Burnie dispose of Zebras to reach semi-finals

Photos (Top to Bottom): Burnie's Kaimon Johnson fights for possession with Zebras' Henry Fagg as Paul Cairns looks on; Zebras' Jonathon Ladic (right) flies for a header with Burnie's Ashley Smith; Zebras' Matt Hall gets the ball under control; A midfield aerial duel; Zebras' Dwayne Walsh controls the ball in the box with his back to goal; Zebras' Dwayne Walsh has a shot blocked in a crowded goalmouth; Zebras' Dwayne Walsh gets a header in midfield; Zebras' Jayden Welch shoots past the far post; Burnie keeper Bradley Ryan blocks a Jayden Welch shot; Zebras are thwarted inside the box by stout Burnie defending; Zebras' Ricky Self pursued by Burnie's Mark Ambrose; Burnie keeper Bradley Ryan can only watch as Matt Hall's shot flies wide of his right-hand post; Scorer Chris Smith (No.9) is congratulated by a team-mate; Burnie's Chris Smith receives the plaudits of his team-mates for a goal; Burnie's Kyrone Johnson can't bear to look as team-mate Jeremy di Bomford receives treatment before being stretchered off [PlessPix]

Tilford Zebras 1-3 Burnie United

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Tilford Zebras had no answer to Burnie United’s fast, physical and direct style of play. The visitors also had skill and their three goals were delightfully created and finished in style.

They might have had a fourth at the start of the second half, but the ball was adjudged not to have crossed the line.

Burnie’s first goal came in the 18th minute and demonstrated all of the above qualities. A good build-up through midfield, a first-time curling pass by Kyrone Johnson, and a neat finish by Chris Smith, who beat Jason Voss with a precise low drive inside the far left-hand post.

It was 2-0 for the visitors in the 23rd minute. An attack down the left had the Zebras defence stranded and in Chris Smith flicked the ball on for Mark Ambrose to cut inside his marker and beat Voss from just inside the box.

Zebras had several good chances to score, but their shots were either directed into the side-netting or over the goal. Burnie’s stout defending also made it difficult for the home side. Michael Wolfert was tidy at the back for Burnie, while goalkeeper Bradley Ryan was brave and efficient.

Matt Hall, Jonathon Ladic and Jayden Welch were all denied by Ryan and Wolfert, and when Zebras did get the ball in the net, an assistant referee’s flag ruled it out for off-side.

The second half began with a sensational burst of speed by Chris Smith to outpace youngster Jordan Muller down the inside-right channel, but Smith’s shot was blocked on the line and cleared, despite some appeals that the ball had crossed the line.

Toby Macgregor replaced Hall midway through the second half and he added some strength to the Zebras attack, that was badly missing Ben Crosswell.

In the 69th minute, Zebras finally found a goal, but it was a soft one for Burnie to concede, Ladic’s low drive through a crowded box catching Ryan unsighted and sneaking past him and into the net.

With 12 minutes remaining, Astyn Johnson killed off the game with Burnie’s third goal after a low left-wing cross from Mark Ambrose again revealing the deficiencies of the Zebras’ defence.

Welch had a penalty appeal turned down 10 minutes from the end, while Dwayne Walsh headed a good chance wide in the dying stages of the game.

Zebras were beaten by a better and more determined side in the end, and one which had disposed of Glenorchy Knights at the same venue earlier in the season in a Milan Lakoseljac Memorial Trophy match.

Burnie are now away to Northern Rangers in the semi-finals of this State-wide Top-Four Finals series.

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Tilford Zebras coach, Romeo Frediani, said:

“A tough game. We knew it was always going to be tough. Any team that comes down on the road is going to want to take points back. And, they did.

“They scored two simple goals in the first half. We just gave them too much room. The last 20 minutes of the first half, I thought we put a lot of pressure on them.

“The same in the second half, but we just couldn’t hit the back of the net. We had enough chances.

“Yeah, it was touch and go [about getting a penalty or two]. Sean [Collins] is not going to give you anything if he’s not going to pull up a head-butt. He’s not going to give you a penalty. [The head-butt] was on Henry Fagg. I mean, the ball was out of play and a guy walked past and head-butted him. So, you know, if he’s not going to pull that up, he’s not going to give you a penalty. So, yeah, pretty poor refereeing. I can say that because it’s the last game of the season.

“I don’t know [about coaching next year]. It depends on what the committee wants me to do.”

Burnie United coach, Sam Cocks, said:

“I thought the boys lifted again. Zebras came out fighting pretty hard. We knew it was going to be a hard battle.

“The game plan we worked on during the week worked well. We thought the Zebras would attack and attack, so we went to a 4-4-2 set-up which we haven’t played all year.

“The boys stepped up and it was just a great win. I thought in the second half the Zebras came out fighting harder and we were a bit tired in the feet and legs. Credit to the boys. We did let an easy goal in, but we kept on fighting and fighting.

“Credit to the Zebras. They kept pushing and pushing, too. All in all, it was good game and, you know, we were probably, not lucky, but deserved it that little bit more, I thought.

“[As for the chance just after half-time], I was pretty sure the ball was over the line. Smithy knocked it in and I was sort of backing it up. It did look like it, but we’re not...the officials aren’t robots. It happens here, it happens in Premier League, so you just get on with the game.”

