Morris Iemma Indoor Sports Centre at Riverwood, Sydney was the location for the Round 4 matches in this season’s NSW Premier League 1 competition with the opposition, the always highly competitive, Enfield Rovers club.
The day commenced with the development squad matches for the younger aged boys and girls. All three teams (10 boys, 11 boys and 11/12 girls) played strongly and not one was defeated. All players are to be congratulated on their effort, skill and determination. There are certainly some future stars coming through the youngest Boomers ranks.
The competitive matches for the day started with the 12 boys at 1pm and culminated in the Open Women at 6.50pm and the Men at 7.50pm.
Every week sees challenges for all the Boomerangs teams in this strong competition – without doubt the strongest regular season futsal competition in the country – and it is pleasing to see the development and improvement in performances each and every week. The results are not yet starting to register, but they certainly will be soon if the improvement continues. Each age groups shows signs of making good progress.
The 12 boys were slow to get into the match and allowed the home team to score three fairly easy goals in the first period. The boys played much better in the second half, being competitive during large parts of the second 20 minutes, but they fell away in the final few minutes allowing the Rovers – who are yet to be defeated this season – to blow out the scoreline. A more consistent effort for the 40 minutes is required. Boomerangs 0-7 Rovers
The 13 girls – much like the 12 boys – started too slowly and allowed the Rovers to get an early break and lead at half-time by two goals. The second half saw a vastly improved showing from the Boomers girls putting pressure on the home side all over the court. A 1-1 second half was not enough to take the game but showed that the Boomers girls could match it in this league. Boomerangs 1-3 Rovers
The 14 boys match again showed the need for a strong first half to remain in the game. The home team scored four first half goals – all between the ten and twenty-minute mark allowing them a comfortable 4-0 lead at the break. The second half once again saw a much stronger effort by the visiting Boomers, keeping a clean sheet for the second twenty and scoring one themselves (and winning the second half!). Boomerangs 1-4 Rovers
The 15 girls once again put up a good display and matched it with their opposition for the first half going into the break at 0-0. The second half saw an increasing number of goal scoring opportunities from both teams; but it was the home side that managed to slot one into the back of the net – the only goal of the match. A close result, and a match that could have gone either way, but the points remained with Enfield. Boomerangs 0-1 Rovers
The 16 boys were never really in the match conceding regular goals during the first period of play, without being able to put the ball in the back of the Rovers net. The Rovers controlled much of the second half scoring a further three to the Boomers single. A disappointing result that hinged on a lack of avenues to goal, and a defence found wanting. Boomerangs 1-7 Rovers
The 17 girls match was the match of the day as far as excitement, goals, and of course grabbing the win. As with most of the matches on the day, the home team got away to a strong start and led by 3 goals to 1 at the half-time break. For almost the whole second half, Coach Kristian Collins instigated the fifth man powerplay which the girls executed strongly. First, they drew level at 3-3, then took the lead 4-3 which they held for a few minutes until the Rovers scored in the 39th minute. The final play saw the girls knock in the winner with just seconds to play. A tremendous effort by the girls for the full 40 minutes, with innovative coaching and great execution. Boomerangs 5-4 Rovers
The Youth men gave their hosts a tough time, and the match was far closer than the five goal differential would indicate. The home team scored within the first five minutes of the match – but for the rest of the half, it was back and forth futsal, with both teams working hard, but neither converting. The Boomers Youth had the best of the first half, but the lack of goals hurt. The second half saw the intensity lift several notches, with six yellow cards being handed out (one a double resulting in a Boomers player receiving a red) as the visitor’s frustration built. The scoreline blew out as the Rovers scored three in the final ten minutes. Boomerangs 0-5 Rovers
The Open Women’s match was an even affair as the home side took the lead in the 15th minute only to see the Boomers level it up in the throes of half-time. The second half saw the Boomers women dominate possession and shots, and they took the lead eight minutes into the half. It seemed like the game was heading towards a single goal Boomers win until the Rovers leveled it up with just a minute to play after utilising fifth-man play for the final five minutes, with not long enough for either team to take the three points. Probably a fair result, but definitely a chance that got away. Boomerangs 2-2 Rovers
The Open Men’s match was a loss for the visiting Boomerangs, but with a scoreline that did not reflect the evenness of the match. The key differences were in the clinical way the home team finished – effectively putting the ball in the back of the net – whilst the visiting Boomerangs did everything well – right up until they needed to slot home goals. Three-nil at half-time to the Rovers reflected the first half, but with a deal of pressing, and then utilising fifth-man – leaving the goal unguarded, the Boomers men conceded a couple of cheap goals late in the second period. Boomerangs 1-6 Rovers
Following is the write up of the men’s match by Dan De Nardi of Football NSW.
Round 4 Review – SELECT Futsal Premier League
The 2016/17 Football NSW Select NSW Premier League round four saw Inner West defeat South Coast 4-1, Enfield beat Boomerangs 6-1, Dural pip UTS Northside 6-5, while Mountain Majik and Mascot were deadlocked at 4-4.
After a galvanising opening three weekends victories to the ‘Big-3’ Inner West, Enfield and Dural saw them slowly inch ahead of the pack, leaving an absolute dogfight for the fourth and final playoff position.
The club championship is also shaping up as a real humdinger with Vipers, Warriors, Magic and Majik separated by a handful of points a quarter way through the season.
Mountain Majik 4 (Jordan Guerreiro, Samuel Gulisano, Kaan Kilinc, Jamie Dib) Mascot Vipers 4 (Mohammad Dubdub, Tuan Cao, Conor Quilligan, Santiago Rodriguez)
Inner West Magic 4 (Jonathan Barzel, Adam Khalaf 2, Daniel Fogarty) South Coast Taipans 1 (Aidan Breslin)
Dural Warriors 6 (Vic Koutsoufis 2, Jacob Basden, Nathan Niski, Glen Kelshaw, own goal) UTS Northside 5 (Joey Gibbs 2, Nathan Amore, Jun Arima, Emilio Manos)
Enfield Rovers 6 (Laureano Gomez Castro, Dominic Cox 3, Shervin Adeli) Boomerangs FS 1
Enfield beat Boomerangs
Enfield Rovers cruised to an emphatic 6-1 victory over Boomerangs FS at the Morris Iemma Indoor Sports Centre to maintain their top-two spot in the competition.
A fiery start to the game saw Enfield veteran Lachlan Wright pick up a yellow card in just the fourth minute before Rovers put their foot down with three unanswered goals – Laureano Gomez Castro and Dominic Cox (twice) – elevating them to a 3-0 halftime lead.
Boomerangs tried to stay in touch but couldn’t keep pace as Cox completed his hat-trick in the 6-1 demolition.
The two sides have gone tit-for-tat over the years with the home side winning every time, but this was by far Enfield’s biggest result against the Territorians following 6-5, 2-0 and 7-6 victories in Sydney.
Next week’s games
The Football NSW Select Futsal Premier League round five Saturday night action features South Coast Taipans against Mountain Majik at University of Wollongong Sports Hub (5.40pm), Enfield Rovers versus UTS Northside at Morris Iemma Indoor Sports Centre (7.50pm), Dural Warriors welcome leaders Inner West Magic to The Centre, Dural (7.55pm), and Mascot Vipers host Boomerangs FS at All Sorts Indoor Sports Centre (8.50pm). Visit the Football NSW website (Futsal tab) for full details.
-By Dan De Nardi