Round 19 Wrap up | 2019-2020 Macron SFL WA

Spearwood Lions FC 8 – 5 Rockingham Cambio Cumbre FC

Friday Night Lights at Pro Futsal Bibra Lake, with Round 19 of the Macron State Futsal League opening with a blockbuster, with Spearwood (7th) avenging their Round 6 defeat to Rockingham (6th) with a clinical performance, especially in the 2nd half. Cumbre started on fire, with in-form charismatic leader Nestor Fonseca scoring a stunning 1st half hattrick. The Lions responded with strikes from Bakr Al-Qaraguli & importantly a late goal from Spanish recruit David Vall Brossa, on his debut, to reduce the deficit to 2-3 at half-time. Spearwood came out firing in the 2nd half with a double from spearhead Jamal Yusof, singles from Karim Yusof & Amirali Azimi, along with a Vall Brossa double to complete his hattrick taking them to a stunning 8-3 lead. Rockingham replied late in the half with Mason Vojdani & Fonseca to make the scoreline more respectable, but it was the Vall Brossa show on his debut for The Lions that cemented 7th spot for them & put pressure on Cumbre & the rest of the Top 6 for a spot in the finals.

Murdoch Warriors FC 3 – 4 Cockburn EWA FC

One of the matches of the weekend, with Murdoch (1st) succumbing to Cockburn (4th) in a highly entertaining encounter. With The Warriors having outlasted EWA in a high scoring thriller in Round 6, Cockburn turned the tables on the table-toppers this time around. In another match of 2 halves, & a clash of the tightest defence versus the strongest attack, Murdoch led 3-1 at half-time with strikes from Justin Pearce, Joel Di Toro & Justin Tang showcasing their quality this season. Stefan Cvijanovic replied for Cockburn to showcase his importance to the side since his recent return from injury. The 2nd half was all about EWA’s desire to take something out of this match with goals from Jesse Lazzaro, Alek Kukic & a late strike from inspirational leader Mark Gavranic capturing a memorable victory for the leading scorers in the competition. On this occasion, attack trumped defence.

Joondalup ECU Jets 1 – 3 Balga FC

The final match of a captivating evening of futsal featured the recently christened Mitchell Freeway Derby with an inspired Joondalup (11th) yielding to a motivated Balga (9th). ECU started on the front foot with an early strike from Jake Dean giving them the lead & the opportunity of completing the double over their neighbours. Replies from Conor O’Driscoll & Luke Ross gave Balga a 1-2 lead at half-time & a 2nd half strike from Gideon Servatius concluded the scoring. The victory for Balga redressed their Round 6 loss to The Jets and maintained their dream of playing in their first ever finals campaign in the SFL, as they narrowed the gap to 6th placed Rockingham to 5 points.

South Perth FC 8 – 3 Canning Ultra Tigers FC

South Perth (8th) returned to winning ways with a less than convincing victory over a gallant Canning. A high scoring 1st half, laden with defensive errors from both sides, started with a piledriver from Roberto Armellini opening the scoring for South Perth. Canning responded with 2 quickfire goals from Afiq Mutalip & Lucas Alonzo to give them the lead. Armellini equalised, before Lucas Alonzo restored The Ulra Tigers’ advantage. Jamie Dib restored parity at 3-3, with all 6 goals occurring in the 1st 8 minutes of the match! A double from Rhys Buick & a late strike from Filip Rojnica gave South Perth a match-winning half-time 6-3 lead. Both defences tightened up in the 2nd half with Rojnica completing his double & Buick his hattrick to round out the scoring. In completing the double over a fearless Ultra Tigers, South Perth re-emerged as finals contenders.

Fremantle FC 10 – 0 Byford Venom FC

Fremantle (5th) completed the double over a stunned Byford (13th) with a complete performance. With the team exhibiting free-flowing, fast-passing futsal, 1st half strikes from Liam Cummins, Benji Mikhael, Danilo Neves & Diego Florenca gave Fremantle a commanding 4-0 half-time lead. Byford, who have improved noticeably in their maiden season in the SFL, called a timeout & tried to respond, but with Fremantle in inspired mode, it proved difficult for The Venom to bite back in the 2nd half. Further strikes from Milan Rosic, Neves (2), Luke Tidy (2), Cummins & Jake Pizzuto completed the route. With 7 of the 8 outfield players on the scoresheet, Fremantle improved their goal difference to 33 and cemented their place in the Top 6.

Perth AFC 0 – 2 Stirling Braza Ginga FC

Two sides that suffered season-shattering defeats in Round 18, clashed in a match that neither wanted to lose. AFC (10th) chase to a finals finish is all but over with this result, but the players & coaching staff deserve a lot of credit for the desire & attitude against the defending champions, Stirling (2nd). Kristian Usedo announced his arrival to the SFL with a man-of-the-match performance in Round 6 to secure a brave draw for the underdogs, and his heroics were there to see once again in Round 19. A late 1st half strike from Brazilian icon Fernando De Paula opened the scoring for Braza, and an early 2nd half wondergoal from Connor Crews secured the win. AFC had a few 1v1 opportunities of their own, but the returning Glen Sheldon was a rock at the back for Stirling, and the veteran will be pleased to have kept a clean sheet. A solid outing for Braza, in particular with Chris Rocchi making his comeback from a long injury layoff in the Draft League.

Curtin Footbalista FC 1 – 3 Perth Longobarda FC

The final match of an absorbing weekend of futsal saw Curtin (12th) fall to high flying Longobarda (3rd). Footbalista returned to form last weekend & started well in this match with an early strike from Hesam Mizan. Longobarda responded via their leader Remo Capitani to reach half-time at parity. Capitani scored again in the 2nd half, with Jan Cok securing the victory as Longobarda guaranteed their 3rd win in a row & jumped to their highest position in the league. Longo have flown under the radar this season, with club president Filippo Ostuni’s biggest coup being the capture of experienced coach Brian Watkins. With 6 wins & a draw from their last 7 matches, their rise in the 2nd half of the season will have the rest of the Top 6 alert of the danger that they can cause come finals.