Tag: mPowerdome

F-League R3 PREVIEW

The third weekend of the 2015 F-League season sees the second and third matches for the men and the first for the women. All matches are home games played at mPowerdome on Saturday 23 May.

Boomerangs Women

The Boomerangs women’s team have had to cool their heels over the first two weeks of the competition with byes both weekends. Saturday 23 however sees their first match of the season – and a match up against one of the competition favourites, South Brisbane.

The South Brisbane women’s team have already had a more than useful start to the season, winning the first two home games on the opening weekend at home (3-2 over the much fancied Magic and 4-1 over Vipers), but fared less well when travelling interstate to Melbourne last weekend – going down in the rematch to Vic Vipers 5-1 – in what was probably the upset of the round.

In season 2014, South Brisbane finished the regular season in second position, above the Boomer girls on goal difference alone. The Boomerangs though, dispatched the red and yellows convincingly in the semi-final 5-2 — this after Sth Brisbane had won both regular season encounters.

The Queensland ladies will have the advantage of a few games already under their belt, but the Boomers girls, playing at home for their first 2015 game, should be full of confidence after the positive pre-season they have had including two solid hit outs in pre-season matches.

The match is on at mPowerdome, 6pm, Saturday 23 May.

Boomerangs Men

The men’s team have two matches in Round 3 after a Round 2 bye, firstly against South Brisbane, and then soon after against the F-League newbies Galaxy FC (also from Queensland).

Unlike the South Brisbane women’s team, the sole Queensland representative men’s team had a poor season in 2014, losing 12 of their 14 matches. And this season in the first two rounds, in four games played, have drawn one (v Bayside Pirates) and lost three (Vic Vipers twice and Magic). A tough start to the season for the South Brisbane lads, and they will certainly be looking to register their first win for the season. This will not be an easy match for the Boomers men.

The Galaxy men’s team are a bit of an unknown quantity still this early in the season. Full of promise, they performed excellently in their first F-League weekend at home, drawing with Magic and defeating Vic Vipers. Their weekend road trip to Sydney last weekend though was the stuff of nightmares, where they came up against three of the competition’s strongest teams across the two days, losing all three. Again, they will look to atone for those losses, and register their first win away from home in their F-League career. The Boomerangs men will have to be at their best to defeat the newest of Queensland teams.

The matches are on at mPowerdome, Saturday 23 May.

v South Brisbane at 4.15pm, and
v Galaxy at 7.45pm

Across the F-League

In other matches…

Men’s

The two Victorian teams – Bayside Pirates and Vic Vipers, take the Sydney road trip from hell playing against all three strong Sydney teams over the two days. Six brilliant matches across the weekend at Valentine Park and Dural Sport and Leisure Centre. The two Queensland teams also match up against Capital FC whilst in the nation’s capital.

Women’s

Aside from the South Brisbane road trip to the nation’s capital, the Vic Viper ladies will be squaring up against the Sydney treble across the weekend.

This weekend – Round 3 – also is the first round of the season to see all nine men’s and all seven women’s teams compete.

F-League Round 1 Review

Round One of the 2015 F-League competition was played out over the weekend of 9/10 May and delivered a comprehensive victory to the Boomerangs Men’s team over F-League débutantes Bayside Pirates (Vic). The Boomerangs Women’s team had a Round 1 bye.

The match kicked off on a chilly Sunday morning in Fadden with the gusty winds buffering mPowerdome throughout the encounter. The Boomers men started the game with purpose, structure and discipline – an improvement over the fortnight since these two teams clashed in the pre-season Bairnsdale Futsal Challenge – a match the Boomerangs lads took out narrowly 6-4.

The Pirates, to their credit, also started the match with discipline and structure and it was both teams’ defensive structures that stood out across the first quarter of the match supported by some notable saves by both ‘keepers saving the scorer from registering any goals.

The second ten minute stanza of the first half though, saw the Boomerangs lift intensity and apply more pressure to the stretched Pirates defence. Two goals before half time ensued for the Boomers with Brad Sawyer flicking a header on from a wonderful Callum Smith pass, the shot just trickling over the line before the Pirates keeper could stop it, and a second only moments later thanks to a stabbed effort from Jono Ciminelli in front of goal in heavy traffic.

The team went into the half time break on the up seeing a scoreline advantage to go with the growing dominance across the court.

The second half could not have gotten off to a better start with Jake Wilsener netting within thirty seconds of the restart after a nice slick passage of play. This goal appeared to knock a bit of the confidence from the Pirates players and they spent most of the following five minutes on the back foot – with Sawyer slotting in his second in his first F-League match in a Boomerangs shirt – after some wonderful build up play leaving the score at 4-0 with fifteen to play.

