Riverina Rhinos 3 (Keith Jackson 13’, 90’, Connor Earley 74’) def. Belconnen United 1 (Dustin Wells 81’)

The Riverina Rhinos finally got off the mark in the 2019 season with a stunning upset victory, doing enough to see off Belconnen United 3-1 in the pouring rain at Solar Mad Stadium

Key Moments |

Opening goal: A Rhinos corner was floated in and while Finn Jurak did well to save Keith Jackson’s initial header, he was helpless as Jackson was first to the rebound and lashed the ball in to give his team the lead.

Handball: The Rhinos pushed forward and the ball was swung out wide but as it was crossed back in, the ball struck Phil Borgeaud’s hand and the referee pointed to the spot. After some discussion the decision was confirmed, and Connor Earley stepped up to rifle it home and double the lead.

Belco hit back: Belconnen were pushing hard heading into the final ten and after a period of sustained pressure the ball was squared to Dustin Wells at the top of the area and he curled an effort in off the crossbar to give the visitors a glimmer of hope.

The sealer: With time winding down Jackson received the ball with his back to a defender, and turned them cleanly before bearing down on goal and slipping the ball past the keeper to seal the result.

Next up |

Now out of the top four on goal difference, Belconnen face a big test next week as they welcome competition leaders Tigers FC to McKellar Park. They will also be sweating on the health of Jurak who was substituted at half-time after a head knock. Meanwhile, the Rhinos will look to make it back to back wins when they travel to take on Woden-Weston at Melrose.

 

Monaro Panthers 2 (Ben Basser-Silk 16’, Josh Gulevski 32’) drew. Tigers FC (Mark Shields 7’, 70’)

Monaro lifted themselves into third spot on the table on Saturday night with a 2-2 draw against Tigers FC at Riverside Stadium.

Key moments |

Out of nothing: Jakob Cole played the ball out to Darren Bailey and with not much happening, the fullback lashed a volley forwards. It caught the Panthers backline out and Mark Shields was first to it, swinging a first-time effort across his body and into the far corner for the lead.

Equaliser: The Panthers went forward in search of an equaliser and Ben Basser-Silk passed to Niko Kalfas who lofted a lovely ball across goal to Josh Gulevski. He attempted to hit it first time and while the connection wasn’t perfect, Cole couldn’t take it cleanly and Basser-Silk had continued his run and was first to the ball to knock it home.

Panthers lead: Monaro pressure forced a turnover in midfield and miscommunication in the Tigers defense allowed Gulevski time and space in behind and he dispatched his effort past Cole to put the hosts ahead.

Shields saves it: Darren Bailey again turned provider for the equaliser, as a long raking ball forward was nodded into the corner by Shields for his and Tigers second to give his side a share of the points.

Next up |

Tigers will travel to McKellar Park to take on Belconnen in a key game for both teams and Monaro visit Canberra FC with both teams well in the hunt for a top four finish.

 

 

Gungahlin United 2 (Riley Angelosante 1’, Misko Naumoski 73’) def. by Canberra Olympic 7 (Own Goal 16’, Stephen Domenici 21’, 77’, Nik Popovich 45’, 90’, Jay Kelly 45+2’, Andre Jancevski 53’)

By Tim Warren

Canberra Olympic cemented themselves firmly into the top two of the NPL1 ladder with an emphatic 7-2 thumping of Gungahlin United at the AIS on Sunday afternoon.

The victory pulls Olympic within two points of Tigers FC for top spot, meaning that they are in strong contention for the title race as it heads into the final stretch.

Olympic were on the back foot early when Gungahlin netted the opening goal of the game within 50 seconds through a back-post volley from Riley Angelosante after lovely buildup play.

Gungahlin’s lead was short lived though as Olympic found a 16^th minute equaliser through a deflection off Daniel Sparrow’s long-range effort, and they found themselves in the lead not long after.

Stephen Domenici was awarded a penalty after he was brought down in the box by Gungahlin United keeper Jordan Thurtell, and calmly converted the spot-kick in the bottom corner.

Two goals on the stroke of half-time to Nik Popovich and Jay Kelly gave Olympic a comfortable 4-1 advantage heading into the break, which proved too much for Gungahlin to overcome.

The second half started with Olympic’s dominance continuing to shine through, and wonderful cross from Nick Faust found the head of a diving Andre Jancevski to score in the 53^rd minute.

Gungahlin United managed to salvage some form of consolation when they scored their second goal of the afternoon with a tidy chip from Misko Naumoski over Rory Larkin, but it was never enough to spark a comeback.

Olympic’s sixth goal was arguably their best as Popovich beat four defenders before sliding the ball back for Domenici to grab his second.

Popovich rounded out a perfect day for his team by netting his second in the 90^th minute, putting the exclamation mark on Olympic’s 7-2 thumping of Gungahlin on the road.

Gungahlin United will hope to return to the winner’s circle next Sunday when they take on Tuggeranong at Kambah. Canberra Olympic will be looking forward to a weekend of rest as they have the bye.