It was to be the Wollongong derby - Fraternity Cup winners versus Bampton Cup winners - in a hot contest. Both sides had suffered recent defeats after good early season form - at the hands of Hills Brumbies (FFA Cup) for United and Tarrawanna for Olympic.

Olympic took the early lead through talisman Yuseke Ueda from a Harrison Brown through ball, running across the top of the box and finding the side netting at the far post off the left boot.

The early advantage seemed to spark United into action - Matt Floro twice troubling Hayden Durose from 20 yards with powerful shots at the near post which each needed tipping over. Shortly after, Floro was again calling upon Durose, a delightful chipped pass from Daisuke Yuzawa forced Shun Tokuno to smother the shot off Floro's boot.

It was indeed United who clawed a goal back - Yuzawa putting a poor clearance back in the area, which Ben Brooks bundled home in close quarters to Durose - scrappy but effective.

On the 25 minute mark, Floro missed what could've been his fourth goal in a rare start recently for the attacker. A deep corner drew Durose out of goal, Brooks rose above the gloveman, heading the ball back into the 6 yard box, where Floro headed on target only for Tokuno to get behind the ball and somehow knee it over the bar whilst standing on the goal-line.

In a United-dominant half, Olympic grabbed a second goal just before the break, as ex-United man Johnny Martinoski's free kick wasn't cleared, up stepped Brendan Fordham to find the bottom corner with a left-footed shot facing away from goal - another peculiar chance in what was a rather odd half in front of goal.

Starting the second period with a 2-1 advantage, Olympic pushed on from there - Martinoski and Ueda troubling the United defence with their speed and movement on the counter.

Martinoski on the break was fouled on the top of the box, and in the single calmest free kick I have ever witnessed, Tokuno literally walked up to the ball and curled it up and over the wall, Sam Nastic in goal for United had no chance and simply watched the net bulge.

It was the Olympic left back who would this time turn provider for Ueda - flying down the left wing and abruptly switched the ball to the untracked run of Ueda - in turn casually hitting a crisp first-time volley across his body and the line of the ball back at the far post, wrong-footing Nastic and finding the net with quite the finish. Truly one of the goals where even as an opponent you stand and acknowledge a move which was pure quality and undefendable.

Ueda wasn't done either - two minutes after that spectacular effort, he and Martinoski found themselves two-on-two with Brooks and Brendan Reilly on the break. Drawing one, Ueda turned and shot on goal, drawing a save from Nastic, only for it to fall straight to Martinoski. Unselfishly, he passed to the unmarked Ueda, who shot again, only to find Nastic yet again, and with the second rebound - Nastic helpless on the ground from the previous save - Ueda somehow had a rush of blood and skied an open shot on an empty goal from 12 yards.

Olympic saw out the remainder of time calmly, United not really having another sniff of goal to cap off the strange affair. The final score-line, 4-1 to Olympic, really could have turned out a lot differently had Floro taken his early chances, or if Ueda had been as clinical as usual. However the three points was deserved for the visitors - the defence of Jake Duczynski going unbeaten all day aside from the scramble leading to the Brooks goal.

United will look to bounce back against Kemblawarra next week at Macedonia Park, whilst Olympic will host Picton, with both matches kicking off Saturday at 2:30pm.

 

Saturday 13th May - Macedonia Park

Referee - B. Mazevski

Assistants - A. Naylor, D. Moreira

 

Wollongong United 1 - Brooks 20'

Wollongong Olympic 4 - Ueda 5' 77', Fordham 37' Tokuno 63'

 

Wollongong United - Nastic, Brennan, Brooks, Reilly, Miyakawa, Craig (Acev 70'), Tsovolos, Michael (Chaplin 56'), McLaren (Sekutkoski 74'), Floro, Yuzawa

Subs - Chaplin, Sekutkoski, Zoric, Acev, Noji

Wollongong Olympic - Durose, Lloyd (Perlowski 86'), Tokuno, Keating, Brown (Wakeling 84'), Stergiou, Ueda, Martinoski, Duczynski, Fordham, Balmforth (Belsito 80')

Subs - Belsito, Wakeling, Perlowski, Kyriakou

 

Report by David Atherton - @daveatho5

Photos courtesy of Dana Guthrie