Photo: Tonight's venue and opponents will bring back some unpleasant memories for South Hobart's Nick Morton [PlessPix]
Kingborough Lions United have a second crack at making
the Lakoseljac Cup semi-finals when they meet South Hobart at 7.30pm at KGV
Park in a replay of their quarterfinal.
South Hobart won the original quarterfinal match between
the sides 3-1 at South Hobart Oval on 6 September.
But, Football Tasmania ordered a replay after an error
was discovered on the South Hobart teamsheet.
And what an error it was.
Tobias Herweynen had been listed as a substitute but started, while
Kasper Hallam, who had been listed as a starter was on the bench.
It was purely a clerical error, yet Football Tasmania, in
its wisdom, declared the result null and void and ordered a replay.
Surely a fine for South Hobart and the result to stand
would have been the proper outcome?
Now we have the situation where Kingborough get a second chance
and South Hobart lose home advantage.
It sucks, but having said that, we football fans who love
the game can take comfort in the fact that we get to see another game, and in
midweek, too.
South Hobart may be without midfielder Kobe Kemp, who
went off injured in last Saturday’s 6-3 loss to Olympia Warriors.
His absence would be a huge blow to South Hobart as Kemp
is a ball winner and can also be dangerous when pushing forward, and at
set-pieces.
South Hobart’s biggest problem is in defence.
Declan Foley is not a defender and he is proving
vulnerable at the back.
South Hobart are also squandering chances up front and
they’ll have to get these two areas right if they are to win tonight’s replay.
Andy Brennan will have to fire, while the inclusion of
Sam Tooze could be an interesting idea.
Nick Morton is in fine form this season and can usually
be relied upon for goals.
This is even more remarkable because it was at this very
venue on a Wednesday night just over a year ago (28 August 2019) that Morton
suffered a badly broken leg in the NPL catch-up game between South Hobart and
Kingborough.
It was a horrific injury and it is thanks to the medical
skills of today and the physical and mental determination of Morton that he is playing
again this season.
Kingborough Lions United are an unpredictable side. When they show up, they can be dangerous.
They haven’t shown up in recent weeks and have lost their
past two games, including a 7-0 hiding at tonight’s venue, KGV Park.
Last Saturday, they lost 3-1 away to reigning league
champions Devonport City.
That’s 10 goals conceded and only one scored in the past
two games.
They will again miss the suspended Davis Bryan, while
everyone must be wondering if midfielder Shane Cartwright will miraculously reappear.
He’s been missing through injury for many weeks and his
return would boost Kingborough’s chances.
Central defender Luke Bighin is likely to be another absentee. He has missed several weeks because of a calf
injury.
South Hobart should win, but it should never have got to
this.
Photo: South Hobart will ensure their paper work in regard to who is on the bench and who is starting is correct tonight [PlessPix]
Photo: South Hobart's Andy Brennan takes on Kingborough's Keenan Douce. Brennan netted twice in the match while Douce rattled the crossbar with a long-range effort that saw Joel Sammut tap home the rebound. [PlessPix] 
