James Murphy
GAMBIER CENTRALS 10 d BLUE LAKE 1
AFTER a couple of weeks in the wilderness, Gambier Centrals returned to the winner’s list in the final minor round of Limestone Coast soccer with a 10-1 triumph over Blue Lake.
The Lions may have narrowly missed out on the minor premiership to Inter, but have rebuilt some confidence heading into finals.
After disappointing losses to Apollo and Inter, Centrals was eager to return to its best and did so in stylish fashion.
Played on the Rangers’ home deck, the hosts showed positive signs early and the opening 25 minutes was a tight tussle.
Centr+9als captain Cameron Saint put the first goal on the board, but a penalty rewarded Blue Lake’s Lay Bae Htoo with the equaliser shortly after.
An arm wrestle followed, as both teams tried to find the upper hand.
“Their mids got on the ball early and really looked to take it to us,” Centrals coach Brodey Koop said.
“But once we got a couple of goals on the board we really took control.”
By half time the margin was 4-1, before Centrals put the foot down in the second term and the floodgates opened.
Once the Lions settled into the game, Koop felt they held control for the rest of the match.
“It took us a little bit to get used to the pitch – it was a bit heavy underfoot,” he said.
“Once we got on top of that and our mids started working into the game, we took control.
“We got back to what we do best.”
Sam Shoemark and Saint were prolific around goal, with four and three respectively.
Shoemark played more of a midfield role on Sunday and joined Christian Fleetwood as a standout for the Lions.
“Sam was brilliant again and I thought a lot of our work came from Christian Fleetwood in the midfield on the weekend.
“It was probably his best game for the year.”
Lewis March made an impact down the wing and after a disrupted season due to injury, has started to look dangerous.
He also finished off with a goal, a did Fleetwood and youngster Richard Kinyabugma.
Koop was pleased to bounce back from the previous rounds’ disappointment and looks forward to a rematch against Inter in the qualifying final in a couple of weeks.
“I don’t think anyone was too happy with our previous couple of weeks performances,” he said.
“We just wanted to get back to what makes us who we are and start playing a brand of football we can hold a hat to.
“It was good to get back and get the confidence going in the boys again.”
INTERNATIONAL 3 d NARACOORTE 2
INTERNATIONAL was given a scare as it looked to wrap up the minor premiership in the final round of Limestone Coast soccer.
The boys in black and blue visited Naracoorte with a couple of key absences and only narrowly claimed the win to stay on top of the table.
Naracoorte was well prepared and its early pressure was rewarded with the first goal of the game in the opening minutes.
Inter fought hard for the equaliser but was met by a strong defence, with Naracoorte keeper Brad Pilven in fine form.
It was not until the 18th minute of the clash Caleb Casey was able to level the scores with a free kick.
However, a second goal from the hosts before half time gave them the advantage heading into the break.
Not to be outdone, Inter coach Vlada Gajic reshuffled his lineup and with a raise of intensity the guests were able to generate plenty of chances in the second half.
Eventually Matt Bueti levelled the scores, before he set up Matt Ferguson shortly after to put Inter in front.
A late penalty went unrewarded for Bueti, but Inter remained strong and held off the opposition until the final whistle to secure a one-goal win over their fourth-placed rivals.
APOLLO 11 d MILLICENT 0
IT was a matter of going through the motions for Apollo when it hosted Millicent for Round 15 of Limestone Coast soccer.
The Webb Street hosts went untroubled as they powered to an 11-0 win and enter this week’s bye full of confidence prior to finals.
As always the goals were shared around with Jack Donehue and Say Say Wah both scoring hat tricks, while Reuben van Eyk bagged two.
Tobbei Kennett made his return to the pitch from injury and scored one goal, with Robbie Nagy and Si Pler Htoo also found the back of the net once each.
The LCFA competition now enters a week off for the South Australian Junior Soccer Association Country Championships in Mildura before finals kick off on September 4.
