reorganising themselves paid immediate dividends. Earning an early corner, Mallows once again found Eshani for a simple finish. Determined to add to his two goals, Eshani was good enough to pounce on a little indecision from his opponents, going solo from close range to seal his hat-trick.
Their lead allowed Hills to bring Ninham up to the wing, but with their impetus gone, this allowed Sydney FC to keep fighting and continue to look for a response. Ball was the beneficiary, fighting hard and eventually working into the Hills’ box where he was too strong and earned a well-deserved goal to finish the match. Despite the loss, the sky blues would have plenty to be proud of, while Hills would be pleased to find some goals from their set-pieces to seal another 3 points and their spot on top of the table.
Match stats:
Hills United 3 (Eshani 9’ 23’ 28’)
Sydney FC 1 (Ball 39’)
Premier League – Hills United 7-0 Sydney FC
After taking a strong result in round 1, Hills United were looking to make another statement against a Sydney FC team eager to bounce back after a derby loss. As they did in the first round, the sky blues held their own against an experienced side, defending skilfully for the opening periods of the match. Eventually Hills had an opportunity from a sideline hit-in, with Jacob Cross finding Chris Suffield at the far post for a composed finish mid-way through the half.
This sparked Hills into action, with Suffield making more of an impact with his passing from the centre of the court. Setting up both Cross and Abdullah Karim with some sweeping and incisive passes changed the tone of the match, with some composed finishing giving the team in yellow a deserved lead at the half with each of their midfielders hitting the scoreboard.
It took Hills United far less time to get into their groove in the second half, with Suffield finding Karim in the middle of the box after a corner from Cross, with Karim picking his spot against a stranded sky blue defence. Soon after, Cross found Suffield at the far side from a corner for another composed finish before chair difficulties forced him from the field.
Fortunately for Hills, Matthew Mallows was able to fill in for Cross with ease, taking the next corner himself and finding Karim for a classy near-post finish to complete his hat-trick. Ryan continued to battle as the match continued, with a desperate save from Karim the only thing stopping him from scoring for his sky blues. Cross was able to return for the final stages of the match, scoring from distance when an attempted cross of his was already on target. A confident performance saw Hills United move to the top of the table, while a young Sydney FC will continue to look for improvement as the season continues.
Match stats:
Hills United 7 (Suffield 9’ 30’, Karim 12’ 23’ 32’, Cross 14’ 38’)
Sydney FC 0