Elizabeth Park played host to two sides at the opposite ends of the table. The home side came into the clash on the back of a heavy defeat to front runners Fernhill while Coniston was looking for a return to form after no wins in their last three outings.

Coniston opted to rest star striker Dinko Terzic after he sustained a knock against Thirroul. His replacement, Adrian Blazevski came close 3 minutes into the match through a free kick from 25 metres out. Blazevski’s signature left boot forcing Ben Levei into a solid stop to his left.

In the 11th minute, Franc Piero had an excellent chance after a darting run from Jimmy Barrios. The wide man laid through his captain who cleared the goal by some distance with just the goalkeeper to beat.

Bellambi’s best opportunity of the opening half came in the 32nd minute. Striker Yasufumi Miyamoto got on the end of a delightful dinked ball and with just Alex Makin in the Coniston goal to beat he scuffed his shot which bobbled off the ‘keeper before being cleared by a defender.

With 10 minutes before the interval, Piero had another chance to put his side ahead. This time Brad Moreira cut open the Bellambi defence with a penetrating pass, Piero got on the end of it before placing the ball into Levei’s arms - the Rosellas’ number 1 could not believe his luck.

The teams went into the break at 0-0. Bellambi must have been the happier of the two sides with the gulf on the table not reflected on the scoreboard. With a bit more luck the Rosellas could even have had the halftime advantage.

From the start of the second half, Coniston looked more determined to impose themselves and nine minutes into the second half they had their goal. Barrios dribbled down the left wing before finding Moreira in the box. The young midfielder headed the ball towards the goal where Piero managed to bundle it past Levei.

Bellambi were now forced to move higher up the park. This gave Coniston more opportunities to increase their advantage. In the 62nd minute, Moreira played a perfect 20-metre lob over the Bellambi back line for Ryan Vandenberg but the former Shell Cove player scuffed his effort.

This miss was nearly punished by the home side when a minute later Miyamoto set up his compatriot, Keisuke Sato on the left side of the box. Sato tried to hit it across Makin but the Coniston custodian spread himself to deny an equaliser.

In the 75th minute, Vandenberg missed another fantastic opportunity. He found himself on the edge of the Rosella’s box in a two vs two situation and attempted to chip Levei who was standing on his goal line. The chip sailed wide and he would have been better off playing through his teammate for a clear shot on goal.

With 10 minutes remaining the Rosellas earned themselves a corner. Miyamoto floated the cross into the box for the unmarked Mitch Hoswell who headed straight at Makin. A golden opportunity to draw level.

Bellambi pushed players forward for the final five minutes but they could not manage to test Makin and the game dwindled to its conclusion. A much-needed win for Coniston while Bellambi’s effort was ultimately unrewarded.

The win keeps Coniston is third place after Fernhill and Warilla both picked up wins. “Consistency is the key if you want to be a title contender,” Coniston coach Willy Alarcon said as his side looks to put together back to back wins when they host Wests Illawarra next Saturday. Alarcon believes Terzic should be back into full training on Tuesday and fit for the clash with Wests.

As for Bellambi, the defeat sees them drop to the foot of the table after Balgownie picked up their first win of the season. Coach Tim Hooker praised his side and highlighted his experienced centre-backs Gary Newall and David Kiss, “Gazza and Davey probably had their best games of the season.” Bellambi have a quick turnaround, facing University on Sunday in a match Hooker described as “must win” as his side pursues the points need to move off the bottom of the ladder.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Post match interviews with the two coaches - https://soundcloud.com/dylanarvela/post-match-interviews-after-coniston-edge-out-bellambi

Bellambi Rosellas - 0
Coniston FC - 1 (Piero 54’)

Saturday 29th of April 2017 at Elizabeth Park, Bellambi

Bellambi Rosellas - Ben Levai, Daniel Harrington, David Kiss, Gary Newall, Joel Thompson, Blake Ross, Mitch Hoswell, Mathew Kocic, Liam Ross, Yasufumi Miyamoto and Keisuke Sato

Subs - Jack McNamara, Darren Carney, Mathew Wallace (on for Harrington), Connor Pontarolo (on for Sato) and Tim Hooker (on for Ross)

Coach - Tim Hooker

Coniston FC - Alex Makin, Patrik Susnja, Ryan Vandenberg, Vasko Mitkovski, Matt Cuda, Brad Moreira, Dusan Kolonja, Rory Evan, Adrian Blazevski, Franc Piero and Jimmy Barrios

Subs - Frank Gaudiosi, Adam Akkoc (on for Evans), Connor O’Neil, John Liddle (on for Kolonja) and Matthew Stojanoski (on for Blazevski)

Coach - Willy Alarcon

Referee - Caleb Blanch

Assistant Referee - Mick Agim and Maya Francis

Report by Dylan Arvela on Twitter @dylanarvela

Photos by Pedro Garcia