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MR United 2 def Busselton United 0
Margaret River United eagerly anticipated this show-down with the only team that has beaten them this season, however absences to seven key players and injury to three (including Jake Graebner-Bond, the keeper) made the game plan difficult to organise. It was decided to play a 5-4-1 with Mehdi Balkhi the lone striker, supported by Benjamin Smith and Dylan Johnson-Swainston on the wings. The focus was to neutralise Busselton’s midfield. Sam Connell and Henry Rogers did a fabulous job of this.
The game started frantic on this cool but dry Saturday morning. Balls were kicked all around the places and it took the teams some time to find a rhythm. Margaret River had the better of the first ten minutes, but Busselton kept pushing and hit the upright in the 13th minute. Busselton then pushed strongly; however the home team began to settle down towards the end of the first half, now enjoying great possession and control.
Unmarked Benjamin Smith hit the ball over the crossbar in the 28th minute after a precise Mehdi corner. In the 32nd minute a quick passing sequence saw Margaret River taking the lead. The ball was played by sweeper Mat Kevill to Sam Connell. He flanked to Mehdi Blkhi, who outran his marker. Mishka Marzohl darted forwards and booted the ball into the back of the net after an accurate through ball by Mehdi. A clever and stunning goal!
Vasse (3) defeat Australind (0)
This was a tough game in windy conditions. The score doesn’t do Australind justice as they played a solid and consistent game.
Australind had the wind in the first half and made good use early of their fast forward line. Vasse countered by bolstering the midfield to control the ball flow, and eventually managed to get through the strong Australind defense to grab a goal by Luka Cluff and go 1 up by half time.
The 2nd half saw Vasse grab 2 extra goals to Brad Bornatici and Shea Hayley, but Australind were not without chances and really put the Vase goalie and defenders under pressure. The Vasse goalie stood firm and combined well with the 2 central defenders Scott Duncan and Dylan McGreggor. Connor Poleykett played an outstanding game and made some spectacular saves that won him the best player award from the coach.
Well done to both teams. It was a tough game played in good spirit.
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MR United 2 def McKillop Marauders 1
For the last fixture before the holiday break Margaret River United travelled to Busselton to play McKillop. The team rested fast forwards Mehdi Balkhi and Scott Guthrie-Phelps, as well as seasoned campaigners Oscar Howse and Lewis Hayes for this encounter. For most of the game, it bucketed down with players on both sides suffering from the cold and wet conditions.
The slippery but hard ground made ball control difficult and both teams struggled with passing early on. Margaret River played a three-two-three-two position that initially gave McKillop some space in front of Margaret River’s goal. Centre back Mat Kevill however held firmly with effective support from right back Kane Duggan and left back Mitchell Winstanley.
After eight minutes, the midfield found into the game. Benjamin Smith fired a warning shot in the 8th minute. The ball was deflected by McKillop’s keeper and hit the upright. In the 12th minute, speedy winger Aaron Locke received a clever through ball from Sam Connell. He outran his marker and the intended loop ball to the goal mouth from the right flank resulted in United taking the lead. The ball sailed over all defenders including the keeper to descend into the back of the net.
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MR United 2 def Vasse United 1
After their emphatic win against Bunbury last week, the hosts welcomed Vasse for a clash of the top two teams. Margaret River’s 21 players’ squad was complete again however Alex Williams was unable to participate due to injury. The game on this beautiful Saturday morning was opened to the sound of vuvuzelas, the irritating sound of the 2010 World Cup, busily played by the substitute Margaret River players.
The game started as a very tight affair in midfield. Both teams recorded few shots on goals. The best opportunities came from Margaret River’s forward Mehdi Balkhi in the 27th and 30th minutes when he just missed the goals and hit the upright. Otherwise, Vasse’s defence was solid. Margaret River played Benjamin Smith and Mat Kevill through the whole game to give the backline stability, a strategy that payed off. The rest of the squad was frequently substituted to keep fresh legs on the pitch at all times.
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GMAS 6 v Macillop 0
With the earlier game between Vasse and Busselton ending in 6-2 to Vasse it gave GMAS a target to win by at least 3 goals to move into 4th position on the ladder. GMAS headed into the game against the winless Macillop, but knew it wouldn't be easy as they held Vasse at bay for one half in the last fixture.
World cup fever defiantly had hit the GMAS team as all players were chomping at the bit to play. After the beginning whistle GMAS flung together a wonderful sequence of passes yet failed to capitalise.
