By Kristian Silva and Rory Flanagan
Heidelberg United's outstanding run of form continues, after a convincing performance earned them a 1-0 win against the Oakleigh Cannons at Jack Edwards Reserve on Monday night.
The Bergers’ seven match unbeaten streak stretches back to May 2, and has included wins over Dandenong Thunder, Sunshine George Cross, Melbourne Knights, Richmond and now the Oakleigh Cannons.
After their 3-0 loss to Dandenong last week, Oakleigh coach John Anastasiadis made two changes to his side, including Ljuban Palinic and Yusuf Yusuf in the starting lineup.
For Heidelberg, Antonio La Verde was rewarded for his late goal against Richmond in Round 15, with the former NTC player coming in for Sayeedreza Hossaini.
The match started off at a frantic pace as both sides charged forward in search of an early goal in front of the noisy crowd, which even contained a few fans who were keen to create a World Cup atmosphere by blowing their vuvuzela horns.
George Slefendorfas almost opened the scoring after 12 minutes with a spectacular left-foot volley from distance that beat Griffin McMaster, but also bounced just over the crossbar. There was very little skill required from the Queenslander when he did find the net minutes later, with a disastrous defensive mix-up gifting the striker his third goal of the season. It was reminiscent of the sloppy third goal Oakleigh conceded last week against the Thunder, as they failed to properly deal with a bouncing ball.
As McMaster ran out of his box to clear Hrvoje Matkovic’s lofted pass, defender John Fitzgerald poked the ball past him, leaving Slefendorfas with the easiest of tap-ins.
The game tightened up, and Oakleigh were struggling to create chances because their key target man Jerry Karpeh was receiving plenty of attention from Luke Byles and Craig Elvin.
With both sides registering just four shots on target between them after 40 minutes, a quiet opening half suddenly sparked to life in the closing stages.
Yusuf Yusuf almost capped off a nice counter–attacking move from Oakleigh, but his shot was well held by Steve Tilovski. This came after Bonnell Obradovic was forced to clear off the line when McMaster fumbled a corner kick.
Slefendorfas then tried his luck from distance again, but this time McMaster was equal to the task, parrying the powerful strike wide of the post.
Down the other end, Tilovski pulled off an equally impressive save on the stroke of half time when he tipped Stelios Drakos’ header over the top.
Oakleigh brought on Ricky Diaco at the start of the second half and he almost made an impact with a left-foot shot from 22 yards that flew inches over the bar.
The home side should have been level just before the hour mark, when a Heidelberg defensive blunder allowed Diaco to cross to the unmarked Karpeh inside the box. The big striker took far too long to shoot, and his effort was charged down by the keeper. The rebound fell perfectly to Aristidis Drakos, and with the goal at his mercy he not only failed to hit the target, but failed to connect with the ball.
Heidelberg was not content to settle on their lead and continued to press forward. Oakleigh’s defence was looking nervy, and it seemed as if the Bergers would eventually capitalize on the numerous corners they won.
Substitute Yanni Galanos was proving to be a handful, while Osagie Ederaro embarked on a few blistering runs down the right touchline.
The game started to get overly physical, with a number of rash challenges from both teams going unpunished by the referee. The only time he produced a card was when Nick Marinos was cautioned for his part in a scuffle with John Fitzgerald.
Then came the controversial moment in the 88th minute, when the referee didn’t award Oakleigh a penalty when Steve Martin appeared to trip Diaco in the box.
Slefendorfas and Marinos had chances to put the game beyond doubt in stoppage time, but even though they were unable to beat McMaster, Heidelberg held on for a deserved win.
After the match, Heidelberg’s goal scorer, George Slefendorfas said he was enjoying his time in Melbourne after his move from Queensland State League side FNQ Bulls. After just five appearances in the Victorian Premier League, he has already notched up three goals.
“I heard this league was better so I thought why not? I’ll give it a crack,” he said.
“The boys actually put in a really good effort tonight. It wasn’t an easy win but we worked hard for the full 90 minutes.”
After starting the season poorly, Heidelberg’s recent form has lifted them off the bottom of the table and out of the relegation zone. Their next match is a friendly against the National Training Centre next Wednesday and a win against South Melbourne on July 11 could remarkably put them in the hunt for the finals.
On the same day, Oakleigh travels to Knights Stadium to face the Melbourne Knights. Despite their loss to Heidelberg, the Cannons remain in second position on the Victorian Premier League table. However, their attention will first shift to this coming Friday evening when they host A-League newcomers Melbourne Heart in a friendly.
Match Statistics
Oakleigh Cannons: Griffin McMASTER (Gk), Jamie CUMMING, Aristidis DRAKOS (Bill GASPARINATOS 81’), John FITZGERALD, Stelios DRAKOS, Scott WEBSTER, Ljuban PALINIC, Cameron WATSON, Bonnell OBRADOVIC (Dean PANAGOPOULOS 70’), Yusuf YUSUF (Ricky DIACO 46’), Jerry KARPEH.
Unused Subs: Scott AGUSTIN (Gk), Martin MASON.
Yellow Cards: Nil.
Heidelberg United: Steve TILOVSKI, Craig ELVIN, Luke BYLES, Steve MARTIN, Osagie EDERARO, Hrvoje MATKOVIC (Nicholas MARINOS 74’), Paul MILLER, Antonio LA VERDE (Yanni GALANOS 63’), Josip KOSIC, Saso ALEXOVSKI (Denis ALILOVIC 70’), George SLEFENDORFAS.
Unused Subs: Christian MORALES (Gk), Les DOUMBALIS.
Goals: SLEFENDORFAS (16’)
Yellow Cards: MARINOS.
Last updated: Tuesday June 29, 2010 6:00PM
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