Round 9 Wrap up | 2020-2021 Macron SFL WA

Another exceptional round of futsal, with Friday’s fixtures proving to be tight low scoring affairs, whilst the floodgates opened on Saturday..

Rockingham Cambio Cumbre FC 4 – 3 Fremantle FC

Round 9 of the Macron State Futsal League opened with Rockingham and Fremantle playing out yet another classic. Cumbre were looking to return to winning ways, whilst Fremantle were looking to cement their spot in the Top 6. But it was Rockingham that came out winners in a match that swung one way, then the other. Fremantle opened the scoring midway through the 1st half with academy product Jake Pizzuto (4 goals in 9 matches) scoring via a swift counter attack. Cumbre responded a minute later with a fine strike from their very own academy graduate and former SFL MVP Tyler Garner (9 goals in 9 matches). Rockingham stalwart Nestor Fonseca took his side to a half-time lead (15 goals in 9 matches) with another fine strike. When Garner made it a 2 goal advantage with his 2nd of the match early in the 2nd half it looked all over. But Fremantle responded well, with Pizzuto’s 2nd and Benji Mikhael (3 goals in 8 matches) balancing the ledger. As both sides chased the winner, it was Garner who claimed man-of-the-match honours with his 3rd & Cumbre’s 4th in the final minute to end another classic encounter between those 2 adversaries. Rockingham climb to 2nd on the ladder, whilst Fremantle drop outside of the Top 6.

Curtin Footbalista FC 2 – 0 Murdoch Warriors FC

Curtin returned to winning ways and secured their 1st clean sheet of the season on the back of a sturdy defensive effort and a man-of-the-match performance from custodian Milad Sabbagh. Murdoch had the bulk of possession but were hit on the counter attack with Ali Abbas scoring his maiden goal in the SFL late in the 1st half to give Footbalista the lead at the break. And when stalwart Farzam Mehrabi (3 goals in 8 matches) doubled that lead midway through the 2nd half, it looked like an upset was on the cards. Despite playing 5th man & piling on the pressure, The Warriors were unable to pierce the Curtin defence, and, when they did, they found Sabbagh in inspired form. Footbalista rise one spot to 11th on the ladder, whilst Murdoch’s 6 match without a win sees them drop to 9th.

Stirling Braza Ginga FC 3 – 2 Joondalup ECU Jets

Yet another captivating encounter with Joondalup surprising their more fancied opponents by taking a 1st half lead with Josh Bennett scoring his 1st goal of the season in only his 3rd start late in the 1st half. And when ECU doubled that lead early in the 2nd half, via a strike from Jonathan Bouhlas (2 goals in 4 games) it looked like an upset was brewing. But, true to form this season, Stirling demonstrated their pedigree with 3 goals in a 9 minute burst to seize the match from the clutches of The Jets. Academy product Mitch Norman (3 goals in 8 matches) led the fightback, followed by league top goalscorer & MVP contender Victor Brauner (16 goals in 9 matches), and captain Pavel Parihuzic (4 goals in 8 matches) to steer their side to their 5th win of the season and into the Top 6 for the 1st time this season.

