Adelaide University Soccer Club

20th May

St. Peters (0) vs (3) Adelaide University

The Blacks went undefeated on Saturday as both the As and Bs were victorious against strong St. Peters teams, while the Cs held Cove to a draw away. It was good performances all round for Uni as Mike continued to bang in the goals with another 2 goal haul, with his brother Paul also chipping in with a second half strike. Rodney secured the goal that made the difference in a tight game in the Bs while Joe and Chris both got their names on the score sheet for the Cs.

Starting Line up Bench
Russ                     Chris
Sam                      Greg
Olly                       Bas
Michael                Jamie
Paul
Barry
Robbie
Ryan
Andy
Nick
Tim

The grounds at St. Peters are an undeniably nice place to be and the pitch looked flat with true bounce when the As kicked off at just after 3pm. St. Peters start brightly and have Uni pegged back in their own half for the first 10 minutes. In the Blacks first real foray into their attacking third, a neat 1-2 sees Olly Gissing through down the right but the cross/shot sails over the bar. Into the 15′ minute now and Ryan manages to win a cross after a through ball from Robbie sent him down the right flank. The cross comes in to the back post and Tim meets it to send the ball back across goal, Rob manages to get up and head on target but the keeper gathers comfortably. St. Peters have the better of possession as the half wears on but the Uni defense is as tight as a drum with Sam making a couple of important clearances. Andy is forced into a good save after a St. Peters attacker turns well on the edge of the area and hits a low shot on target. 30 minutes gone now and the Blacks are being forced to play on the counter. The Uni win a throw and Russ whips it into the box. The flick on header sends the ball into the St. Peters box where a scrap ensues. There’s a call of handball against the St. Peters defender as the ball bobbles around but before the ref can make a call, Mike shoots home to make it 1-0 Uni. It’s more of the same after the goal with St. Peters continuing to rain in crosses, long throws and shots from distance but they’re unable to carve out clear cut chances. A challenge on Paul sees the referee brandish a yellow card toward the St. Peters player. Going into half-time the Uni have held on to their lead and showed great composure at the back absorbing the St. Peters attacks and countering effectively.

Half-time

Adelaide University (1) vs. St. Peters (0)

Dave Bakers half-time talk emphasises the need for resilience and maintaining the defensive rigidity shown in the first half. The Blacks take to the field again. The first Blacks attack after the kick-off again features Olly breaking away to cut the ball back along the deck into the St. Peters penalty area, only to be cleared. 4′ minutes in and Robbie heads over after Paul wins a corner. Shortly afterward, Uni keeper Andy shows bravery coming to claim a loose ball and takes a big knock from the St. Peters attacker for his troubles. It’s a tough 50-50 challenge but Andy will feel that in the morning. Moments later St. Peters should have made it 1-1 as the ball finds its way to an unmarked man in the Uni area but the resulting volley is hammered into the post and deflects away from the Uni goal. Despite the scare, Uni are playing hard and winning the majority of the 50-50 balls in midfield and showing great physicality. Sam and Tim are continuing to read the game well at the back for Uni and clearing loose balls effectively. At the 16′ minute mark, the Blacks make St. Peters pay for their missed chance when Mike gets his second goal. Build up play down the left hand side eventually made it to make on the edge of the area before he hit the ball home to put Uni ahead 2-0. St. Peters look resolved to try and peg the goals back with 30 minutes still remaining, but only 2 minutes later their heads drop as the other Decelis boy finds the net when Paul hits a low hard shot after Ryan squared the ball up to him just outside the box. The keeper will feel he could have done better but Paul did well to get power on the shot and still manage to keep it low. St. Peters resume play but continue to look vulnerable on the counter-attack with threats from Olly down the right and the strong Blacks mid-field. At the 28′ minute mark now and Robbie and Ryan combine well to send Ryan in on goal, albeit on a tight angle, Ryan hits a shot toward the far post but the ball skims wide of the mark. Paul makes way for Chris Hewitson as the game hits 75 minutes. Hewey is showing his trademark intensity off the bench in his first few involvements. 10 minutes left on the clock and St. Peters haven’t been able to recover from the quick fire second half goals from Uni and are lacking intensity. Andy’s long free kick from the Blacks half is flicked on by Mike and Ryan goes close again with a half volley that the St. Peters keeper saves well. The Uni defence stay tight and continue to frustrate St. Peters as the last 10 minutes ticks away without serious incident.

It’s full-time and a great result for Uni with the 3-0 speaking volumes about their effectiveness in taking chances and a really solid defensive performance. St. Peters will point to the missed chance at 1-0 early in the second half and will be disappointed in not getting on the score sheet after dominating periods of the game but it’s a well earned 3 points for the Blacks.

Full-time Results

Adelaide University As (3) vs. (0) St. Peters

Adelaide University Bs (1) vs. (0) St. Peters

Adelaide University Cs (2) vs. (2) Hallet Cove

T. Gissing