Monday May 12 2008

FC Escape with the 3P

Hahndorf were desperately unlucky to concede a late second goal on Saturday, allowing FC Adelaide to escape the Pine Avenue ground with three points, after being behind for most of the match.

Still reeling from its long injury list, Hahndorf were boosted by the return of defensive lynchpin, Neil Slater, back from his overseas adventure. He teamed up well with Wayne Forrester, Michael Stevens and Todd Newman to provide Hahndorf with a solid opening period.

Playing in their unattractive grey-rinse shirts, FC Adelaide took the Magpies a little lightly early on and were probably expecting the game to easily go their way. However the Argentinean Wiz, Martin Moran, backed by the midfield muscle of Ash Parr, Jack Farrimond, Alex Oldham, Craig Cottle and Paul Charles provided a stern test for the visiting side.

In the opening twenty minutes both teams pushed forward looking to take hold of the game and it was Adelaide that just shaded Hahndorf for meaningful possession. But that mattered little as the Magpies went ahead from a corner. Slater emphatically marked his return with a powerful header that arrowed into the back of the net, aided by a slight deflection.

The FC side were stung into action and the following minutes were aggressive as they tried to muscle their way back into the game. A free kick from Adelaide drew a clearing punch from Magpie custodian, Danny Pace, one of several fine pieces of play from the young ‘keeper.

Hahndorf missed a great opportunity to extend their lead minutes later, some Moran magic drawing four defenders before he centred to the unmarked Oldham. Unfortunately an awkward bounce made control difficult and the FC ‘keeper just beat Oldham to the loose ball.

As play progressed, a diabolical and cynical foul, deserving of a card, on fullback Stevens resulted in another worrying injury and he took no further part in the match, being replaced by Owen “Black Pearl” Boyce.

FC Adelaide then put in a series of attacks, driving the Magpies back and drawing some excellent saves from Pace. Adelaide kept up the intensity and had a rifling shot hit the bar before their pressure eventuated in the equaliser, just as half time beckoned.

Showing confidence from the levelling goal, FC continued to pressure the Magpies after the break. The Magpies responded with some great work by Farrimond and Parr battling in the midfield to keep Hahndorf in the contest.

 Forrester almost regained the lead for the Magpies, an attacking free kick for the Magpies just nodded the wrong side of the post and the game settled somewhat after a frantic twenty minutes.

The tiring Slater was replaced by Tyrone Blunt, the Big T giving Hahndorf a valuable physical presence against the burly FC side and later Parr made way for young Jack Goodfellow. Hahndorf defence continued to hold the Adelaide side at bay, defending well under the direction of Forrester and the Black Pearl.

Moran and Oldham were a persistent threat to FC, however their forays forward did not produce many clear cut chances. FC took some midfield control but resolute defence by the Magpies denied them the go ahead goal.

Hahdorf then worked their way back into the game, Farrimond playing beyond his years to gain Hahndorf possession and drawing a free that was ultimately over-hit. A corner soon gave a further chance but Hahndorf could not fashion an attempt on goal. Goodfellow had a fine run down the flank but was dispossessed by the more experienced opposition has he looked to get his shot away. 

As the game drew closer to full time, FC made their possession count, working a free kick in a series of short passes to get into the penalty area. A skilful dummy opened up the goal and Pace had no chance to stop the well struck shot.

The goal was a fatal blow to the Magpies and time ran out before they could mount an effective reply. It was a bitter result for a team that battled hard all day against their more fancied opposition. Outstanding on the day were Farrimond and Pace, their fighting endeavour a great positive despite the result.

Reserves 

The Hahndorf Reserves fought back well in the second half against FC Adelaide but eventually paid dearly for a three goal deficit from the first forty-five minutes to go down 4-0.

Hahndorf lined up with big Nathaniel Brooke in goal and a back line consisting of Ben Wells, veteran Andy Craig, Scott Farrant and young Matt Medley. In front of them were Captain Rupert “the Enforcer” Lindon, Kyle Eglinton, Tom Stevens, Stephen Ness and Brad Coleman with Luke Jones playing the lone role up front.

Hahndorf found themselves on the back foot early, conceding a fairly soft penalty in the first fifteen minutes.  Then Coleman succumbed to a muscle injury and was replaced by Lachlan McQueen, the hard running Magpie put into an unfamiliar position. The visitors soon added a second, a long ball escaping a clearing header and it was worked between the two FC forwards until it was slotted home. A third goal resulted from poor defending of a free kick and things were looking grim with still fifteen minutes left in the half.

However, the Magpie Reserves fought back, Brookes denying any further addition to the score with some fine saves and the defence tightening up on the free runs of the FC players.

In the second half, an injury resulted in Wells being replaced by Vin Chow, the versatile Magpie finding himself at full back. Hahndorf struggled to find a link to the forward line however its defence was solid, with Craig, Chow, Farrant and Medley putting up strong resistance. McQueen ran himself ragged chasing down loose FC midfielders with the Enforcer and Stevens holding the middle, allowing Ness and Eglinton space on the flanks.

The Magpie reserves worked back into the game with chances falling to Jones, Ness and Eglinton but they found the FC ‘keeper in good form. Several long range efforts by McQueen showed Hahndorf were not out of the contest. A third substitution saw Eglinton replaced with Gus Coulls as Hahndorf more than held their own.

The only blemish to their hard work in the second half was a well taken FC free kick late on in the game. From the edge of the penalty box, the curl took the ball away from Brooke and into the goal. Despite the loss, the team showed it was capable of playing good, hard football in the second half with a great contribution by all, McQueen leading the way with his high octane, no compromise approach.

Next week, Hahndorf will be looking to add to their point tally when they travel to the seaside ground of Pt Elliot to take on the Southern Breakers. The Super C’s will host Flinders Uni at Pine Avenue for an 11.30 kick off.