Round 2
VCL ROUND 2 MATCH REPORTS
U13 GIRLS
Saturday 27 October
Southern Cross Strikers 13G V South East Cougars
Welcome to VCL Summer League and wasn’t it cold! Everyone was dressed for the snow with beanies and scarves, at one stage I was praying it wasn’t going to rain as we had no shelter. However the girls came off the pitch hot as they were running hard. The South East Cougars were a very skilled team. They danced the ball around and had great technical skills. We did apply pressure and kept the score contained. In the second half we had a few tries at goals however no luck so we went down to a better side. We lost 0/3.
Sunday 28 October
Northern All Stars 13G V Southern Cross Strikers
Next game for the gala weekend…at least the sun was warming up and everyone had forgotten about Saturday. The passing of the ball between the players was fantastic and the ball was moving towards our goals plenty of times. The parents were cheering and names were being called, plus calling between the players had lifted. Then a goal, half way in the 1st half, there were plenty of opportunities at goals however no luck. The girls were gaining confidence; they discussed some changes for the second half and were ready. The girls were keeping position and passing the ball down the side line well between each other. We scored three more goals and the level of excitement was fantastic for the girls and their parents, we won 0/4.
U13 BOYS
Southern Cross Strikers verse South East Cougars.
The game started and the technical skill and pace of the Cougars caught the Strikers by surprise. It took five minutes for the Strikers to settle into game and place pressure on the Cougars. The first half had our defenders under pressure and they held off numerous attacks. Daniel Angeleski and Will McLoughlin tried hard all day playing the ball well out of the back line and one move created a shot on goal by Marcus Parini which was deflected by the opposition goal keeper. Not long after the Cougars scored. Half time score 1 nil. Second half and the Strikers were also playing a very good technical game and were placing pressure on the opposition. Brandon Lauton and Jalil Reagague work tirelessly in the midfield only to see the Cougars score another 2 goals. Final score Cougars 3 Strikers 0
Southern Cross Strikers verse Northern Allstars.
The Strikers controlled this game from the start. Playing the ball wide out of the back line, controlling the midfield and pushing the ball forward at all opportunities had the Allstars on the back foot. Unlucky not to score from a corner saw the ball rebound quickly into the Allstars half which resulted in a goal. Half time Score Allstars 1 Strikers 0. The second half was an arm wrestle between the two teams and again the Strikers unlucky not to score from two forward moves. Final score All stars 1 Strikers 0.
U14 BOYS
U14 boys faced a fast and skilful Cougars squad on Saturday and
struggled to play the ball out from defence under pressure. McAninly was
effective in taking the ball up the wing and managed several crosses
into the box but the Cougars keeper was largely untroubled. Despite
several good saves from Shorback in the second half the game was lost
three nil.
On Sunday the team were much stronger against the All Stars with de
Voogel taking advantage of poor marking early in the game. He scored
another soon after, pouncing on a loose ball in front of goal to bring
up a two nil lead. The boys held on under pressure in the second half to
record their first win the for the VCL season.
U15 GIRLS
Saturday Vs South East Cougars.
Wow! What a game of contrasts. The Under 15 girls faced up to South East Cougars at Darebin this afternoon keen to repeat their good efforts from last week. Three powerfully struck goals in the first 6 minutes left our girls shell-shocked and despite their best efforts they could not match the very slick Cougars outfit and went into half time 9-0 down. Another very motivating talk from Coach Charlie saw a most remarkable change in the Southern Cross Strikers in the second half. As one of the linesman commented; it was like a completely different team was playing. The girls were strong in defence, playing great football, and launched many counter attacks, which resulted in the Strikers having a number of shots on goal. The final score? 9-0! Our girls matched them throughout the 2nd half. It was a most inspiring performance.
Sunday Vs Northern Allstars
On Sunday the girls took on Northern Allstars, kicking off against the wind, the girls held Allstars to 0-1 at half time, and played well.
In the second half, lack of concentration by the girls allowed Allstars to score 3 quick goals in succession, which took the spirit out of Strikers. Another goal just prior to the end of the match saw Allstars defeat Strikers 5-0. Zara was outstanding in the match and never gave up, Lily was solid in defence and Tess did a good job after replacing the injured Sara.
U15 BOYS
The Under 15 boys were up against South East Cougars under the direction of Paul Smalley today.
