Bulli FC and Wollongong Olympic both picked up victories in the first round of the Fraternity cup and neither team wanted to give up their undefeated status so early. Olympic were impressive in their win over Woonona while Bulli's strong second half performance saw them defeat Picton in convincing fashion. So this second round clash was shaping up to be a very fascinating bout.

The first 20 minutes of the match proved to be a test of strength. A long battle for consistent possession between the two teams saw neither side able to dominate or have any real clear cut chances. A Long shot from Olympic's Lukas Stergiou was the best chance of the opening 20 minutes yet that sailed comfortably wide. Both side's midfield worked hard for the ball and applied constant pressure on each other while defensively both teams stayed strong.

That was until the 25^th minute, when Bulli's goalkeeper, Jayden Lewis, made a crucial error in distributing the ball to the wrong team, gifting Olympic's John Martinoski a golden opportunity to put his side in front with their first genuine attempt. But quick reactions from the Bulli defence snuffed it out before Martinoski could pull the trigger. A shock scare for Bulli and a wasted chance for Olympic.

The first half finished with Bulli starting to dominate more of the ball and begin to attack further down the pitch, yet Olympic's defence stood tall and deservedly went to the half time break at 0-0.

The second half took off where the first half finished, with Bulli dominating more and more of the ball creating half chances yet their final pass seemed to be lacking. A swift counter attack by Olympic was almost snuffed out by Bulli's defender Corey Horner but a second attempt at the ball saw him commit a foul on the Olympic attacker. A cheeky free kick was laid off to the right hand side of the wall in which found Olympic's Martinoski in open space. He then squandered his shot putting it straight into Yuya Kuwada's safe hands.

From the Bulli keeper's excellent disposal,they countered with rapid pace earning a corner. The corner was whipped in with in swinging curl onto the head of Horner, which accelerated the ball smashing against the crossbar. Bulli's determination to break the deadlock started to overpower the Olympic defence.

In the 18^th minute of the second half Olympic's defence finally gave way. In which must have been one of the strangest ever goals scored in the Fraternity cup, A quick one-two between Bulli's Ryan Emerton and Guy Knight opened the defence up allowing Knight space inside the area, before a bamboozling event occurred when Bulli's own striker, McDonald almost tackled Knight, touching the ball and then somehow managing to get out of the way, allowing Knight to break the deadlock with McDonald trying to claim the assist.

But the event didn't break the focus of Bulli. When the ball found Sam Davis feet through a soft clearance from the Olympic defence, He only had one option in mind. Driving the ball with his laces from far outside the area, the ball smashed against the post, coming back out. The defence were stunned by the ability of Bulli to flick the switch and start to dominate the game via their attacking qualities. The qualities then paid off again when a low driven cross from Dylan Lewis on the right side missed everybody except for the unmarked Nick Miceski who was waiting on the back post. The number 15 had no problem finishing the ball into the roof of the net.

Bulli continued to press forward and making their attacking presence felt. They dominated the ball and continued to have a lot more chances then Olympic. Bulli should have had another goal after a foul was committed 28 yards out. With the outside of the boot Emerton, struck the ball clean with plenty of venom. Hayden Durose then produced the save of the match, diving to his left with outstretched hands, pushing it around the post, keeping Olympic in the match.

In the 32^nd minute a swift counter by Olympic saw them run down the field before Martinoski was brought down inside the Bulli penalty area. The officials gave the clear cut penalty and opened up a chance for Wollongong to stage what would have to be a very quick comeback. Martinoski stepped up and converted the penalty, sending the Bulli keeper the wrong way.

Olympic looked promising for the remaining 3 minutes but they could not penetrate the Bulli defence.

The game finished Bulli 2, Wollongong Olympic 1.

Sunday 26^th February.

King Mickey Park, Warilla

Bulli-2 ( G.Knight 53', N.Miceski 59')

Wollongong Olympic-1 ( J.Martinoski 67')

Bulli- J.Lewis, K.Jackson,S.Best, C.Horner, L.Clements, A.Gamble, D.Lewis, G.Knight, B.McDonald, H. Callahan, M. Beattie.

Subs- K.Takahashi, S.Davis, R.Emerton, N.Miceski, Y.Kuwada

Wollongong Olympic- H.Durose, H.Lloyd, J.Keating, J.Duczynski, M.Aloegninou, L.Sterhiou, H.Brown, M.Galanti, Y. Ueda, J.Martinoski, N.Pires

Subs- D.Thompson, V.Lechner, J.Wareling, J.Michalopoulos.

Report by Liam Emerton
Photo by Pedro Garcia (Library photo)