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Spirit 1 Roslyn Wakari 1; July 24th
Spirit FC and Roslyn Wakari shared the spoils with a 1-all draw in their Footballsouth Premier League clash at Turnbull Thompson Park in Invercargill on Saturday.
The game had the potential to be
a thrilling affair as both teams had very good reason to want to win, however in
the end it is best described as being a game best forgotten.
Roslyn Wakari defender James Watson's hair-flair makes an awesome image
as he heads to safety from Spirit's Adrian Fonoti.
Roslyn with a game in hand needed the points to stay in touch with Mosgiel as the two Dunedin teams tussle for third and fourth place on the points table, while Spirit needed the win points to bring a little more respectability to what has been an inconsistent season for them.
For just eight minutes, at which
point Spirit took the lead 1-nil from a Jason Cocker goal following the rebound
of a Mark Caldow penalty miss, the game appeared as if it would live up to it’s
pre-match potential.
Spirit's Mark Caldow heads wide after bursting between two
Roslyn defenders.
Spirit had won an exciting encounter 5-4 in their first round game in Dunedin
where they had to withstand a late onslaught by Roslyn.
However there was to be no repeat on Saturday as the game swiftly deteriorated
as a spectacle.
Most of the Roslyn players and several personnel on and around the subs bench hotly disputed the penalty decision and then proceeded to dissent and challenge almost every refereeing decision that went against their team for the remainder of the game.
Whether right or wrong, the
continual barrage seemed to unsettle players from the two teams and made it a
trying day for local developing referee Phil Bulling.
Under-fire Ref Phil Bulling did well to keep11 Roslyn
players on the pitch...
There were however some bright periods of play, none more so than the quick
build up and well taken strike by Roslyn’s Tom Connor at the 27 minute mark that
levelled the score at 1-all.
Connor at times linked up with the Cunningham brothers Aajay and Mike to put
pressure on the Spirit defenders but missed opportunities and an almost
faultless goal keeping display by Oswaldo Rodriquez in the Spirit goal ensured
their goal tally was not increased.
Roslyn's Mike Cunningham seen here staving off the
attention of Spirit's Adrian Fonoti
often gave the young developing players on show an
education in ball-protection.
(By share coincidence
there's Jason Cocker and his look-alike together again...hmmm)
Connor had the best opportunity to do so midway through the second half but when
entrusted with a penalty kick blasted it over the bar and the chance was gone.
Spirit youngster Kris Leatherby
who has made the left back position his own this season turned in another strong
effort against more seasoned opponents and in the mid field Spirit player-coach
Barry Gardiner and Captain Brendon Lloyd had the measure of their opposites for
most of the game.
In Dunedin former Southland player Aaron Burgess extended his lead over
Caversham’s Robbie Deeley in the Golden Boot title chase when he scored five of
Technicals goals in their 7-2 win over Queenstown Rovers.
At Bain Park the Southland men’s Premier competition leader AMP South Old Boys needed to win their game against Southend United to retain a comfortable margin over Eyeview Queens Park going into the final two games of the competition.
They did so 1-nil with a lone goal early in the game from the leagues leading goal scorer Brandon de Garnham and held out Southend’s tenacious challenge from then on.
Invercargill Brewery Waihopai
with goals from Chris Jones and Matthew McDowell edged past Gore Wanderers 2-nil
in the remaining men's Premier game.
Malloch McClean Riverton retained the Southland Premier Women’s football
title in dramatic
fashion yesterday when they had to fight back from a 2-nil deficit to beat
lesser lights JK Stevenson Queens Park 3-2
at O’Rorke park.
Park dominated the early exchanges and
deservedly took a 2-nil lead with goals from Natalie Johnston and
Sonia Edwards.
However Riverton showed their champion-team quality by remaining composed and
with goals from
Jessica Mallon, Ella Shields and Rachel Christie eventually took out the game
and claimed consecutive titles 3-2.
Mallon and Sinderella's Southend
United’s Tove Crosswell started the day on 27 goals each in the race for the
Golden Boot title
but it was Crosswell with 5 goals in her team’s 11-nil romp over Thistle who
claimed the honour.
Tove (with my apologies for her wet-look hair day...Stu)