The Pirates did their best to consolidate over the remainder of the half, but were no match for the more experienced Boomerangs. It seemed inevitable then that the Boomers finished off the match with a flurry with Ciminelli sweeping in a second off a rebound and Grant Barlow netting his maiden F-League goal within the final minute of play.

A solid win to start the season for the men’s team – but a match that identified a few areas to work on prior to the next set of challenges in two weeks time against Queensland’s South Brisbane and Galaxy FC.

Boomerangs Men 6-0 Bayside Pirates (Vic) Ciminelli 2, Sawyer 2, Wilsener 1, Barlow 1

Check out the video highlights HERE, and photos of the match at http://bit.ly/1F6E4c6

Across the F-League

In other matches…

Men’s

Sydney’s Inner West Magic travelled to SE QLD and came home with a win (v South Brisbane) and a draw (v Galaxy).

Vic Vipers also travelled to SE QLD and were defeated by Galaxy in the upset of the round and smashed South Brisbane on the rebound.

The travelling Bayside Pirates also went down to Capital FC 5-1 on Sunday afternoon.

No matches for Sydney’s Dural Warriors and East Coast Heat in Round One.

Women’s

Just two games for Round One women’s competition with South Brisbane at home – victorious against the travelling Inner West Magic and Vic Vipers teams.

No matches for the Boomers Women nor for Dural, East Coast Heat or Capital FC.

F-League 2015 Draw Released

The draw for the 2015 F-League Season has been released by Football NSW.

The competition for 2015 consists of nine men’s teams and seven women’s team.

Boomerangs FS men and women will play all their home games at mPowerdome (eight for the men and six for the women), and away games will be held in various locations in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

The majority of the games are scheduled for Saturdays to minimize conflicts with outdoor/football (NPL) matches. There will be two Friday night ‘local derbies’ against the Capital FC teams and two games on Sundays mornings against visiting teams.

The men’s season kicks off with a home game against F-League debutants Bayside Pirates on Sunday morning 10 May (11am) and the women kick off a fortnight later on Saturday 23 May when South Brisbane bring their men’s and women’s team to mPowerdome.

The season has scheduled several weekend away trips for the Boomerangs to Sydney for matches against East Coast Heat, Dural Warriors and Inner West Magic, and two major away trips – to Melbourne to take on Bayside Pirates and Vic Vipers in June – and to Brisbane (Galaxy FC and South Brisbane) in early July.

The final weekend of the regular season – before finals – will see the second ACT derby on the Friday night (17 July) followed by a home game against Vic Vipers (18 July).

Semi-Finals and the Grand Finals will be held in Sydney the following weekend (25/26 July) at Valentine Park.

Follow Sporting Pulse during the season to keep up to date with the schedule, results and the ladder.

W/E	Date	Women	Men	Home Team	v	Away Team	Venue
1	Sun, 10/5	–	11:00AM	Boomerangs	v	Bayside Pirates	Mpowerdome
3	Sat, 23/5	6:00PM	4:15PM	Boomerangs	v	South Brisbane	Mpowerdome
3	Sat, 23/5	–	7:45PM	Boomerangs	v	Galaxy FC	Mpowerdome
4	Fri, 29/5	6:30PM	8:15PM	Capital FC	v	Boomerangs	AIS Training Hall
4	Sat, 30/5	Noon	2:00PM	EC Heat	v	Boomerangs	Valentine Park
5	Sat, 6/6	Noon	1:45PM	Dural Warriors	v	Boomerangs	Dural SLC
5	Sat, 6/6	4:00PM	5:45PM	Inner West	v	Boomerangs	Valentine Park
6	Sat, 13/6	–	10:30AM	Bayside Pirates	v	Boomerangs	Vic Futsal Centre
6	Sat, 13/6	12:15PM	2:00PM	Vic Vipers	v	Boomerangs	Vic Futsal Centre
7	Sat, 20/6	11:00AM	12:45PM	Boomerangs	v	Inner West	Mpowerdome
8	Sat, 27/6	11:00AM	12:45PM	Boomerangs	v	EC Heat	Mpowerdome
8	Sun, 28/6	11:00AM	12:45PM	Boomerangs	v	Dural Warriors	Mpowerdome
9	Sat, 4/7	–	10:00AM	Galaxy FC	v	Boomerangs	Logan Metro ISC
9	Sat, 4/7	11:45AM	1:30PM	South Brisbane	v	Boomerangs	Logan Metro ISC
10	Fri, 17/7	6:30PM	8:15PM	Boomerangs	v	Capital FC	Mpowerdome
10	Sat, 18/7	10:30AM	12:15PM	Boomerangs	v	Vic Vipers	Mpowerdome

The full men’s draw can be found HERE, and the women’s draw HERE.

