Reserve Grade – Western Sydney Wanderers 2-2 Sydney FC
With the standings in Reserve Grade precariously perched, Round 14 would be a pivotal match in deciding the title for 2023. With a 4 point lead over their red and black rivals and a 3 point lead over the Newcastle Jets, Sydney FC were in the box seat. But football had a habit of being a surprising game, and with the Wanderers led by Steve Webb, this would be an interesting contest. Starting out as an end to end struggle, the sky blues thrust forward through Shannon Anlezark and Harry Simmons, but the combination of Webb and Jaxon Taylor rebuffed those advances, soon turning things around. Webb looked to cross from a corner, not quite finding his target, but the second attempt from the sideline found Taylor who rifled the ball between defenders for the opener. The Wanderers had found their groove and were defending nicely before an unfortunate 3 in the box infringement gave the Sydney side a chance to equalise, with Anlezark finding Simmons out wide who played the ball across to Mel Marlow for the tap in just before half time.
While some teams would have been disheartened, the Wanderers regrouped at the break. Webb quickly found his opening, controlling the ball at the top of his box before launching a scything run up the court, around the keeper and giving his side back the lead. The only relief about this outcome was that the sky blues had a long time to find their answer. As time ticked down, the sky blues became more and more desperate in contrast to the red and black’s composure, bringing Fletcher Ball on to provide a different look. The Wanderers were looking to have closed the gap and claimed the three points, but there was another twist to come. Camped down in the corner, a few attempts passed before Anlezark found some space, firing Simmons’ pass from the deep sideline past the defence for a season-defining goal. With no time left, Sydney claimed a vital point, leaving the Wanderers unable to claim the title. The result meant Newcastle would require at least a point in the later match to keep their title hopes alive, a fitting conclusion to a gripping season.
Match Statistics
Sydney FC 2 (Marlow 18’, Anlezark 39’)
Western Sydney Wanderers 2 (Taylor 10’, Webb 24‘)
Premier League – Western Sydney Wanderers 0-0 Sydney FC
An interesting encounter was on the cards between the two Sydney rivals, with an Australian Poweroos meaning the Wanderers’ superstar Abdullah Karim was away, while Sydney FC’s Joshua Ryan was unavailable as he was unwell on match day. This meant that Steve Webb was promoted to the starting lineup for the red and black, while Shannon Anlezark took the open slot for the sky blues. The Wanderers looked to start the stronger, with Jordan Crane setting his side up from sideline hit ins precisely, giving Webb a chance early, but a clumsy attempted clearance from Daniel O’Brien made contact which was blown immediately. Webb took the ensuing penalty, but a miraculous save from a reversing Fletcher Ball kept things level. Momentum was clearly in the Wanderers’ favour but Andy Waite’s surging run into the box only resulted in a goal kick when the ball refused to roll thanks to a late effort from O’Brien. The match was being played in the red and black attacking zone, but a late push saw the sky blues pass the ball around only for the effort to peter out before the half.
The second half was far more even than the first, with both sides having some time in possession and some potential efforts, but the defence was strong on both sides. Changing their approach, the sky blues brought Ball onto the wing and put Harry Simmons in goals to generate more of an attacking thrust. This changed little at the Wanderers kept pressing, but shots from Ben Keyte out wide were saved by Simmons, the ball remaining outside the posts. The Wanderers thought the win was theirs late on, but the ball was ruled to have stopped rolling, resulting in a set ball. The match ended in a scoreless draw, with the Wanderers earning a point to leave them two points clear of third placed Hills United, while the sky blues put in a strong defensive effort, earning some luck on their way to another point.
Reserve Grade – Hills United 0-0 Newcastle Jets
With a depleted squad in both grades, Hills United gave young Levi Carrero his debut Reserve Grade match. Led by Lachlan Ninham in the centre with Ollie McPhail in goals and Finn O’Donovan on the wing, this young side was in for a tough battle. The Jake Vidakovic led Newcastle Jets were still in the title race, but they required at least a point to keep their hopes alive. An early surge saw Molly Boland firing in some crosses for Rumeth Herath, but Ninham and McPhail were solid early. Vidakovic then looked for a sneaky rebound goal from a free kick, but McPhail made a good reversing save. It took a while, but eventually the Hills side learned to read their opponents passes and keep their goal safe, eventually working up the court from time to time. Aside from a late shot from a corner by O’Donovan, the first half saw Newcastle as the more dominant side. Their play was just breaking down at the last moment, with their shots just lacking the required venom.
The second half began the way the first half did, and this time Vidakovic found an early opening but some solid defending from Ninham and Vidakovic’s efforts to push the ball over the line stopped it rolling, denying the goal. But the match soon turned into a 1 on 1 battle between Ninham and Vidakovic, the two trading runs up and down the court and eventually trapping the ball in midfield. Needing to play in Premier League later, Ninham retreated to the bench and was replaced by Jacob Cross. This looked to be a grave mistake when Cross clattered into the side of Vidakovic when trying to save the ball from going into his goal, but he redeemed himself when making a fortunate save from a powerful Aseem Soti shot. The late substitution meant O’Donovan was the one to fight against Vidakovic, but the Jets still had one last effort. Vidakovic found Soti for a rapid spin shot in the final play of the match, but the ball flew wide. The vital point meant that the Jets were 3 points and 4 goals behind the sky blues, giving them a chance but leaving their destiny in the hands of their rivals when they face the Wanderers next round.
Premier League – Hills United 0-0 Newcastle Jets
The match-up between the 2023 Premier League champion Newcastle Jets and a fighting-for-second-place Hills United was going to be an interesting encounter with four players out of action at the Australian Poweroos camp. For the Jets, Dimitri Liolio-Davis and Ryan Seck were absent, while Hills saw Chris Suffield and Chris Turnbull missing the match. This saw Jake Vidakovic and Aseem Soti elevated to the starting line-up for Newcastle with Chris Hastas shifting into the middle. Hills put the goal keeper’s jersey on Matt Mallows, with Lachlan Ninham and Finn O’Donovan taking his place on the goal line. It was clear that Soti and Vidakovic had played a lot of football together, stringing some promising passes together and putting Hills under significant pressure. Mallows and Cross were linking up well at the same time, working the ball into dangerous spots from the sideline and corners, but a defiant James Kim saw to it that the ball remained safely away from his goal. After surviving for a sustained period, the Jets had the Hills side under pressure but couldn’t break through before the half time break.
The second half saw Hills give Ollie McPhail some minutes in goals in place of O’Donovan and the Hills side worked hard to keep the ball in the midfield initially. Newcastle took their time to find the gaps, but soon the Jets were looking dangerous from an attacking free kick, but the combination of Cross and Mallows covering for each other kept the ball out somehow. This led to a chance down the other end, with Cross finding Ninham from the sideline, but his shot to the far post was saved well by a rushing Hastas. The Jets then had their own chance, with a venomous pass from Hastas to Kim just firing past the near post with Mallows looking stranded. When it looked like Hills were closing in on a point, O’Donovan returned to the field in place of McPhail. This did nothing to slow the inevitable charge from the Jets, Hastas dominating the ball and working it forward with a sense they’d fine the winner. Late on, Kim found Vidakovic from a goal kick, his spin shot slamming into O’Donovan and kept out by a scampering Mallows. With neither side able to break through, both would be satisfied with a well-earned point from some new combinations.