The GMAS defence remained unchallenged for at least 8 minutes as the GMAS midfield locked it into the Macillop defensive half. GMAS had 7 appetising shots on goal yet was either foiled by the keeper or down to poor finishing. Macillop struck back as GMAS struggled to clear from corners and had the closest shot of the match for it only to be cleared off the line by a GMAS player.
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MR United 6 def Dunsborough 2
For the first time this season, Margaret River United’s complete squad of 21 players was available on this cloudy Saturday morning, again captained by Mat Kevill. There was a real buzz in the team and the 80 spectators that came to watch this thrilling match.
The visitors from Dunsborough started well and created two scoring opportunities; however Jake Graebner-Bond in United’s goal stood solid. Jacob Connell was given the task to close down Dunsborough’s play-maker and he did it very well. After the initial drive by Dunsborough, the home team took control of the proceedings. Great play over the wings opened up Dunsborough’s well organised defence.
Benjamin Smith and Henry Rogers were a constant threat to Dunsborough. In the 10th minute, Sam Connell played a superb through pass to Mehdi Balkhi who ran away from his marker to score the first goal. The Margaret River midfield worked very well now with lots of supporting, talking and passing. Substitute midfielder Scott Guthrie-Phelps added a second goal for the home side in the 14th minute weaving through and outrunning Dunsborough’s defence. Harry Hick (17th) and Benjamin Smith (18th) scored two more goals in very similar fashion.
GMAS 3 def Busselton 2
On a day that the players of GMAS took time out from their exams to play a high expectation game of soccer. GMAS headed into their 5th fixture with a dismal record of 3 defeats and 1 win, but were looking to improve this record and were here to win against Busselton.
GMAS started with one of their best formations to prove that from the first whistle they were ready to play. The game started at a high tempo, obviously sheep stations were on the line here, both sides generating hopeful chances.
The earlier rain caused the ball to be slippery so the skill present was fairly scrappy. But it was Busselton that prevailed with a rather scrappy pick up from GMAS’ keeper ended up as a goal that will actually go down as a own goal as a GMAS player tried to clear from the line. But never the less GMAS kept their heads high and continued to move towards goal.
The substitution brought fresh legs on for both teams which increased the tempo once again. But it was an awesome Combination of Leask and Harvey that equalized; Leask hooking a cross into the box for Harvey to convert and bring the scores level.
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MR United 4 def Australind Lions 3
Margaret River United travelled to Busselton to meet Australind without several key players. Mat Kevill captained the team again with Dave Swainston taking up the coach’s role on the side line and Patrick Marzohl being the referee.
The game kicked off in strong rain. Margaret River played their best game this season in the opening twenty minutes. Hours of practicing supportive play, quick passing, game strategy, running off the ball and directive talking have payed off. It was a delight to watch the boys in yellow in action. It came to no surprise then that the team was three goals up after 16 minutes. Mehdi Balkhi (5th) and Sam Connell (10th and 16th) were the players that finished the superb effort by the whole team.
With the substitution came a reorganisation of the squad. Australind found better into the game now and was able to put one past Alex Williams in United’s goal in the 22nd minute with a well-taken shot from outside the box.
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Match Report BSN United (4) Vs. SJMSC Marauders (1)22/5/2010
Busselton United went into their fourth game of the season with a record of 2 wins and 1 loss, with the games played being a reminder to the hosts of how far the competition had improved and how tight future games were going to be. As yet again the Busselton boys were pushed to the limit by a confident SJMSC outfit that matched the Reds in all aspects of the game, and if it wasn't for man of the match, goalkeeper William Wilson, the score line could have reflected in SJMSC's favor.
Busselton began in surprising fashion, actually being hungry for the ball and tenacious in their tackling right from the start, and were rewarded with an early goal, thanks to a Jake Conduit thunderbolt from outside the 18 yard box, leaving the SJMSC keeper stranded. This spurred SJMSC into action mounting their own counter attacks on the Red’s defense keeping defenders Cael Patey and Jake Lyons on their toes and keeper William Wilson nervous at every SJMSC forward thrust. But with the Red’s backline holding strong, a counter attack led by the ever reliable Michael Corn found forward Josh Wilkes in a dangerous position against an over exposed SJMSC defense, and with good ball control, rounded two defenders to slip the ball into the net giving the Reds a 2-0 lead into the half time break.
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MR United 4 def GMAS 3
Margaret River United welcomed Mishka Marzohl, Alex Williams and Scott Guthrie-Phelps but were without key players Benjamin Smith, Jacob Connell and Harry Hick. Captain Mat Kevill led the squad out onto the pitch in rainy conditions.