FNSW State League Rnd 10 Review

Round Ten of the Football NSW State League Futsal competition saw the Botany Bay Pirates club bring their nine teams down to mPowerdome to take on the Boomerangs.

Before the round, the Pirates sat in ninth position on the State League Club Championship table (with the Boomerangs in third). It also looked like there would be favourable match ups in most age groups. However, the Pirates played above their ladder position, and took three wins and two draws back up the highway with them at the end of the day, leaving behind just four wins and a share of the two draws for the Boomerangs club.

12 Boys

Boomerangs FS 5 – Botany Bay Pirates 3

The 12 boys had to work hard for this win. The Pirates were tough and disciplined, and were leading the youngest Boomerangs boys by a goal (0-1) at the half-time break. The boys took the initiative in the second period, and the introduction of an injured Barbatano at two key times in the second half lifted the boys and opened up scoring opportunities. When the final whistle blew, the Boomers took the points 5-3 after a goal scoring frenzy in the second period. Goals to Barbatano (2) and Gagliardi (2)

Current ladder position after ten rounds: 4th

13 Girls

Boomerangs FS 1 – Botany Bay Pirates 1

Before this round the Boomerangs youngest girls were in ninth place and the Pirates in 10th. It was anticipated that this would be a close game, and it was. The Pirates opened the scoring early in the first half, and from there it was a close tussle. Indeed it looked like the match would end a one goal loss to the Boomerangs, but with remarkable determination, young Stella De Marco willed in a goal with only seconds left on the game clock. A good effort all round by the team against a closely matched opposition.

Current ladder position after ten rounds: 9th

14 Boys

Boomerangs FS 0 – Botany Bay Pirates 4

Before the round Boomerangs were in fourth place and Pirates in ninth and the boys were expecting that hard work and some grit and determination would bring them the points. However evenly balanced the game was in the first half, the goals just would not come for the Boomers boys. Two nil down at half-time with the work to do in the second half. The Pirates though had other thoughts and came out more strongly in the opening period of the second half, knocking in another two goals before the half was seven minutes down. The Boomers coach responded by experimenting with a fifth man play for the most of the remainder of the match to try and force a goal with sheer weight of numbers up the court. Unfortunately the goal drought continued and the match ended with the Pirates up 4-0. A great effort by Rodriguez who played as fly-keeper and then backed up to start in the 16 boys match.

Current ladder position after ten rounds: 5th

15 Girls

Boomerangs FS 6 – Botany Bay Pirates 1

This group of girls just keeps performing, and have now won five games in a row after a mid-season slump of three consecutive losses. The girls play extremely well as a team, and any player coming in off the bench, contributes positively to the team. Hard work in the first half saw them in at the break with a small lead, 2-1. However all the hard work they did in the first half started to pay dividends when the game opened up in the second. A comfortable victory for the girls and if they continue to perform, will remain in finals contention.

Current ladder position after ten rounds: 4th

16 Boys

Boomerangs FS 1 – Botany Bay Pirates 5

Before this round the Boomerangs 16 boys were in 10th place and the Pirates in 9th and another close game was expected. Down 3-1 at half-time, the boys needed to lift intensity in the second half and seize the momentum. They tried; however, with the lack of success in front of goal, it made it difficult to stage a resurgence to get back into the game. The final score of 1-5 probably not a good indication of how close the game was.

Current ladder position after nine rounds: 10th

17 Girls

Boomerangs FS 1 – Botany Bay Pirates 1

Before the round the Boomerangs 17 girls were in fourth place and the Pirates in 11th, so another win was hoped for. However the Pirates displayed a level of skill and determination that belied their ladder position. The match though will be remembered for the number of shots by the Boomerangs players that hit the uprights, hit the cross-bar, were saved by the keepers leg or arms, or were blocked by the Pirate’s defenders. Nothing the girls could do could get the ball into the back of the net after it was tied up at 1-1 at the half-time break. This result did not help the team’s aspirations of playing finals futsal, and they will need to win both their final two games to be in with a shot of fourth place.

Current ladder position after ten rounds: 5th

Youth Men

Boomerangs FS 5 – Botany Bay Pirates 2

The Youth Men have hit their full stride in the second half of this season, and they remain unbeaten since the first game of the season (a narrow 3-4 loss to table topping Sutherland). At 4-1 up at half-time it looked as though the lads would power away in the second term. The Pirates though had other ideas and came out to perform strongly in the second half to match it with the Boomerangs youth — the final scoreline of 5-2 a good reflection of the game. The highlight was a three goal haul from the returning Sean O’Neill.

