Under 12 Boys:
Sunshine Coast Fire 7 v Redlands United 1
The Sunshine Coast Fire boys expected a tough game in their Round 2 match-up against Redlands United at Stockland Park. A strong wind and a heavy shower during the game made play difficult, however the Fire managed to dominate the game with a 7-1 win.
The Fire boys settled into the game well from the first whistle, keeping the ball down and causing problems for Redlands with speed on the wings. It was this speed which led to the Fire’s first goal, as Sam Aitken crossed to Luke Varga who took on the Redlands defender and glanced a header into the bottom-right corner.
Aitken then nabbed a hat-trick, scoring a remarkable three goals in eight minutes. He collected a fine strike from Cody Pyne for his first, flicked the ball over the defender to finish for his second and then seal the hat trick in the 22nd minute.
The Fire kept Redlands scoreless into half-time with a solid foundation of defence from the hard-working backline and midfield.
Redlands played with intensity after the restart, putting the Fire under pressure for the first time in the game. Redlands finally got a break in the 46th minute, as the number 13 scored in the 46th minute.
Just three minutes later Jack Beardsley eliminated any thought of a Redlands comeback as he found space in the box and finished with a powerful strike. This goal settled the Fire boys and they played well for the remainder of the game.
After sustained pressure, the Fire managed to score two more goals in the last five minutes of the game. Beardsley beat his opponent and passed to Harry Arnison on the edge of the box to fire a low drive under the keeper’s right arm. Kye Stopka rounded-off the scoring with a late solo effort, squeezing the ball home at the near post.
Coach Peter Higginson said the game was a great over-all team performance in difficult weather conditions.
“All the boys who played in the back dealt admirably with the wind and the pressure from Redlands and still looked to support our attacks through Ezelkiel Hawkins and Cody Pyne,” he said.
“The midfield partnerships were strong, controlling the game for long periods and working well together. Our front three once again looked dangerous time after time.
“It was a solid start to the season with much to be pleased about and much to work on. I was pleased with the team’s performance to start.”
Player of the Match: Sam Aitken
Under 13 Girls:
Sunshine Coast Fire 7 v Redlands United 1
The Under 13 Girls Fire played well to keep the ball down and stick to the game plan in the difficult weather.
The Fire created numerous chances which the Redlands keeper saved early in the game. Jazlyn Salih opened the scoring for the Fire as she smashed the ball in off the crossbar, straight above the keeper. Salih then followed her first goal up as she collected a killer pass in behind the defence to finish in the bottom corner.
The Fire then conceded a penalty for contact bringing the score to 2-1 at half-time.
Coach Tom White said the Fire was fantastic in the second-half, scoring goal after goal. The players up front caused Redlands problems while the back four were solid and played safe wherever needed.
Jazlyn smashed in her third goal after beating two players and going 1v1 with the keeper and then rounded off her scoring with a composed finish for her fourth goal.
Hannah Taylor beat two defenders and placed a shot home past the on-rushing keeper to bring the score to 5-1 before an own goal and Lissa Taft’s shot into the top corner sealed the Fire’s win.
“The 7-1 score line was due to some great football; the girls kept the ball grounded and executed basic pass and move plays easily,” White said.
Player of the Match: Emily Paxevanos
Under 13 Boys:
Sunshine Coast Fire 4 v Redlands United 4
The Fire started the game slowly as neither team managed to take control. The boys defended well and Nathan Foster was brilliant in goals one-on-one, however they had trouble keeping the ball down in the windy conditions.
In the 18th minute the Fire scored the first goal as a Kaelan Debbage won the ball for Daniel Cuttler and Archie Waterson to play a one-two to set up Tom Whittaker to finish at the back post.
The Fire took to the field after the restart with a goal advantage, however Redlands quickly equalised in the 37th minute after a mistake from the Fire defence. Redlands scored again just six minutes later after incepting a pass in the Fire’s defensive third and again on the counter attack in the 49th minute.
The Fire continued to look dangerous in the attacking third and was finally able to peg a goal back in the 52nd minute. The Fire built up pressure and Dean Poloydorous played Mackenar Bradfield in behind the defence to slot the ball into the net.
Three minutes later Redlands again intercepted while the Fire was playing out from the back, and the Redlands number 9 scored again for a hat-trick.
The Fire again fought back as Kaelan Debbage went around the keeper to finish in the bottom corner. In the 67th minute the pressure from the Fire forward line allowed Whittaker to pass in to Mackenar Bradfield to finish in the bottom left corner to level the score at 4-4.
Under 15 Girls:
Sunshine Coast Fire 2 v Olympic FC 1
The Fire took on Olympic in a close match at Stockland Park. The girls started strongly, scoring within the first five minutes as a switchball from the right to left allowed Lisa van Hooijdonk to take her first touch inside and fire into the goal with her right foot.
The Fire defence worked hard to cover Olympic’s attacks, however in the Olympic number three managed to level the score in the 30th minute.
After the restart the Fire continued to hold strong in defence and feed balls through to the forwards. In the 57th minute the Fire centre back won the ball and passed up through the middle for Jess Bender to shoot into the top-left of the net and seal the Fire’s 2-1 win.
Under 14 Boys:
Sunshine Coast Fire 7 v Redlands United 0
The Fire Under 14 Boys took on Redlands in their first NPL game of the season at Stockland Park.
