Senior Boys Runners Up in Gippsland Soccer Finals
Twelve senior boys left Bairnsdale early in heavy rain to compete in the Gippsland soccer finals. When they reached Morwell the rain had stopped but a strong south westerly was blowing across the muddy grounds. They quickly changed and took the field in the first match against arch rival and regular winner Kurnai College. In a bright start Stephen McShane put Nathan Storer in the clear and he slotted on the post keeper 1-0 after two minutes, a promising start.
The Kurnai boys knew they were in a match and lifted. With many players in the Gippsland Soccer League they began to take control in the midfield and kicking with the wind they scored to level. A few minutes later a long shot in swirling winds went over the keeper 1-2.
Ethan Tunstall was withstanding lots of pressure and making saves to keep the team in the game.
Some fine play by Kurnai and defensive lapses in a ten minute period saw the score balloon to 1-4 at half time.
The second half saw the Bairnsdale boys dig deep and work hard to get to contests. Ethan again made some fine saves while Jack Van Reyk and Fredy Fidelisi were getting more of the ball in midfield.
The Kurnai players were handling the conditions better and scored again dispite some fine defensive efforts by Willy Maynard, Kobi Cook and Mitchell Meade. A long ball from Brad Stephens found Nathan, who with a fine first touch and a crisp finish scored his second goal before the final whistle 2-5.
The second match was against the Leongatha “footy team!” Nathan again scored early after beating three players 1-0. The wind had increased and light rain began to fall. Year 10 student Jake Pilgrim, a last minute call up, was contesting many balls and providing run on the right.The lack of skill by the Leongatha boys was resulting in “scrambly” congested play and the refereeing left a bit to be desired.
Some good interchange between Jack, Fredy and Nathan resulted in a shot at goal which the keeper pushed away only to see Bryce Riches swoop and score 2-0. Nathan had a couple of other chances that went high or wide. A couple of free kicks also missed the target or were cleared before he scored his third of the match.
The second half saw the ‘footy team’ become increasingly aggressive when beaten by skill. A goal by Leongatha saw the score line go to 3-1. Mitchell Meade had moved forward after Bryce had to come off with cramps. Matt Stephens was working hard on the left of the field. A couple of chances were there but the team was unable to convert. In a midfield clash three Leongatha boys converged on Jake and all the referee did was produce a yellow card. The game continued with many more borderline challenges and the referee having less control. A running bump took out Nathan near the edge of the box, free kick. Nathan stepped up to take the free over the wall and into the back of the net 4-1 at the finish.
The final game was against Warragul who had defeated Leongatha and lost to Kurnai 3-0. This was a chance to finish the day on a high and at least be runners up.
A quick kick off followed by a sharp pass by Jack saw Nathan in the clear and for the third game in a row he scored early 1-0. With both teams playing their third game in less than three hours they began to tire. Passes were going astray and the quality of play was falling.
The ball was mainly going between the defensive lines and a fine cross from Stephen saw Matt run in and score 2-0.
Bryce was still down with cramps while Ethan was full of confidence stopping shots and running to the edges of the box to gather balls.
Nathan again broke on the right beating several players before scoring his second for the match and his seventh of the day 3-0 at half time.
The second half saw two very tired teams take the ground. Both sides made positional changes to share their workload and give other players an opportunity. Warragul scored a goal late after the ball ‘stopped’ in a puddle catching the defence out of position. 3-1. The game continued in good sportsmanship and spirit.
The team returned in bright sunshine as runners up which was an excellent effort given the players missing including Brazilian exchange student Nino.
Congratulation Boys
Kobi Cook, Fredy Fidelisi, Stephen McShane, Mitchell Meade, Bryce Riches, Bradley Stephens, Mathew Stephens, Nathan Storer, Ethan Tunstall, Jack Van Reyk, Willy Maynard, Jake Pilgrim.