Reserve Grade – Hills United 2-0 Western Sydney Wanderers
With both teams coming off confidence-building wins, continuing their good form would be a priority both the Wanderers and Hills United. Both teams had players who scored a hat-trick in their last outing, the Wanderers’ Jye Mokluk and Hills United’s Samir Eshani, so you could be forgiven for expecting plenty of goals in their encounter. After a tight first ten minutes, Hills found some more consistency, placing their opponents under pressure and finding a few set play opportunities. Linking up once again, Matthew Mallows found Eshani at the far post after a sideline hit-in, and Eshani made no mistake in taking the chance and the lead for his side. Moments later, Mallows would find himself in a similar position from the sideline. With the defence expecting a cross, Mallows went himself, sneaking a shot between Mokluk and the near post, consolidating Hills’ lead going into the half. With a few minutes remaining until half-time, the Wanderers piled on the pressure, but the break came at the right time for their opponents.
The second half was an evenly balanced affair, with both teams having their surging runs forward while also having to hold firm against their opponents’ pressure. Mokluk was once again the most dangerous player in red and black, aggressively pouncing on anything Hills might offer, but it was a composed performance from the team in yellow. Lachlan Ninham was calm and relaxed in the Hills goal, making crucial saves when called upon with little fuss despite the mounting pressure. Making a few changes late on to try and increase their lead, Hills would come away empty handed, but with the damage already done in the opening half they would take another hard-earned 3 points to extend their lead on top of the table. For the Wanderers, despite not managing to score, giving away relatively few chances would give them faith in their defence, and without their opponents being so clinical with their chances, might have taken a point on another day.
Match stats:
Hills United (Eshani 11’, Mallows 15’)
Western Sydney Wanderers 0
Premier League – Hills United 2-2 Western Sydney Wanderers
Coming into the top of the table clash full of confidence after a strong draw against the always strong Newcastle Jets, the Western Sydney Wanderers were aiming to continue where they left off when coming up against the ladder-leading Hills United. The team in yellow had yet to concede a goal during their opening two matches, but fronted by Ben Keyte, the red and black would make this a difficult streak to continue. Pressed from the kick-off, Wanderers keeper Andy Waite found himself taking an early goal kick. Pouncing on a pass up the middle, Chris Suffield punched the ball back into the goal to take an early lead for the yellow team. The pressure faded soon after, with the Wanderers finding more space to pass and working the ball up the field through their Crane-Keyte-Kim combination. Hills found themselves under pressure, unable to keep the ball out of their own half.
Counter-attacking attempts continued to lead to very little, with pressure forcing Hills into errors and eventually creating more and more chances. Withstanding a barrage of passes, eventually the barrier of Suffield and Turnbull in the Hills box were unable to hold the Wanderers out. Jordan Crane took a sideline hit-in near the top of the box, taking advantage of an excellent Andrew Kim block to find Keyte for an excellent finish between the two defenders. Seconds later, the half-time whistle blew. With a goal so late, the Wanderers went into the second-half feeling like they were in control of proceedings, while Hills needed to make some changes.
Abdullah Karim moved into the centre for Hills United in the second half, stretching the Wanderers with his passing, but the same could be said for Crane in the centre for the Wanderers. Clearing the ball upfield to Jacob Cross, Crane and Waite both closed in on the ball, only for them to crash into each other. The ball rolled between them and into the goal once they came apart, with Hills benefiting from the collision while not building much pressure themselves. The match soon turned into an end-to-end tussle, with both sides turning defence into offence before finding themselves on the back foot once more. The pace of the game continued to ramp up, with both sides finding themselves with some chances before the Wanderers were gifted the chance they needed.
Clearing the ball upfield, Suffield ended up creating an opening for Crane to find Andrew Kim down the sideline. With time and space, Kim fired a dangerous cross through the box, leaving a Clearing the ball upfield, Suffield ended up creating an opening for Crane to find Andrew Kim down the sideline. With time and space, Kim fired a dangerous cross through the box, leaving a stranded Turnbull unable to stretch across the goal before Keyte raced to the far post to claim a well-earned equaliser and leave Hills scratching their heads in confusion. With only a few minutes remaining, Hills took the ball from the kick off and right into the Wanderers territory, but strong defence and a will not to drop a point they deserved, Cross couldn’t find a way through the wall of Waite and Crane. With moments to go, Karim found himself 1 on 1 with Waite in the Wanderers’ goal. Sneaking a shot behind the keeper, the Hills players were set to celebrate before Kim at full stretch somehow kept the ball from crossing the line. That desperation was enough to save a point for a red and black outfit determined to take something from the contest. Both teams would have to settle with a point after a nail-biting finish, keeping the gap at the top of the table to 2 points.
Match stats:
Hills United 2 (Suffield 2’, Cross 26’)
Western Sydney Wanderers 2 (Keyte 19’ 36’)
SYDNEY FC’S MATCHES AGAINST THE NEWCASTLE JETS HAVE BEEN POSTPONED AND WILL BE PLAYED AT A LATER DATE. THIS HAS BEEN AGREED UPON BY THE NSWPFA EXECUTIVE AND BOTH TEAMS. WE APOLOGISE FOR ANY MISCOMMUNICATION.