Bardon Back in Winners’ Circle
Bardon Latrobe 3 (Pratten 13’, Mavrick 46’, Allen 58’) AC Carina 2 (Kealy 3’, Dempsey 54’) HT: 1-1 Played at Bowman Park
AC Carina were out of the blocks early and dominated the first half but couldn’t convert their opportunities and it came back to haunt them as Bardon were a much better side in the second half and held on to win despite a late Carina onslaught. A scything tackle on Damien Kealy in the first minute on Carina’s left wing gave them a free kick which, when sent into the Bardon area, produced a goalmouth scramble with Kealy on hand to poke the ball home. The match became an end to end affair with both teams guilty of giving up possession perhaps due in part to the bumpy pitch. AC Carina gradually began to assert superiority and it was against the run of play that Bardon equalised. A long throw from the right was nodded on and came to Jacob Pratten who drove the ball home from 15 yards out. This stung Carina who pushed forward and created a number of chances which they were unable to convert. The best of these was in the 30th minute when a cross from the left was flicked on and Kealy produced a shot that was heading goalwards but struck a team-mate. Bardon did have chances with their best opportunity coming on 40 minutes when Shannon Mavrik latched onto a through ball and crossed to Hugo Cretois who got to the ball ahead of Carina keeper Noah Mortensen. However, Nathan Cox got back in time to block the shot. The second half had barely begun when Bardon were in front as Mavrick received the ball in the Carina area and slipped the ball under the advancing Mortensen. Eight minutes later Carina were back level as a cross from the right reached Shane Dempsey who was unmarked at the back post and he drove the ball back across goal into the net. Bardon responded with a goal shortly after when good work on the right resulted in a cross which Jerome Allen struck on the volley to give them back the lead. Bardon rang the changes bringing on their three subs in quick succession in an effort to freshen things up. Carina responded by pushing for the equaliser and had the best of the last ten minutes. Their final chance came right at the end when Kealy had a clear shot but he hit it straight at Rhys Webber in the Bardon goal who clutched the ball to his body as time ran out. Carina will rue their missed opportunities in the first half and probably should have been two up at the break. This allowed Bardon back into the match, an opportunity they gratefully accepted. Carina are clinging onto 4th on the ladder and Bardon have now put themselves within touching distance.
Coaches Reactions:
Mark Strickland (Bardon Latrobe) - “It took us a while to get into the game. After that, I thought it was pretty even. The loss last week to Caboolture hurt us and we had a lack of confidence from that. By getting that early goal in the second half, the belief really came back from pre-season and our earlier games .” Liam Saif (AC Carina) - “We had four or five clear chances in the first that we didn’t take. That’s been the story of our season so far. We just need to take our chances. We conceded goals at the wrong times, straight after half time and just after we scored our second. It wasn’t our day today, we had so many chances but just couldn’t put them away .”
Team line-ups
Bardon Latrobe: Webber (GK), Allen (70’), Bertram, Castillo, Cretois (80’), Elliott, Johnston, Mavrik, Powell, Pratten, Smart (63’)
Subs: Jones (63’), McDermott (70’), Moloney (80’)
AC Carina: Mortensen (GK), Burgess, Bytheway, Cox (65’), Dempsey, Kealy, Knowles, Molinas, O’Connor, Sloane, Thompson
Subs: Cameron (65’) REFEREE: Patrick Dwyer
