Craig Lairds weekly write up 12-7-15

[pecker]

MATCH OF THE DAY
ELIZABETH DOWNS (1) INGLE FARM (0)
INGLE Farm’s 15 game unbeaten run in the league is over after going down 1-0 to Elizabeth Downs at Argana Park.
Top of the table Farm, last lost in the league in round 13 2014 and they came into this game looking to protect a four point buffer over Parafield Gardens while the Maroons were looking to end a four game winless run.
It was clear from the start that the Downs were up for the contest and on seven minutes a Jason Trimboli corner required a goal line clearance to keep it out.
The Maroons took the lead on 15 minutes when a Nathan Day free kick was only partially cleared and when the ball was played back into the box Konrad Kusnik was on hand to flick the ball home.
The lead was nearly doubled moments later when another Day free kick found Trimboli whose header cannoned off the cross bar.
Farm thought they had an equalizer on 34 minutes when they looked sure to score after a goalmouth scramble but the ball was cleared to safety by a desperate Downs defence.
On 35 minutes Stephen Hughes picked up an errant Farm pass before playing in Trimboli whose goal bound shot was brilliantly tipped wide by Farm keeper Chris Nicholls.
The visitors had their best chance of the half on 43 minutes when Liam Mulvaney made a fine run down the right hand side before whipping in a dangerous ball which found Sonny Murrell at the back post but he disappointingly blasted over from close range.
Ingle Farm upped the tempo in the 2nd half and were unlucky on the hour when a long ball into the box was headed down to Premier league leading scorer Musit Ipekdal who steadied before hammering his shot which cannoned back off the post into the arms of Down’s keeper Ben Aldridge.
On 78 minutes another fine ball from Mulvaney picked out Salli Turson and his header from six yards looked home only to be denied by a fantastic Aldridge save.
Try as they might Farm couldn’t get the equalizer as the home fans celebrated the Champions first win since round 6.
Downs coach Alan Mottram “It was a fantastic win. We are understrength and facing an inform team and in the end I thought we deserved the win.”
Farm coach Paul Simpson “I thought a draw would have been a fair result but we need to regroup now and prepare for a big game against Parafield Gardens next week.”

FULHAM (3) PARAFIELD GARDENS (0)
FULHAM have caused one of the upsets of the season with a 3-0 win over Parafield Gardens at Collins Reserve.
When the teams met back in round 2 Gardens made light work of Fulham with a 5-1 win at Bradman Oval and most were predicting three points for Gardens in this one.
The pivotal moment of the game came on 40 minutes when Fulhams Sanjin Julardzija went down in the box and a penalty was awarded with Gardens keeper Anthony Stam receiving a yellow card. Anthony Fedele converted the penalty and as the teams were leaving the field at half time Stam received a 2nd yellow card and was sent off.
Fulham went 2-0 up on 70 minutes when a wicked cross from Julardzija was met by Fedele who moved in between defenders to header the ball home.
The result was sealed on 80 minutes when Andrew Giannou ghosted past the Gardens defence before slotting the goal to the delight of the Fulham faithful.
It was certainly a missed opportunity for Gardens who failed to take advantage of Ingle Farm’s loss, they remain four points adrift of the league leaders.
Fulham coach John Christopoulos “It was a great win today. We have had a few things go against us lately so it was nice to get a couple of things go our way.”

ELIZABETH VALE (2) SALISBURY INTER (3)
SALISBURY Inter has moved to 3rd on the table after a 3-2 win over Elizabeth Vale at Moflin Road.
Both teams came into the game in form with Inter looking for a fourth straight win while the Vale have won their last two.
Inter scored the only goal of the 1st half when Mark Marchioro sprung the offside trap before firing home from the penalty spot.
Five minutes into the 2nd half the Vale drew level but Inter regained the lead soon after when a through ball from Michael Marchioro found Andrew Butler who made no mistake.
Inter gifted the Vale a goal when a back pass was missed by Inter keeper Nick Sincock to make it 2-2 and set up a thrilling finish.
The winner came for inter on 85 minutes when Chris Fleming played in Steve Butler who finished in style to secure all three points for the visitors.
Inter coach Steve Cook “It was a tight game but I thought our quality shone through in the end and we deserved to win the game.”

PARA HILLS WEST (0) WEST BEACH (1)
WEST Beach’s season is alive and kicking after a vital 1-0 win over Para Hills West at Manor Farm ground.
The bottom placed Beach came into the game trailing the 8th placed Westies by five points knowing that anything less than a win may well seal their relegation fate.
It was a typical relegation battle which was high on energy but low on quality in very difficult conditions.
Both sides have struggled to score goals this season with Westies having scored nine goals and Beach eight in the opening 10 rounds so the first goal was always going to be crucial and it worked out that way with the decisive goal coming on 70 minutes.
Westies keeper Dave Brook’s loitered on the ball and Josh Smith pounced to dispossess Brook before slotting it home.
Para Hills West tried hard to find an equalizer but Beach held firm to claim their 2nd win of the season and end an eight game losing run. Their only other win of the season came in round 2 when they defeated Westies 1-0.
Beach coach Colin Agalich “It’s a massive win for us. We took a lot of confidence from our game against the Vale last week. We believe we have enough quality to stay up.”

ELIZABETH GROVE (3) SOUTHERN KNIGHTS (1)
ELIZABETH Grove have returned to the winners list after a comfortable 3-1 win over Southern Knights at Dauntsey Road.
The Grove came into the game looking for three points having competed well against the league pace setters Ingle Farm and Parafield Gardens in the last two weeks for no reward while Knights were hoping for their first win away from home.
On five minutes the Peckers took the lead when a Mark Kelly flick on header found Ben De Bono who headed home from close range.
The home side doubled their lead on 56 minutes when a Shaun Almond cross was flicked on by De Bono before Kahmen Grieg hammered the ball home from 20 yards.
The result was sealed on the hour when De Bono made a great run before a shot into the box took a deflection and went into the net to make it 3-0.
Knights grabbed a late consolation when they were awarded a penalty for a foul which was duly converted.
Grove coach Shane Golder “Good to bounce back and get the wheels rolling again.”