The game started scrappy. GMAS found the back of the net in the 4th minute after a corner kick. Alex Williams in United’s goal went to fist the ball away, but the wet condition and a push into his back resulted in an unlucky own goal. This early set-back woke the home team and the players started to use the wings. Several good combinations gave Margaret River scoring opportunities. The equaliser by Mehdi Balkhi in the 7th minute resulted from a great sequence of quick passing. Mehdi added a second goal in the 16th minute. Margaret River was now in control of the game. The change in defence with Oscar Howse playing central and Jack Hewton on the right wing proved very effective. Mat Kevill played an outstanding match keeping the back line together.
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BSN United 4 def MR United 2
The Margaret River team travelled to Busselton for the first away fixture of the season. Playing in the green away strip and reduced to 14 players, the team was captained by seasoned defender Mat Kevill.
It was a nervous start with Busselton having greater control of the game. The goals however came from the visitors. Mehdi Balkhi’s shot from an acute angle in the 11th minute gave the Margaret River side the lead. In the 22nd minute it was Mehdi again that extended the score. The team in green was lucky at this stage not to have conceded.
Great saves by Jake Graebner-Bond and inaccurate shooting from Busselton’s forwards kept the score at two nil at half time. Benjamin Smith had a fantastic game. He was everywhere and was invaluable cleaning up in the back line. Mehdi Balkhi was a constant danger for Busselton’s defence.
Saturday provided perfect weather conditions for football, Australind kicked off & straight into their forward zone with a fast pace attack,Vasse defence kept theier composure with Australinds constant pressure untill the ball was turned over & the Vasse forwards quickly converted 2 goals by half time.
Both teams seemed evenly matched & Australind kept up with their constant pressure chasing the back of the net for a score. I was concerned the second half that Vasse could run out of steam as we had no subs.
Surprisingly Vasse came out & applied the intense pressure that Australind was serving us in the first half & were rewarded with another goal. Australind had some good shots on goal but none in the net & their defence kept up a resillent effort to the end.
Vasse solid defence took possesion & delivered the ball thru our mid feild & the forwards applying some good combination play finished withmore goals. A good game by both teams.
GMAS started the year with a bang, surprising Australind with a 4-2 win. The first goal came rather early with Jack Davies running onto a through ball to slot the first of the season.
Australind powered in response but the GMAS defence was too strong being held by Ashlee Winch, Ben Fisher, Sam Bold and Josh Beynon. GMAS goalkeeper Jake Ronald kept the talk high which motivated the team set up Davies' second.
With the two goal lead GMAS looked comfortable when a large substitution disrupted the flow of the GMAS defence resulting in a Australind goal from an organized corner.
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MR United 4 def SJMSC Marauders 2
The home side started with a near full-squad of 18 players. The team was captained by Harry Hick and entered into the opening encounter of the season with confidence. United was the stronger side on this Saturday morning on all accounts: a huge plus in shots on goal, more corner kicks, greater possession throughout the game and dominance in tackles.
The home side started with an attacking 3-4-3 formation. The opening goal came in the second minute of play already. After good combination football, left winger Dan Raymond was unmarked in front of the goal. His shot slid through the arms of the otherwise solid Busselton keeper to roll into the back of the net.
Margaret River kept pushing, but the early lead took some of the focus off the players. Instead of playing a quick passing game, long kicks resulted in frequent loss of the ball. Injuries to sweeper Benjmain Smith and Mat Kevill left the defence vulnerable.
Vasse 7 Def Dunsborough 2
Vasse won the game 7-2, but this was a hard fought game of 2 halves. Dunsborough were very sharp in the first half, with some good structure and great passing which resulted in them being 2-0 up at halftime.Their first goal came after a great corner that bounced off a Vasse players head and beat the Vasse goalie. Their second goal was a brilliant shot from 30m out that went like a rocket, the Vasse goalie did extremely well to get a hand on it, but the pace was too good. This goal alone was worth the admission.
In the second half Vasse bounced back with some strong individual performances and a hard working mid field that built a lot of pressure on the Dunsborough defence. Like Dunsborough, the Vasse 1st goal came from a bit of luck when the Dunsborough goalie got knocked away from the ball during a melee in the goal square – and this was followed up with a brilliant deft strike from the side of Dylan McGregor’s boot while running at full pace that completely wrong footed the Dunsborough goalie.
Both teams can take some positives from this game, with some great teamwork and two of the best goals you could hope to see.
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