Current ladder position after ten rounds: 2nd

Open Women

Boomerangs FS 5 – Botany Bay Pirates 0

Another great match by the women (and the 17s that played up) that helps them retain top spot on the competition ladder. The ladies started the first half slowly with the Pirates putting up some stiff opposition. The half-time score of 1-0 was increased to 5-0 by the close with the Boomers women hitting their stride late in the match. And much like the Youth Men, this team has had some stunning form since a Round 1 glitch as they have won their subsequent nine matches in the season which sits them neatly atop the table above Sutherland (on goal difference).

Current ladder position after ten rounds: 1st

Open Men

Boomerangs FS 1 – Botany Bay Pirates 2

Before the round Boomerangs Open Men were in second place and the Pirates in 10th with only two wins to their name. However, a lack of regular men’s players for the home team (due primarily to early pre-season outdoor competition) meant that the bench (and a starter) positions were filled with Youth lads who had already had a tough match not 50 minutes earlier. In addition, an injury to Daniel Fulton limited his participation in the game, leaving the men’s roster slim (with Collins in goal, O’Dwyer and Davoren). However, the guys have been in this situation before and have managed to scrape through wins, but this time (much like last week) the men had difficulty finding the back of the net. After O’Dwyer scored the first goal early, it looked like a win was on the cards. However, with the Pirates hitting back quickly the 2-1 half-time score would be the end result with no further goals scored in the second half, even with a last few minutes of fifth-man play.

And with the last three weeks’ results seeing the team slip from 1st, to 2nd and then 3rd, there is a chance that they will miss the finals if they do not win their final two matches and overcome this late season slump.

Current ladder position after ten rounds: 3rd

Four wins, two draws and three losses,

The finals hopes of several age groups now depends on winning both remaining games and hoping for positive results in other matches. With a bye in the second last round, this limits opportunities to chalk up more competition points from the three remaining rounds. It would appear that the only definites for finals futsal at present would be the Open Women and the Youth Men.

The Club Championship after this round sees the club in fourth place in a congested ladder that is ‘messy’ at the top with several clubs having ‘make up games’ in hand as well as Hakoah, Taipans and possibly the Raiders with games in hand, having already had their bye weekend. A key measure is the number of losses, and the Boomerangs club is not well positioned having already lost 29 games this season (the most of the top six). With one relatively difficult round to go (Eastern Suburbs Hakoah) and one relatively easier (Western Wolves) it is likely the club will finish 4th-6th at season end.

FNSW State League Rnd 5 Review

(Photo Credit: Roy Meuronen)

Round five of the Football NSW State League Futsal competition saw the South Coast Taipans make their way to mPowerdome to take on the nine age groups of the Boomerangs.

The day kicked off as usual around lunch time with the 12 boys and finished well into the evening with the Open Men’s division. Results for the day were as follows:

12 Boys

Boomerangs FS 5 – South Coast Tapians 6

Current ladder position after five rounds: 4th

13 Girls

Boomerangs FS 1 – South Coast Tapians 8

Current ladder position after five rounds: 10th

14 Boys

Boomerangs FS 1 – South Coast Tapians 3

Current ladder position after five rounds: 8th

15 Girls

Boomerangs FS 1 – South Coast Tapians 4

Current ladder position after five rounds: 7th

16 Boys

Boomerangs FS 4 – South Coast Tapians 3

Current ladder position after five rounds: 11th

17 Girls

Boomerangs FS 2- South Coast Tapians 2

Current ladder position after five rounds: 5th

Youth Men

Boomerangs FS 6 – South Coast Tapians 4

Current ladder position after five rounds: 3rd

Open Women

Boomerangs FS 4 – South Coast Tapians 1

Current ladder position after five rounds: 2nd

Open Men

Boomerangs FS 7 – South Coast Tapians 2

Current ladder position after five rounds: 3rd

Four wins, a draw and four losses split the day evenly between the Boomerangs and Taipans. All teams are still in a position to earn finals spots with a solid (or improved) remaining seven rounds, and the older age groups (and perhaps 12 boys) still in a position to claim top spot on their respective competition ladders.

The Club Championship after this round sees the club in sixth place having already played four of the five teams above on the ladder.

