Marconi Stallions 2-1 Manly United
Despite Rocco Pelle’s first goal in Men’s 1st Grade, Manly United were defeated 2-1 by Marconi Stallions at Marconi Stadium on Saturday evening.
Manly made the trip to Marconi Stadium hungry for a win, with just one victory to their name in Round 1 of the National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s competition, while Marconi were looking to bounce back from a loss to St George City away from home.
The Stallions took hold of the game early on and managed to get on the scoreboard through Franco Maya in the 21st minute before a Daniel Bouman goal took them to two in the 66th minute.
Manly United fought their way back into the match with a goal from Pelle in the 78th minute, however despite amplified pressure, they weren’t able to challenge Marconi to get more from the match.
Marconi came close to an opening goal in the 13th minute as Maya got on the end of a ball played in behind, however the offside flag was raised as his effort skimmed pass the goalmouth and out of play.
Another opportunity came for the hosts in the 18th minute as Maya again searched for a goal, however his effort was collected by a diving Levi Kaye in Manly United’s goals.
Maya’s efforts finally paid off in the 21st minute as Domenic Constanzo played a through ball to Maya in the area, who slipped the ball past Kaye to open the scoring.
James Temelkovski tried his luck at a shot from range in the 26th minute, however an outstretched Kaye managed to collect.
Anton Mlinaric received a yellow card for a challenge in the 28th minute, giving Manly United a free kick in a dangerous position.
Peter Kekeris took the free kick and while his ball met Rocco Pelle, Marconi ‘keeper James Hilton was able to deny.
Kekeris took a shot from range in the 33rd minute, however his effort curled right of the target.
Maya sent a blistering shot towards the goal in the 40th minute from range, but the ball flew above the crossbar.
The teams returned from the half-time break with just one change as Manly’s Joseph Fox made way for Zayne Ahluwalia to take to the field.
Both teams had some good movement around the pitch in the opening stages of the first half, but neither was able to make an impact early on.
A counterattack from Manly in the 58th minute saw the visitors with a meaningful opportunity, with two corners resulting from their efforts before a header from Allen Aganovic was sent wide of the goal.
A corner in the 66th minute gave the Stallions a promising opportunity that they were able to bring to fruition to take their lead to two.
The corner from Costanzo was well placed to meet a Marconi head in the area, and while Kaye was able to deny, the resultant ball was finished by Bouman.
The hosts came close to taking their tally to three minutes later as Temelkovski sent a powerful shot firing towards the target, however it rebounded off the post.
The visitors managed to score their first in the 78th minute from a corner kick opportunity to work their way into the match.
Corey Cronin took the kick and it met Pelle, who sent it towards the target at Hilton.
While play continued as though the custodian had managed to keep the ball in front of the line, the assistant referee indicated the goal for Manly.
With a goal on the scoreboard, the visitors looked to gain confidence and increase their pace as they entered the final stage of the match.
A back pass from Bouman had Stallions fans holding their breath as it headed towards his own goal, however Hilton was able to knock it out of play.
Continued pressure from Manly saw them threaten the hosts with a possible equaliser as the game heated up.
As time trickled down on the clock the visitors were unable to bring their opportunities to fruition, leaving Marconi with all three points from the match in a 2-1 victory.
Marconi coach Peter Tsekenis was not happy with his side’s performance, despite the result.
“We dominated large parts of that game, and we were just our worst enemy today,” Tsekenis explained.
“Our movement, our passing was very sloppy even though, especially in the first 70 minutes, we weren’t really threatened.
“We just made things difficult for ourselves – our passes were off; our movement was off.
“We need to step it up if we’re serious about being contenders.”
Manly United coach Patrick Zwaanswijk praised his side’s effort and commitment despite the loss.
“There were definitely some positives in the second half … we stood up and held ourselves high,” he explained.
“We had three under 18s playing and six under 20s so they challenged, and they accepted, and they showed commitment and how brave they are.
“The club needs to move forward, and we have a lot of good, young players coming through.
“We don’t give up; we have a really good mentality and a strong attitude to keep going and keep believing and fighting for it and we just need something going our way at times.”
Match Stats
Marconi Stallions 2 (Maya 21’, Bouman 66’’)
Manly United FC 1 (Pelle 78’)
Saturday 13th March, 2024
Marconi Stadium, Bossley Park
Referee: Jake Rose
Assistant Referees: Joshua Eisner and Aisha Strutt
Fourth Official: Jackson Mackie
Marconi Stallions: 1. James Hilton, 2. Nathan Millgate, 4. Anton Mlinaric, 6. Domenic Costanzo, 7. Franco Maya (17. Milislav Popovic 73’), 8. Daniel Bouman, 9. James Temelkovski (3. Cameron Windust 84’), 10. Marko Jesic, 11. Hiroaki Aoyama, 18. George Daniel, 23. Brandon Vella
Substitutes Not Used: 14. Dylan Susovic, 21. Jakob Malbasa, 24. Mackenzie Syron, 25. Jonathan Soares
Yellow Cards: Mlinaric 28’, Temelkovski 63’, Millgate 89’, Daniel 94’
Red Cards: Nil
Manly United FC: 1. Levi Kaye, 2. Kieren Paull, 3. Zac Sfiligoi, 6. Saxon Hillyer (37. Maxwell Pengelly, 66’), 7. Peter Kekeris, 8. Joseph Fox (16. Zayne Ahluwalia 46’, 38. Mitchell Seaman 76’), 14. Stefan Visscher (29. William Faulder 66’), 19. Alen Aganovic, 25. Rocco Pelle (42. Max Walker 87′), 27. Corey Cronin, 39. Stefano Rossello
Substitutes Not Used: 41. Montgomery Partington
Yellow Cards: Sfiligoi 67’
Red Cards: Nil
Player Ratings
3 – Daniel Bouman (MS)
2 – Anton Mlinaric (MS)
1 – Rocco Pelle (MU)
-By Madeline Riley (Football NSW)