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Tilford Zebras: Voss - Fagg, Telega, Muller, K Engels - Self, Ladic, Cairns, Welch - Walsh, Hall (Macgregor 68) [Substitute not used: L Engels]

Goals: Ladic 69

Booked: Fagg, Telega, Ladic, Cairns

Burnie United: Ryan - Scolyer, Van Ek, Kaimon Johnson (Tyler Johnstone 86), Wolfert - Kyrone Johnson, Ambrose, Ashley Smith, De Bomford (Astyn Johnson 35) - Chris Smith, Sam Cocks [Substitute not used: Scott Parke]

Goals: Chris Smith 18, Ambrose 23, Astyn Johnson 78

Booked: Astyn Johnson, Kaimon Johnson, Ashley Smith

Att: 150 (KGV Park)

Ref: S Collins

Liverpool win for the first time this season in the English Premier League

Liverpool got their first win of the English Premier League season when they beat West Bromwich Albion 1-0 at Anfield on Sunday [Monday morning Tasmanian time].

A superb second-half strike by Fernando Torres in the 66th minute earned The Reds the three points.

It was Liverpool’s 350th Premier League win and their 2,000th league win overall.

The goal was Torres’s first for Liverpool since 28th March and his 50th goal at Anfield. His reaching of the 50-goal mark is the fastest of any Liverpool player.

The goal came after an expert one-two between Torres and Dirk Kuyt which sent the latter down the left wing. When Kuyt chipped the ball back into the middle, Torres finished with a marvellous volley from the edge of the box.

Liverpool had a penalty appeal for hands turned down late in the match by a very lenient referee, Lee Probert, after a Torres shot had been blocked by the outstretched arm of defender Gonzalo Jara.

Probert did, however, send off James Morrison in the closing minutes after the West Bromwich Albion player had gone over the top in a tackle on Torres.

Probert had done nothing all game, however, about blatant shirt pulling and wrestling inside the box at corner-kicks. Liverpool’s Martin Skrtel was particularly guilty of this and at one stage wrestled an opponent to the ground in full view of the referee, who did nothing.

Torres almost had a second goal in the 71st minute when Steven Gerrard picked him out at the far post with a cross from the left, but Albion keeper Scott Carson produced a splendid block from almost point-blank range.

Melbourne record their first victory of the A-League season

Melbourne Victory won their first game in this season’s A-League competition when they downed Gold Coast United 1-0 away at Skilled Park this afternoon [Sunday].

The attendance of 3,624 was the lowest A-League attendance in four years.

A brilliant goal in the 20th minute settled the issue. Carlos Hernandez played an inch-perfect pass through the Gold Coast defence for Robbie Kruse, who touched the ball past the advancing keeper Glenn Moss and rounded the custodian before finding the net from an acute angle on the right.

Gold Coast, insoired by captain Jason Culina, fought back but were unable to find an equaliser despite some excellent chances.

A minute after the goal, the home side should have levelled when Culina floated in a cross from the left, but James Brown failed to get the vital touch and Roddy Vargas was able to put the loose ball to safety.

In the 28th minute, Culina put Adama Traore away on the left and he cut inside and unleashed a fierce angled drive which was parried by keeper Michael Petkovic. The ball looped towards the far right-hand post, where Gol-Gol Mebrahtu nodded wide.

Culina sent in a vicious volley on the half-hour which was superbly saved by Petkovic.

In the 39th minute, Michael Thwaite shot just wide from range for the Gold Coast.

The second half proved just as unproductive for Gold Coast United and Melbourne held out for an important win.

The home side badly missed striker Shane Smeltz. The Kiwi international is in negotiations with a Turkish club. His replacement is likely to be Bruce Djite.

Heartbreak for Heart

Being a newcomer to any competition is difficult. That is especially so in the A-League.

Melbourne Heart made it four matches without a win tonight when they were held to a 2-2 draw at home at AAMI Stadium by Perth Glory before a crowd of 6,000.

The Heart had little luck. They conceded a terrible own-goal, and then a dubious penalty in the fourth minute of stoppage time at the end of the match brought them undone.

The Heart scored early from a penalty of their own and led 2-1 at the interval. They withstood enormous pressure in the second half and seemed all set to record their first win when they succumbed to a penalty converted by Robbie Fowler.

Alex Terra was impeded in the 3rd minute by Naum Sekulovski and Gerald Sibon converted the spot kick, his first goal of the season, to give Heart the lead. It was the giant Sibon, in fact, who had played the through-ball for Terra to get into the box before being brought down.

Glory hit back and, in the 8th minute, Todd Howarth went close when he fired a good chance just over the bar from an angle on the left.

Matt Thompson missed a great chance to extend the Heart’s lead in the 12th minute when the Glory defence found itself outnumbered, but the ultimate man-of-the-match shot tamely from an angle.

In the 19th minute, it was 1-1. Fowler curled an inswinger from the right and Brendan Hamill, under pressure from Glory’s Branko Jelic, got a touch with his head, but only enough to help the ball strike Michael Marrone in the chest and bounce into the Heart net with keeper Clint Bolton helpless.

Nick Kelmar restored the Heart’s lead in the 37th minute. A Dean Heffernan free-kick from wide on the right was not cleared by the Glory defence and, when the ball carried to the far left-hand side of the box, Kelmar controlled it and cut inside before scoring with a low curling shot inside the far post.

Jelic had a half-chance for the Glory in the 56th minute following Steven McGarry’s cross from the left, but he nodded the ball high and wide of the target.

Jelic was replaced by Michael Baird in the 61st minute. Baird was finally playing after long delays in obtaining a clearance from Romanian club Universitatea Craiova.

Bolton produced a brilliant save from Fowler in the 71st minute as Glory dominated the second half.

In the 80th minute, Bolton again produced a marvellous save, this time from the marauding Sekulovski, who had been put into the box by Howarth.

Two minutes into stoppage time, Baird appeared to dive as he worked his way past Heart substitute Kliment Taseski and the referee, Kurt Ams, who was in charge of his first A-League match, pointed to the penalty spot.

Fowler notched his first goal for Glory by converting the spot-kick and maintaining his side’s unbeaten start to the season.