Round 1 of the 2013/2014 Football NSW Futsal Premier League has been completed, and the Boomerangs have been able to secure more points from the round than their more highly fancied opponents, Dural Warriors.

Across the nine games battled out on Saturday 12 October at mpowerdome, Boomerangs won four and drew two allowing the Warriors wins only in the 12 and 14 girls and the youth men.

The day took on a special meaning for both Dural and Boomerangs as the inaugural Joma Australia Futsal Shield was announced to the players of the two clubs. With both clubs being supported by Joma in 2013/2014 they will compete for the Shield over the two NSW Premier League fixtures this season, with the winner being the club to accrue the most club championship points.

12 Boys
Boomerangs 6 – 2 Dural Warriors

With most of the boys having never experienced this level of competition before, the 12 boys team had little idea what to expect against Dural, whose 12 boys were a form side in the Premier League last year. The Boomerangs boys were a little slow to start but ended up taking a 3-2 lead into half time. The second half was one way traffic with the youngest of Boomerangs putting Dural to the sword scoring three unanswered goals to finish 6-2 winners – and at the same time giving their opposition little opportunity to score themselves. These boys certainly look the goods and the squad has come together nicely in pre-season and are showing a high level of skill – as individuals and as a team.

12 Girls
Boomerangs 0 – 8 Dural Warriors

A nightmare week leading in for the 12 girls with quite a few late withdrawals for this weekend’s game resulted in only five players for the match – none of whom were a recognised goalkeeper. The undermanned 12 girls were expectedly out gunned by an energetic and lively Dural team. The girls battled hard and held Dural at bay for most of the first half only conceding 1 goal in the first 17 minutes. The inevitable then happened with Dural’s fresh legs allowing them to get over the top of the Boomerangs – scoring four goals in each half.

14 Boys
Boomerangs 3 – 3 Dural Warriors

After struggling through all of last season with inconsistent results the 14 boys were looking to put in a strong performance against a talented Dural side. A tense first half was only split by a goal line scramble which was bundled in right on the half time whistle giving the Boomerangs a 1-0 half time advantage. The second half saw Dural quickly equalise only for the Boomerangs to then skip away to a 3-1 lead. Five minutes of sustained pressure late in the second half saw Dural peg the two goals back to leave the match drawn at 3-3. Although a draw was not a bad outcome against Dural, there is a sense that this was a game that the boys let slip away. 

14 Girls
Boomerangs 1 – 9 Dural Warriors

The 14 Boomerangs girls were thoroughly outplayed by a slick Dural outfit, that showed individual and team skill, structure and discipline and will no doubt be a team near the top of the table by the end the season. It’s a shame these games aren’t all taped as the Dural performance would almost have been a ‘masterclass’ that other teams could have learnt from. On the Boomerangs side, the girls have a bit of work to do to get back up to speed and remain competitive in this competition.

16 Boys
Boomerangs 8 – 3 Dural Warriors

The Boomerangs 16 Boys were on fire from the starting whistle of this exciting, and at times, quite physical game. Three goals in the first five minutes by the Boomer Boys allowed them to take the lead going into the second half after a Dural come back in the last five minutes of the first stanza of play. However, the boys started the second half as they did the first, but this time, they did not allow the Dural boys back into the game and powered away to an 8-3 win. This Boomerangs team will be one to be feared by other teams across the league this season as they attempt to emulate the Grand Final winning ways of last season’s 16 Boys.

16 Girls
Boomerangs 2 – 2 Dural Warriors

As with the younger girls teams, the 16s were without a few of their key players for this match (two of whom were members of the 2013 Boomerangs F-League squad). A solid outing though saw the girls share the points with their opposition.

Both teams were mid table last year and battling for the final position in the top 4, results were split 50/50 setting this game up to be a thriller. A tense first half ended with Dural in the lead 0-1 scoring just before the break. the second half was one way traffic with Boomerangs dominating the play, and were justly rewarded with two goals to take a 2-1 lead. The match finished 2-2 with Dural scoring to equalise against the run of play.

Youth Men
Boomerangs 1 – 2 Dural Warriors

What a battle this match promised to be. Last year the Boomerangs 16s won the Grand Final and the Youth team finished fourth, a combination of these two teams surely bode well for Boomerangs. Dural were lead by Futsalroo young gun Wade Giovenali, and it was Dural that struck first with some fine passing followed by a cool finish taking a 1-0 lead into the break. A second half equaliser for Boomerangs gave the side hope, however it wasn’t to be with Dural running out 2-1 winners with a late strike.

Open Women

Boomerangs 3 – 1 Dural Warriors

The Boomerangs Open Women’s team, containing six of the well-performed 2013 F-League squad, took the floor to match up against an opponent they had defeated twice in the F-League season. Whilst a much closer match than the earlier F-League encounters, the Boomerangs women – after an even first half (1-1) – lifted their performance when needed to score the vital second goal, and put the icing on the cake with a penalty in the dying seconds. A solid hit out for the women, but they will need to improve to get the same results from some of the stronger teams in this year’s league.

Open Men
Boomerangs 3 – 1 Dural Warriors

A great win by the Boomerangs men, defeating a team they have never beaten in an FNSW Premier League match previously…  The following report is from Dan De Nardi of Football NSW…

Boomerangs bounce Dural
Boomerangs registered a superb 3-1 win over title holders Dural at Canberra’s mpowerdome on Saturday night to kickstart their summer quest in scintillating fashion.

Boomerangs were solid throughout and led Dural 2-1 at halftime before tightening the second-half screws to run out 3-1 victors – their first ever triumph over Dural.

Warriors opened the scoring in the eighth minute but Callum Smith responded with an off-balance thunderbolt to draw the home side level again. Grant Davoren popped up at the far post to push Boomerangs 2-1 in front at the interval and things got easier for the Territorians when key Dural player Greg Giovenali received his second yellow card with 10 minutes to go, a late Daniel Bennett goal sealing a terrific 3-1 win.

Boomerangs co-coach Kristian Collins was astounded. “It was definitely impressive as we don’t win too many rounds against Dural and we did very well across all the age groups,” he said.

“This is a massive morale booster for us going into the season but because Dural’s been dominant for so long every club has had to work hard to get up to their level, and that’s a good thing for Futsal in general.”

Dural coach Rob Varela gave credit to Boomerangs for their good showing and wondered where his team went on the night. “They’re a good side and played well, we didn’t play well,” he said. “It’s hard to say what it was, maybe their minds were somewhere else, but we certainly didn’t deserve to win.”
“But it’s the first game of the season and if you are to lose one now’s the time for it. We know we need to play well in every game to get results.”

So with the nine games played, four wins, three losses and two draws, sees the Boomerangs take 14 points from a possible 27, and Dural only 11. A solid start to the 13/14 season and certainly something upon which a successful season can be built — and of course, an early lead taken in the battle for the Joma Australia Futsal Shield.

Club Championship Update

Club	Played	W	D	L	GD	Points
Mountain Majik	9	7	0	2	12	21
Mascot Vipers	9	6	1	2	15	19
Inner West Magic	9	5	1	3	16	16
Boomerangs	9	4	2	3	-3	14
Dural Warriors	9	3	2	4	3	11
Enfield Rovers	9	3	1	5	-16	10
Phoenix	9	2	1	6	-15	7
Campbelltown Quake	9	2	0	7	-12	6