Felix Charles was the hero for Beachside, saving three penalties as his side won a penalty shootout over the Olympia Warriors to lift the Under 20’s Statewide Cup. Beachside twice came from behind twice in regulation time in a match that was dominated by their opposition.
Beachside went into the match as underdogs, coming up against an Olympia side with numerous players with NPL experience who were looking to defend their title as state champions.
Beachside had a chance within a minute of kick-off when Harry Young found himself with space just outside the Olympia box but his strike to the near-post was turned away by Angus Murfitt in goal.
Just two minutes later Olympia would make their first substitution when Jonathan Mulungula’s recent hamstring problem reappeared and he was replaced by Bilal Ait Maamar
Young’s half-chance would be the only one for either side in the first 25 minutes of the match that had quickly become a cagey affair.
Olympia were knocking the ball around well on the slightly damp plastic pitch but struggled to penetrate a plucky Beachside defence who looked to launch counters when they won the ball.
One of these counters nearly saw them in on-goal when Young won the ball following a clearance to find himself one on one with the last-defender Koby Moschogianis, the defender did well to stand-up the attacker before Shartiel Tuyishime tracked back to help his teammate clear the danger.
Olympia’s passing play paid-off in the 39th minute when Ait Maamar beat a man in the box before cutting it back to Austin Yost whose strike was turned it at the back-post by a lurking Alexander Exarhakos. The linesman signalled for offside but after some deliberation referee Thomas Mace overturned the offside call and the goal rightly stood as the man in the middle was aware of a defender playing the striker on when most others weren’t.
The Warriors looked set to take a deserved lead into the break, but a rare Beachside attack saw Moschogianis take out the standing leg of Finn O’Neill inside the area which the referee adjudged to be a penalty.
George Alcock stood-up to the spot and made no mistake, comfortably converting the penalty into the bottom-left corner in the 46th minute to make the game level at half-time.
Olympia looked to come out with a new intensity in the second-half, perhaps feeling aggrieved that they hadn’t capitalised on their possession in the first, but chances continued to fall by the wayside.
[caption id="attachment_11914" align="alignnone" width="554"]
- Solstice Photography[/caption]
Eventually the Warriors regained their lead in the 73rd minute when Yost brilliantly controlled the ball, beating three defenders just inside the box before laying-off to Exarhakos who gladly turned home and the near-post with his left-foot to score his and his teams second.
Beachside were starting to tire and looked as though they would have little chances left in this game and the Warriors continued to keep possession.
In the 82nd minute Beachside sent all their tall timber forward for a corner, but it was substitute and one of the shortest men on the pitch Angus Bird who flew to turn the ball into the back of the net with his head to make it 2-2.
Four minutes later and Bird would fly-high again to win a header following a free-kick but Angus Murfitt stretched and tipped the ball over the bar brilliantly.
Two minutes later and it was a chance at the other end when Ait Maamar turned and volleyed from close-range following a corner, but Charles in goal made a huge reflex save when he can’t have seen much of the ball through the bodies in the box.
It would go into extra-time but with both team’s energy drying-up, so too did the chances, the biggest one falling to Ait Maamar when a miscued clearance from William Ellis was dropped by Charles before the Olympia winger followed it in with Charles making a freakish save from two-yards out.
It would be penalties to settle the cup final, Beachside converted their first through Young before Charles made his first of three penalty saves from Exarhakos’ effort. From that point Beachside didn’t lose their lead before Ait Maamar’s penultimate penalty was saved by the shootout hero Felix Charles.
[caption id="attachment_11916" align="alignnone" width="634"]
Charles made 3 big stops- Solstice Photography[/caption]
Beachside showed amazing fighting spirit to twice come from behind against a strong Olympia squad to eventually lift the cup, their efforts even left coach Adam Mcguire surprised but thrilled.
“It’s a bit of a blowout to be honest! Young group, we’ve done well.”
“You can tell by the emotion in there (the changeroom) it’s been unreal. Their young kids with hopefully more of these types of games to come.”
Olympia will be disappointed but only have themselves to blame as they couldn’t make their dominance pay, for Beachside they can be proud of their fighting spirit and enjoy their success.
[caption id="attachment_11917" align="alignnone" width="578"]
Will Ellis was voted best on ground- Solstice Photography[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_11893" align="alignnone" width="645"]
Solstice Photography[/caption]
- Solstice Photography[/caption]
Eventually the Warriors regained their lead in the 73rd minute when Yost brilliantly controlled the ball, beating three defenders just inside the box before laying-off to Exarhakos who gladly turned home and the near-post with his left-foot to score his and his teams second.
Beachside were starting to tire and looked as though they would have little chances left in this game and the Warriors continued to keep possession.
In the 82nd minute Beachside sent all their tall timber forward for a corner, but it was substitute and one of the shortest men on the pitch Angus Bird who flew to turn the ball into the back of the net with his head to make it 2-2.
Four minutes later and Bird would fly-high again to win a header following a free-kick but Angus Murfitt stretched and tipped the ball over the bar brilliantly.
Two minutes later and it was a chance at the other end when Ait Maamar turned and volleyed from close-range following a corner, but Charles in goal made a huge reflex save when he can’t have seen much of the ball through the bodies in the box.
It would go into extra-time but with both team’s energy drying-up, so too did the chances, the biggest one falling to Ait Maamar when a miscued clearance from William Ellis was dropped by Charles before the Olympia winger followed it in with Charles making a freakish save from two-yards out.
It would be penalties to settle the cup final, Beachside converted their first through Young before Charles made his first of three penalty saves from Exarhakos’ effort. From that point Beachside didn’t lose their lead before Ait Maamar’s penultimate penalty was saved by the shootout hero Felix Charles.
[caption id="attachment_11916" align="alignnone" width="634"] Charles made 3 big stops- Solstice Photography[/caption]
Beachside showed amazing fighting spirit to twice come from behind against a strong Olympia squad to eventually lift the cup, their efforts even left coach Adam Mcguire surprised but thrilled.
“It’s a bit of a blowout to be honest! Young group, we’ve done well.”
“You can tell by the emotion in there (the changeroom) it’s been unreal. Their young kids with hopefully more of these types of games to come.”
Olympia will be disappointed but only have themselves to blame as they couldn’t make their dominance pay, for Beachside they can be proud of their fighting spirit and enjoy their success.
[caption id="attachment_11917" align="alignnone" width="578"] Will Ellis was voted best on ground- Solstice Photography[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_11893" align="alignnone" width="645"] Solstice Photography[/caption]