Albion Park White Eagles moved back into third spot in the Illawarra Mercury Premier League ladder with a 1-0 win over Picton Rangers at the WIN Stadium on Sunday morning. Riku Iwauchi's first half strike was enough to seal the points for a White Eagles side which almost paid the price for missed chances through the game, as Picton pressed forward in the dying moments of the match.

The Rangers defended well for 90 minutes and are still in line for a Finals berth provided the Wollongong United points deduction goes ahead, though this defeat will make for some nervous moments up at Hume Oval as Picton seek one more win from the last two Rounds to seal that Finals football next month.

The White Eagles welcomed back Chris Nathaniel for his first match since June and he was quickly in on the action up front as Albion Park pressed for an early advantage. Twice he tried to latch onto dangerous crosses from Shohei Okuno in the opening exchanges, his header going inches wide of the upright in the fifth minute.

In the early stages, Picton's job was containment, looking for openings on the break. Set pieces looked like providing the Rangers' best chances but Vaughan Patterson cut out most corners and free kicks as soon as they entered the box.

The White Eagles had to wait till the 23rd minute before they managed to break the deadlock. Peter Prandalos, who had an outstanding match both in defence and attacking up the left, drove the ball into the area from the left and Iwauchi flicked the ball into the net before Picton's defence had a chance to react.

The Rangers responded immediately, though. Dayne Morley sent in a cross from the left, finding Mitch Hall in space, but Bryce Daenell was good enough in the White Eagles goal to keep his side in front. 

Moments later, Picton pressed forward again. Aidan Matthews swung a free kick into the box where top scorer Daniel Goodhew managed to get a head on it, but couldn't keep the ball down and it flew over the bar for a goal kick.

Okuno was showing his usual combination of class and energy, appearing all over the park, blocking crosses, cutting out corners and when on the ball himself creating havoc in his wake. He broke clear just past the half hour mark and sought out his compatriot Iwauchi again, with Nicholas Mugridge getting back this time to prevent the shot.

As half time approached, the White Eagles looked certain to score again. And yet again it was Iwauchi and Okuno who built the move with quick fire short passes in and around the area. Dale Nicol blocked one shot before the ball came clear to Prandalos who drove the ball in again looking for a repeat of the opening goal. But this time Iwauchi was millimetres away from getting the final touch.

1-0 was a fair reflection of play at half-time.

The White Eagles came flying out of the box for the second half, looking to finish the job they’d started in the first period.

As usual, Iwauchi and Okuno were in the thick of the action, creating chances all over the field. Okuno twisted and turned, trying to mesmerise the Picton back line into giving way, but over and over again Bradley Durrant in the centre of Picton’s defence got his body in the way or made that crucial final tackle.

Mitch Delturco missed a couple of opportunities as Albion Park pressed forward. First he fired over from the edge of the area, but then he had his best chance in the 65^th minute when Okuno yet again created the opportunity, finding Delturco in space inside the box. But the White Eagles forward hesitated just long enough for Bradley Jones in the Picton goal to ready himself for the shot and keep the scores at 1-0.

But a 1-0 lead is never enough to feel sure of the points and every few minutes Picton would cause a fright for White Eagles fans. Twenty minutes into the second stanza, Picton captain Matthews threaded the ball through to Matt Tesoriero, forcing Daenell to race out and clear.

White Eagles coach Jeff Allport brought on his third Japanese player as substitute and Kotaro Higashi was straight into action in front of goal, setting up Okuno for a left foot shot on target. And the three imports teamed up beautifully to create a great chance in the 72^nd minute, Iwauchi just being beaten to his final touch by Jones who managed to punch clear.

Then it was Iwauchi going it alone, as he took the ball to the byline once again, but this time cut inside and went for goal himself, forcing Jones to save at the second attempt.

And still the chances kept coming for the White Eagles. With five minutes remaining, Okuno found Higashi down the left who fired in a cross towards Iwauchi, who spun on the spot and drove the ball just over the bar. Another opportunity had come and gone, leave the scores at 1-0.

Sensing their chance to profit from White Eagles misses, Picton upped their game for the final few minutes. Hall forced Daenell to make a finger tip save for a corner, from which Tesoriero tried a dramatic scissors kick shot that was cleared for another corner.

Brett Morley made two late changes as the clock ticked towards the 90 minutes. His side won a free kick down the left, which Matthews floated in. Nicol met it with his head and sent the ball looping towards goal; some in the crowd thought it had gone in, but the ball had hit the top netting and the White Eagles held on.

It was a tight finish, though, and tempers frayed at the final whistle, with Mugridge receiving a second yellow as the referee blew for time, meaning he will miss next week’s crucial clash against Wollongong Olympic. Lose that one and the pressure could be really on Picton in the final Round of the regular season.

Albion Park White Eagles are now assured of Finals football, and will go into their last games against South Coast United and Wollongong United hoping to consolidate their third place in the ladder, which would guarantee them at least two Finals rounds next month.

Albion Park White Eagles – 1 (Iwauchi 23’)

Picton Rangers – 0

Sunday 14 August 2016

WIN Stadium

Referee: Bobby Mazevski

Assistant referees: Stuart Bell, Dylan Arvela

Albion Park White Eagles: Bryce Daenell, Ryan Suttle (Darren Jones 87’), Mark Every, Shannon Fielding, Peter Prandalos, Vaughan Patterson, Riku Iwauchi, Robert Delbanco, Mitch Delturco, Shohei Okuno, Chris Nathaniel (Kotaro Higashi 68’) (subs not used: Dejan Djukic, Djordje Uzelac)

Picton Rangers: Brad Jones, Dale Nicol, Daniel Goodhew (Ben Realph 89’), Bradley Durrant, Nicholas Mugridge, Mitchell Hall, Aidan Matthews, Key Mitchell, Matt Tesoriero (Jesse Howard 89’), Dayne Morley, Scott Miranda (Connor Dymond 72’) (subs not used:Michael Takacs, Josh Maiolo)

Report by Simon Duffin

Photo courtesy of Kiah Hufton