The Cougars started very strong, with solid passing and ball control and passing and dominating play, but a poor tackle gave Dejan a free kick in our forward half. A beautiful cross found Brayden Bakers head in front of the box and he slotted it perfectly into the back of the net for a 1 -0 lead only 10 mins in. The boys then found their rhythm and started to play a more solid game, with strong defence and pressure by both teams allowing only a few shots at goal. Great goal keeping by Jay kept the score unchanged at half time. The second half saw the opposition come out hard but our boys held their composure, attacking the ball and making a few good chances on goal. Our defensive line stayed solid despite a few more attempts by the opposition in this half, allowing us to come away with the win. Final score 1-0
Day 2 saw the Strikers come up against a big, physical, fast and well drilled Northern AllStars opposition. The first half saw the defenders under relentless pressure from the talented forwards. A scoreline of 0-2 at half time saw the boys looking down the barrel in the second half.
Once again the pressure on the defenders was applied at the start of the second half. The Strikers were able to withstand a lot of the attacks with Henry Wines stopping some positive scoring opportunities for the AllStars. Some attacking moves by the Strikers and some clever positioning by Jake Selby still couldn’t penetrate the big defenders. Another 2 goals conceded saw a scoreline at Full Time of 0-4. The boys will reflect on this game and learn a lot from it. What a great experience.
U17 GIRLS
Saturday
Round 2 started with a late in the day game against the South East Cougars for our
Under 17 girls. The first half saw a tightly contested game resulting in 0 - 1 down
However our girls were far from finished.
The girls came out united as a team and a fantastic header by Courtney Farrell from a
Well positioned ball from Bonnie Cooper saw the scores leveled. The Cougars came back but a penalty sent home by Chelsea Bickerton saw us once again leveled.
A final goal by the Cougars may have given them the game however it was a nail biter right to the end.
A fantastic effort displayed by our girls.
Sunday
After a close game Saturday our Under 17 girls came out ready for a tough game against the Northern Allstars.
From the start we could see they were a physically strong team which was reflected by the half time score of 3 - 0 down.
The half time break provided a chance for Rick to settle the girls and after some words of wisdom we once again took to the pitch.
The Allstars came out both physically and verbally strong and although the score with
10 minutes to go was 5 - 0 our girls would not give up.
The team lifted right across the pitch and with some shear determination saw Lulu
Al-Heidi hit the back of the net.
Lulu scored once again soon after following a penalty.
The girls showed tremendous courage and determination right to the whistle doing
themselves and all present proud.
U17 BOYS
The Strikers under 17 team ventured to the State Football Centre for the first gala week of the season to take on the South Eastern Cougars . The first half of the game was a tight affair with both teams passing a lot but the Strikers had few attacking moves or forward plays. The strikers keeper Bowie Wallace was able to foil several strong goal attempts by the Cougars, leaving the first half with a 0-0 score line.
The second half started strongly for the Strikers, when Charlie King took on several players down the wing, beating 3 with some very fancy footwork. Bowie was still holding strong in goals fending off several strong attempts from the Cougars early in the second half. Pat Karras and Michael Trigger combined in a great move late in the second half to break the stale mate by scoring the first goal of the match. The Strikers had a blood rush and their game stile changed. Their intense forward movement began overwhelming the Cougars defence. Harley Bosher muscled his way through a pack of Cougars defenders to strike a solid goal for the Strikers. Pat Karras again had a solid run down the right wing dancing around defenders to launch a cracking strike on goals, which was deflected by the keeper to hit the right post and run wide. With another movement forward Trigger headed the ball over the pack to a waiting Harley, who neatly pushed the ball into the bottom right side of the goals. The Strikers came from an unconvincing first half to an overwhelming attacking rush to defeat the cougars 3 - 0.
In perfect conditions for football the U17’s began strongly against the Northern Allstars; both defensively against some early opposition pressure and also attacking at every opportunity. The opposition was vocal but the boys concentrated on their game plan and a clever goal to Patrick Karras was a reward for their team effort. Late in the first half a second goal from Jason Spirovski gave the team a 2-0 lead going into the break. An unbelievable effort from Micheal Trigger at kickoff in the second half nearly resulted in a goal to remember with the ball just hitting the crossbar. After that effort there was no turning back and the team kept pushing forward with some great balls deep putting extreme pressure on the Northern defence while our defence was magnificent. Micheal Trigger, already creating havoc, kicked a wonderful final goal to record a deserving 3-0 win. Overall, this was a really strong team effort!