South Perth FC 6 – 7 Perth Longobarda FC

Saturday’s list of fixtures opened with an absolute cracker. A top-of-the-table match that had everything – goals galore, saves, yellow cards, a red card, 5th man & plenty of controversy. Worthy of being the match of the season so far. Longo opened like a house on fire to take an early lead via the inspired Jan Cok (6 goals in 9 matches). South Perth responded with a burst of 4 goals in 6 minutes to turn this match on its head; Luka Bergomi (4 goals in 9 matches), Roberto Armellini (9 goals in 8 matches), Daniel Muzzarelli (12 goals in 9 matches) and Roberto Boi (4 goals in 7 matches) giving their side a 3 goal advantage. Longobarda responded with their very own rush of 3 goals in 3 minutes to tie the match 14 minutes into the 1st half; Paul Wanke (1 goal in 2 matches), Alex Kretowicz (13 goals in 8 matches) and Jon Bucolo (3 goals in 8 matches). 8 goals in the opening 14 minutes of a top of the table encounter, and they were not done yet! The 2nd half opened with Armellini giving South Perth the lead once again, only for Kretowicz to match him with his 2nd of the match, and a South Perth own goal to give Longobarda the ascendancy for the 1st time since the 1st minute of the match. And this time, Longo would not let go. Despite losing goalkeeper Ricardo Louro to a straight red card for handling outside his D, they managed the 2 minutes a man down with no damage, as back-up keeper Scott Duffy made some crucial stops. And when Kretowicz completed his hattrick to give Longo a 2 goal advantage, South Perth had to resort to 5th man play from which they scored via Muzzarelli. But it was not enough, as Longo 6th win in a row took them to the summit of the league, and South Perth dropped from 1st to 3rd.

Perth Lions FA 7 – 1 Balga FC

The Lions carved up a battling Balga to secure their 4th win in a row and cement their position in the Top 6. The Lions took early command of this match with strikes from Shirash Sasikumar (1 goal in 6 matches), James Oldroyd (2 goals in 4 matches) and talisman Jamal Yusof (14 goals in 9 matches) in the opening 6 minutes providing a 3 goal advantage. Balga responded via the lively Luke Ross (4 goals in 9 matches) to give them some hope midway through the 1st half. But a further flurry of goals by The Lions with Yusof completing a 1st half hattrick and Amirali Azimi (2 goals in 9 matches) extended their advantage. A solitary 2nd half strike by captain Bakr Al-Qaraghuli (7 goals in 9 matches) sealed a comfortable victory for The Lions as they roared their way past Balga.

Perth AFC 11 – 3 Byford Venom FC

Byford surprised their more fancied opponents last season, but AFC buried The Venom early in this match with a commanding performance. The floodgates opened early on with strikes from Ivan Palermo (5 goals in 8 matches), Andrija Jukic (9 goals in 5 matches), Nathan Thorp (6 goals in 8 matches), a Liam Ellison double (2 goals in 4 matches), and Sebastian Iasenza’s maiden goal in his maiden season in the SFL. Byford responded via an own goal, but the match was all but over by half-time. Jukic & Thorp completed their doubles in the 2nd half, with Oscar Pit (3 goals in 8 matches) and Gabriel Kieswetter (3 goals in 9 matches) adding their names to the scoresheet. The Venom had some joy with top goalscorer Vaughan Audrain (6 goals in 9 matches) and Daniel Brown scoring on his debut. The victory takes AFC to 8th on the ladder, within striking distance of the Top 6.

Canning Ultra Tigers FC 7 – 4 Cockburn EWA FC

Canning produced the shock result of the season with a clinical performance against a devastated Cockburn. The Ultra Tigers scored early via Hezairee Sharizan (2 goals in 5 matches) to give them belief. EWA responded via an own goal, but a flurry of 3 goals in 5 minutes from Tarek Atta (5 goals in 5 matches), Josh Watkins (3 goals in 5 matches) and Afiq Mutalip (2 goals in 8 matches) had the whole centre buzzing with admiration as the upset was brewing. When Sharizan scored his 2nd early in the 2nd half and Aniq Saipunizam scored his maiden goal in his 2nd match of the season, Canning suddenly had a 6-1 lead! Cockburn threw everything at The Ultra Tigers, with head coach Diego Garcia playing 5th man early, using his time-out, trying different combinations, as his team responded with the next 3 goals via Kindle Valderrama’s 1st strike of the season, Stefan Cvijanovic (2 goals in 9 matches) and Alex Gamble (7 goals in 8 matches). From then on, Canning were resolute in defence, as goalkeeper Ben Rogers made a flurry of saves. A late strike on the counter attack from Watkins (his 2nd of the match) culminated a famous victory for Canning as their president & head coach Khalif Omar looked on with admiration from the sidelines.