Coach Alex Barlow said the Fire played excellent football throughout the game, with strong defence and Taj Suffolk and Jesse Gibbs wreaking havoc at the front. Gibbs scored the first goal in the first minute after Taj Suffolk made a run down the right wing and cut the ball to Gibbs to drill into the top corner. He then scored another two goals in rapid succession to complete a hat-trick; both from Suffolk through-balls.
The Fire continued to pressure Redlands and in the 22nd minute central defender Max Footitt controlled a great corner from Mitch Bridge and smashed the ball into the goal from three yards. Shortly afterwards Footitt took a fantastic free-kick from 35 yards out which was only denied by the crossbar.
Just before half-time, Suffolk made yet another breaking run down the right-wing to cut in to Gibbs to place in at the near post.
The Fire boys continued their form into the second half, scoring again 12 minutes in. Jac Eather made a run down the left wing, beat a defender and squared the ball to Gibbs to tap in comfortably.
Ten minutes later Tom Croft scored the Fire’s final goal after receiving a fantastic diagonal from Ollie Duncan. Croft drove forward to beat the keeper at his far post.
Assistant Coach Johnno Whiting said he and Barlow were pleased with the team’s performance.
Players of the Match: Taj Suffolk and Jesse Gibbs.
Under 16 Boys:
Sunshine Coast Fire 2 v Redlands United 0
The game started in windy and difficult conditions; however the Fire settled as the better of the two teams within the first five minutes and held possession well. The Fire created a few goal opportunities early on; in the first ten minutes Jordan Vieira’s shot cleared the crossbar while Cam Nairn’s shot whizzed past the outside post. In the 13th minute the Redlands keeper saved a certain Adam Edgar goal.
Just one minute later Timi Adjibola was fouled and the Fire was awrded a penalty. Adam Edgar stepped up and drove the penalty shot into the back of the net. With a goal advantage, the Fire continued to defend well against Redlands’ attacks. Tyler Morse made a one-on-one tackle inside the penalty box to foil a Redlands breakout in the 18th minute. Throughout the first 20 minutes the Fire dominated play and showed patience with the ball; switching play to put Redlands’ defence under pressure.
In the 25th minute a back-pass which bobbled caused problems for the Fire defence and forced Luke Marker to make a diving save at the feet of a Redlands player. From this point the game opened up and there were chances at both ends. The Redlands keeper, who was in great form, saved Edgar’s shot. Shortly afterwards the Redlands right winger pushed his 1v1 attempt past the right post.
The first ten minutes of the second-half was scrappy as both teams were affected by the wind. Redlands dominated possession early in the second half requiring the Fire defence to work hard with Tyler Morse prominent in defence.
In the 59th minute the Fire regained control of the game as Timi Adjibola won possession in the right defensive corner. An interchange of passes with Thomas Swane ended in a pass to Jordy Irwin overlapping down the left wing. He beat the cover defender with speed and slotted the ball past the keeper’s inside post with his left foot.
The Fire held possession well from this point as the boys switched the ball from side-to-side to create room for attack. However, despite coming close on numerous occasions, the Fire was unable to secure another goal. Redlands did not give up and pressured the Fire defence right to the end of the game.
Coach Ben Cahn said he was pleased with the clean sheet at the start of the season, however a little bit more patience in possession would have made the result more comfortable.
Player of the Match: Tyler Morse
Under 18 Boys:
Sunshine Coast Fire 2 v Redlands 0
Redlands started the game with good intensity and a strong wind behind them, however the Fire’s high work-rate meant they rarely looked threatened. The wet and windy conditions made it difficult to maintain control of the ball at times but in the 10th minute Nick Taylor dispatched a 60-yard diagonal ball for Matt Kennedy to cut inside onto his left foot for a composed finish.
Difficult conditions prevented the Fire from increasing the lead during the rest of the half, and the boys went into half-time with a 1-0 lead.
The Fire players continued to work hard in the second-half, creating chances but unable to convert opportunities to goals with the strong wind making it difficult to judge corners and free-kicks.
In the 80th minute the boys were finally rewarded as Cody Galvin cleared the ball out to the half-way line to find Jacob Fulluck, who turned sharply and beat three defenders to put the ball to the right of the keeper for the second goal of the game.
Coach Paul Arnison was pleased with the two quality goals and a clean sheet. Man of the match performance from Ryan Garratt in the midfield, closely followed by Nik Taylor at left-back.
Players of the Match: Ryan Garratt and Nik Taylor
NPL Youth:
Sunshine Coast Fire 5 v Redlands 1
The Fire NPL Youth started well with great shape and organisation. The boys played out from the back with patience and great movement from the midfield kept the ball on the ground in the strong wind.
In the 33rd minute Ryan Delahunty latched on to a killer pass from the midfield to drive the ball low past the on-rushing keeper. Kayne Varga found space in the midfield in the 45th minute and fired a low top-spinning drive into the bottom corner.
The boys kept good structure and maintained possession into the second half. In the 63rd minute Delahunty sealed his hat trick as he made a cutting edge-run and smashed a shot home.
Just two minutes later Bryce Cuschieri delivered a ripping drive from outside the box, and then scored the Fire’s final goal in the 75th minute with another unstoppable shot.
Coach Craig Hawkins said he was pleased with the work ethic from the Fire in the difficult conditions.
