Junior game was worthwhile watching

Every now and then I get to watch a youth game that impresses me greatly.

Photo:  The Glenorchy Knights Under-13 squad with coacj Josh Dingjan and manager Marina Brkic. [PlessPix] 

Last Saturday, I watched an under-13 game between Glenorchy Knights and Olympia Warriors at Empire Couriers Park.

Knights were the league champions and it was the last game of the season for both sides.

It resulted in a 0-0 draw, but the quality of football was encouraging.

Photo:  Olympia Warriors' Under-13s, with coaches Robert Lebski (left) and Chris Tsakiris (second from right). [PlessPix]
 

Players showed great skills and a willingness to take players on rather than play innocuous square passes or back-passes.

The emphasis was on attack and often featured two-touch football.

But, players were also willing to try little tricks and to stand on the ball without panicking and to slow the game down before making a clever move.

Photo:  Action from the game. [PlessPix]  

The two goalkeepers were outstanding.

A penalty was also squandered, but overall, it showed that a goalless draw can involve exciting football.

My congratulation to both teams, and to the coaches.

Photo:  A Knights attacker striding out. [PlessPix]  

The Knights’ Josh Dingjan, and the Warriors’ Chris Tsakiris and Robert Lebski, are obviously doing something right.

All three coaches have been players and it’s gratifying to see them putting back into the game.

It will be interesting to see how many of these players make the senior ranks in the years to come.

Photo:  An Olympia attacker takes on a Knights defender. [PlessPix]
 

Photo:  Football Tasmania's David Smith hands out the league champion medals to the Knights players, who were called out one by one by captain Eddie Huigsloot (right). [PlessPix]

Photo:  Action from the adjoining grass pitch between Olympia Warriors and Kingborough Lions United. [PlessPix] 

Sunday results - 28 August 2022

Photo: Action from today's Women's Southern Championship game at Clare Street between New Town White  Eagles and Clarence Zebras. [PlessPix] 

Women’s Southern Championship

New Town White Eagles 0-0 Clarence Zebras

Kingborough Lions United 0-6 Glenorchy Knights

Taroona 0-10 University

Photo:  Olympia Warriors' Kate Chambers gets a pass away against Hobart City Beachside in today's Southern Women's Championship 1 game at Empire Couriers Park. [PlessPix]  

Photo:  Goal coming up for Hobart City Beachside against Olympia Warriors today. [PlessPix] 

Photo:  A Clarence Zebras defender clears in the Men's Southern Championship 3 game at Wentworth Park today. [PlessPix] 

Men’s Southern Championship Over-35s

Phoenix Rovers 2-7 University

Metro 1-3 Huon Valley

South Hobart 0-3 Hobart United

Photo:  Hobart United's Mohand Rahni (right) tackles a South Hobart opponent in the Men's Southern Championship 3 game at South Hobart Oval today. [PlessPix]

Photo:  Action from today's Over-35's social league game between Phoenix Rovers and University at Wentworth Park today. [PlessPix]

Photo:  Metro's Geoff Price wins a header in the Over-35s Social League game against Huon Valley at North Chigwell today. [PlessPix]

 

Devonport show why they are worthy champions

Photo:  Roberto Fernadez Garrido scored his first penalty of the game after a Devonport player almost had his shirt torn off  bis back by a South Hobart opponent. [PlessPix]

Devonport Strikers showed why they are worth 2022 NPL Tasmania champions by blowing away second-placed South Hobart 3-0 at South Hobart Oval on Saturday.

South Hobart had no answers to Devonport’s charge and were very disappointing in both attack and defence.

The mind games began before kick-off.

Quite correctly, South Hobart formed a guard of honour for the champions as they came down the players’ race and onto the pitch.

But, Devonport then formed their pre-match team huddle in South Hobart’s usual half of the pitch.

South’s Jayden Hey stuck his head into the Devonport huddle for a brief second before joining his team-mates in their huddle in the same half of the pitch as Devonport.

Whether the fact they didn’t have their half of the pitch to themselves before kick-off peeved South Hobart, it was difficult to tell, but it certainly defied convention and was a bit of an affront to the home side.

Photo:  Two skippers in action. South Hobart's Nick Morton under pressure from Devonport's Kieran Mulraney. [PlessPix]  

South Hobart were under pressure from the start and they fell behind as early as the 5^th minute when a stupid shirt-pull by a defender in the box gifted the visitors a penalty, which was duly despatched by the league’s leading scorer, Roberto Fernandez Garrido.

It stayed 1-0 until the break and South Hobart rarely looked as if they would get back into this game.

Garrido had one more chance before half-time when he broke through, but with only the goalkeeper to beat, he shot wide.

Nick Lanau-Atkinson made it 2-0 with a simple finish on the hour after breaking through the South Hobart defence down the right.

Photo:  Nick Lanau-Atkinson makes it 2-0 for Devonport. [PlessPix]  

Another needless penalty in the 78^th minute gave Garrido his second goal of the match and took his season’s tally to 18 goals in 16 league games.

Photo:  Garrido makes it 3-0 with his second penalty of the match, conceded after a needless trip on an opponent by a South Hobart defender. [PlessPix] 

On Friday night, Kingborough Lions United scraped home 2-1 against Olympia Warriors at Clennett’s Lightwood Park.

Tyson Barrett gave Olympia the leas after just 7 minutes when the Lions failed to deal with a corner by Samuel Cummins from the right.

Declan Taylor equalised in the 19^th minute after Alfred Hess’s long ball out of defence had created a chance for Adam McKeown, whose shot was parried by goalkeeper Mitch Stalker.

The Warriors’ defence failed to clear, enabling Taylor to fire home from the edge of the box.

Photo:  Kingborough's Greg Downes (right) shields the ball from Olympia's Samuel Cummins.  The perfect weather this weekend makes one long for the days when there were top-flight games on Friday nights and then on Saturday and Sunday afternoons.  The policy of playing top-flight matches virtually only on Saturdays is killing the game. [PlessPix]  

The winner came in the 23^rd minute when Noah Mies was put away with a long ball out of defence by Matt Hess and the lanky striker easily outpaced Jake Vandermey before beating Stalker.

Clarence Zebras made absolutely sure of avoiding the wooden spoon when they downed bottom-side Riverside Olympic 1-0 at home at Wentworth Park with a 40^th minute goal from the rejuvenated striker Dwayne Walsh.

Glenorchy Knights made sure of fourth place by downing Launceston City 2-1 away at Buckby Motors Park in Launceston.

After a scoreless opening half, Knights were jolted by an Albert Amankwaa goal 4 minutes into the second period.

But, the promising young striker Lucas Djalakowski, who had scored twice last week, equalised for Knights in the 70^th minute.

Five minutes later, Daniel Schmidt hit the winner for the visitors to make sure of at least fourth spot, and a possibility of second, with two games remaining.

Photo:  Gus Higgins has almost torn Dominic Smith's shirt off to concede a needless penalty. [PlessPix]  

NPL Tasmania Standings (As at 27 August 2022)

TEAM	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Devonport Strikers	19	17	1	1	62	10	52
South Hobart	19	12	3	4	60	21	39
Kingborough Lions	19	12	2	5	50	32	38
Glenorchy Knights	19	12	1	6	43	22	37
Launceston City	19	8	2	9	33	43	26
Clarence Zebras	19	5	2	12	32	44	17
Olympia Warriors	19	2	0	17	20	67	6
Riverside Olympic	19	1	3	15	12	74	6

Photo:  Devonport deliberately occupied South Hobart's traditional half of the pitch for the pre-game huddle. [PlessPix]