FNSW State League Rnd 1 Review

The 2014/2015 Football NSW State League futsal competition kicked off in great style on Saturday 11 October. After months of tireless hard work by a team of dedicated Boomerangs volunteers, all nine teams were kitted up in their new strips, well-drilled and motivated to perform against State League stalwarts Sutherland Futsal – a team which has performed consistently well for many years in the NSW futsal leagues.

With the new permanent home of mPowerdome ready for action, the day kicked off with the 12 boys and they lived up to their pre-season promise by totally dominating the travelling Sutherland team. After a slow start to the match, the boys went into the break with a comfortable 4-1 lead. The second half saw their confidence increase and the hard work of trainings paying off as they kicked into overdrive to net another six time to finish 10-2 victors. A tremendous game to start the day with great contributions from every player.

The 13 girls hit the court next, and some last minute withdrawals from the team – notably from the dedicated ‘keeper’ – had a noticeable impact. After matching it during the first half (down 0-1 at half-time) the Sutherland 13 girls powered away in the second; looking strong, organised and outplaying our tiring girls all over the court. This Sutherland team will be one to look out for at the business end of the season. The final score of 0-8 none too flattering for our girls, but they know they can build on that and they did show some glimpses of what they are capable of at times during the match.

The 14 boys were up next and after a tentative start where Sutherland ‘got out of the blocks’ the fastest, our boys kicked themselves into gear during the latter stages of the first half and led as the half-time whistle blew, 3-1. The second half was an evenly balanced affair with the Boomerangs slowly displaying their superiority. A couple of soft goals made the score a bit more flattering for the Sutherland boys as the Boomers 14s took the match 6-3 — never looking likely to lose.

The 15 girls hit the floor next and looked primed for a solid performance — and they delivered. A 2-0 lead at half-time converted into a 6-0 final score, the girls never looked troubled and have quality and depth to burn. This team should perform well this year (how’s that for some pressure…) and we look forward to their terrific, entertaining style of play throughout the season.

The 16 boys up next promised a great showing as the matches increase in intensity and in physicality. Our lads looked strong, but still learning to work well with each other. 0-2 down at half time, they came out wanting to play harder and faster, but the Sutherland team were more than a match. The second half saw our boys score a brace to Sutherland’s three seeing a final score of 2-5. ‘Better for the run’ would be an apt description for the 16 boys, and they should improve with every outing and will be more competitive as the season progresses – as they are a talented and skilful bunch.

17 Girls hit the court at 4.40pm to continue the second half of the day’s play. A much tighter, defensive games than those earlier saw the scores locked at 1-1 at the half-time break. As much as they tried, neither team could add to this scoreline or break the deadlock in the second half, seeing the final score remain 1-1. A tight and skilful match that pitted two evenly matched, if not a bit tentative, teams against each other.

The Youth Men were on the court next and both teams delivered as expected – a fast, furious and physical encounter with no holds barred (as most U19 youth men’s games are!). The Sutherland lads made first inroads by scoring the solitary goal of the first half. As is usually the case in these testosterone-fuelled games, the level of intensity lifted another notch in the second half as the Boomer boys fought back. A second half that saw six goals scored – three goals a piece – had the young Sutherland men take out the match with the narrowest of margins 4-3. A disappointing result for the Boomerangs Youth, who are expected to do well this season as they feature many players with recent F-League experience. However, on this occasion they could not overcome the Jordan Guerrero-led Sutherland. (Jordan is currently a member of the Australian men’s team – the Futsalroos).

The Open Women’s team were up next and played out a fascinating and close match against the Sutherland women. After much (goal-less) end-to-end futsal in the first half, the Sutherland women took advantage of the Boomerangs lapse of concentration in the last ninety seconds of that half slotting in two quick goals in what was a very even contest to that point. The ladies came out in the second half looking to atone for their earlier lapse, but could only manage to match Sutherland by scoring a single goal to match that of Sutherland (final score 1-3). A game that was there for the taking had it not been for the pre-half-time lapse in concentration.

The final match of the day was the Open Men which was always going to be an entertaining fixture. An end to end first half – with plenty of opportunities for both teams – saw the visitors up by a solitary goal 0-1. The Boomerangs must have heeded the Coach’s half-time team talk as they came out firing in the second half. Three goals across the second stanza from some wonderful passing movements and displayed skill ensured that the Sutherland men had little opportunity to win this one. Aside from their goal scoring ability, the men should be congratulated for a solid defensive effort by all players who took the court – including the return of Ryan Keir and the introduction of Tom McLachlan – both on the back of stellar outdoor seasons.

So a day which saw the honours split, four wins each and a draw, blows out the cobwebs and sets up the nine Boomerangs teams for more positive outcomes as the season progresses.

Photos of all the matches on the day can be found HERE.