Reserve Grade – Newcastle Jets 1-0 Hills United
Fresh of their first victory of the season, the Hills United reserve grade side were looking to pick up more points against the ladder-leading Newcastle Jets. It was a yet again unchanged Hills side against a weakened Jets, but Jake Vidakovic still led the line for the Newcastle side to great effect. It had to be tiring for him to challenge Samir Eshani and Lachlan Ninham over and over again, but Vidakovic was left unflustered by it all. Several times he charged into the Hills box, only for his over-eagerness to be rebuffed by Ollie McPhail and Eshani. Their confidence building, Hills were able to counter-attack eventually, with Ninham finding Eshani in space, only for his long shot to be saved at the post by the Newcastle keeper.
With scores unbroken by the half, Vidakovic took full advantage as he worked the Hills side back once more, working the field position game to set his side up for the killer blow. The Hills team were become more eager to clear the ball, but this worked right into Vidakovic’s hands. The next clearance came straight to Vidakovic near the wing, his subsequent shot catching the keeper unaware as it rolled through the box and into the far post, giving Newcastle the advantage. They held this until the final whistle, sapping Hills of momentum but credit had to go to the team in yellow for their continued efforts until the final whistle. The win sees Newcastle continue their impressive form thanks to another fantastic effort from Jake Vidakovic.
Match Statistics
Newcastle Jets 1 (Vidakovic 30’)
Hills United 0
Premier League – Hills United 1-0 Newcastle Jets
A tight and tactical contest was sure to be on the cards with these two rivals taking each other on. Their previous encounter back in Round 2 saw the Newcastle Jets take all 3 points with the final kick by Dimitri Liolio-Davis. Both the Jets and Hills United featured settled sides from the last few rounds, so it was going to be a battle of wits to decide the winner. Hills United had an aggressive start with Jacob Cross on target forcing a smart save from Jets’ keeper James Kim, before a Chris Suffield shot from the ensuing corner was deflected clear once more by Kim with the assistance of the post. Under pressure initially, a calm and composed Newcastle worked their way into the match and pushed Hills to defend as the half wore on. Ryan Seck fed both Liolio-Davis and Chris Hastas with precise passes, but Hills keeper Chris Turnbull was up to the task to keep things level at the half.
The second half almost mirrored the first, but this time it was the Newcastle side with the initial chances, calmly rebuffed by Suffield and Turnbull. It was looking more and more like the match would copy their last encounter before Hills were able to punch the ball clear from another Newcastle attack. The long clearance from Turnbull found Cross out wide between Hastas and an advanced Kim, with Cross managing to dart between the defenders and sneak the ball home with a deflection from range. The final 8 minutes were an arm-wrestle from both sides with Newcastle fighting to press forwards, but Hills United would hold on to win their first match of the season. Despite their first loss of the season, Newcastle would remain on top of the table.
Match Statistics
Hills United 1 (Cross 32’)
Newcastle Jets 0
Reserve Grade –Western Sydney Wanderers 0-0 Sydney FC
The previous derby encounter between the sky blues and the red and black resulted in a narrow victory for the Sydney side in Reserve Grade, and a similarly tight contest was expected here. Reverting back to a more conventional approach with Harry Simmons in goals, the sky blues were trusting Mitchell Albert to control the midfield and set up his team mates. The Wanderers featured a more settled line-up, but it was the experienced Jaxon Taylor between the posts to keep the defence settled. This led to both sides fighting in the midfield for the majority of the first half, with Steve Webb and Albert battling away to no avail with their respective keepers managing to keep things level at the break despite some eager efforts from both sides.
The only major change at the half was the Wanderers sliding Webb back into the goals, and with a few substitutions from the bench both coaches looked for different ways to break down their opponents. Neither side was able to find that killer blow, both sets of players focusing on their defending more and more as the match moved closer to the final whistle. Eventually their focus turned to securing that crucial point from a draw. In the end, both teams would have to shake hands and rue a missed opportunity which saw them both drop further behind the ladder-leading Newcastle Jets.
Match Statistics
Western Sydney Wanderers 0
Sydney FC 0
Premier League – Western Sydney Wanderers 1-0 Sydney FC
The earlier Premier League match of the day saw the Newcastle Jets unable to maintain their undefeated streak, leaving the Wanderers with a chance to cut the gap at the top of the table to a single point. A win would leave the red and black as the only undefeated team remaining, but a derby encounter with the sky blues would be anything but easy. The Wanderers were back to the same starting line-up that they began the season with, Karim, Crane and Keyte looking to start in an aggressive but calm way. The sky blues would start in an enthusiastic way through O’Brien, Ball and Albert, with Ryan coming from the goal box and surging upfield when able to, but the red and black were able to absorb the initial pressure. As the match progressed, the Wanderers continued to press forwards before they took their chance to strike. Karim found Crane on the left wing, playing it back to Karim who swept it over to Keyte on the other side. Instead of shooting first time, Keyte also went back to Karim who punched the ball home swiftly.
The wind was taken out of the sky blues’ sails as the game headed towards the half-time interval, but a renewed effort came from the young side thanks to some carefully delivered messages from the coaching staff. This looked to have the desired effect when Albert forced Karim and Waite into some desperate efforts to maintain their clean sheet. The passion of the derby was on clear display as both sides went into each and every battle with heart, both sides starting to lose their structure only for the coaches to remind them of their roles. This saw both sets of players ebbing and flowing with their efforts. 40 minutes was simply not enough for the sky blues, their energy levels pushing a tiring Wanderers right to the brink but unable to find the crucial breakthrough. The Wanderers would maintain their undefeated streak with a dogged victory and close in on the Newcastle Jets, while the sky blues were left to continue searching for their first win of the season.
Match Statistics
Western Sydney Wanderers 1 (Karim 13’)
Sydney FC 0