The Kingborough Lions have claimed their third straight NPL TAS win, beating the Glenorchy Knights 4-1 at KGV to leapfrog their opponents on the ladder and move into fifth place.
New manager Jez Kenth wasn't present on the sideline but his influence was clear as the Lions recovered from a horror start to snatch another important three points. Horatio Gutierrez Jr. and Jack Turner were the stars with two goals each, but it was Kingborough's defensive work rate across the field that stifled the Knights and kept them out of the contest.
That defensive pressure was sorely lacking in the opening exchanges, though, as the hosts grabbed an early lead. The Lions looked to attack directly from kickoff, and once they turned it over left themselves open on the counter. Almost immediately Knights took the ball end-to-end, with a low cross from the right finding Callum Brown for a simple finish with his first touch of the game.
That frantic start was the outlier in the game's opening 20 minutes, as both sides slowly settled but struggled to create genuine scoring chances. Brayton Allen went close for Kingborough, forcing a close-range save from Dmitri Nester, but that was the lone shot on goal before the Lions grabbed an unexpected equaliser.
After the Knights had held the ball forward momentarily, a quick counter attack down the right wing put the Lions back on the front foot. The move ended with a low ball to the penalty spot, and the ever-dangerous Gutierrez tapped it home to level the scores.
From there, the first half fell into something of a holding pattern-- Knights spent plenty of time forward but couldn't find any space to shoot, while Kingborough had the better of the chances but couldn't finish. That story was told in the half time stats, with the Knights leading the corner count 9-1 but firing just one shot on goal.
Clearly not content with being level at the break, the Lions looked a different side as the second half started with some changes made by fill-in head coach Garry Upton. With Jack Turner now leading the line, they pressed high from the outset and put Knights' defence under immense pressure as they tried to play out from the back.
Unlike the first half, there was a flurry of close calls for both sides to start the second. Gutierrez had two shots in two minutes for the Lions, one straight at the goalkeeper and one just wide, while Declan Brown beat Perkinson with a long-range chip but put it just past the post.
It was the Lions who finally broke through to take a well-deserved lead, and it was a moment of magic from James Hall that made it happen. Tucked against the sideline and a long way from home, the winger spotted the run of Turner to the back post and lasered a cross over the defence that was headed home with authority.
Now forced to chase the game for the final 30 minutes, the Knights threw plenty of numbers forward but still couldn't find a way to manufacture open shots on goal. The Lions defence, marshalled superbly by Nick Cuthbertson and Danny Cowen, was rock-solid throughout and continued to hold strong.
Despite this, Knights almost stole an equaliser with less than ten minutes left. Substitute Luke Warrener was played in on the left, and while his cross took a deflection it still found the head of Thomas Young in the middle. His effort flew past Perkinson but thumped off the crossbar and out to safety.
That was the last real chance for the Knights, and the Lions finally killed off the contest in stoppage time. After receiving the ball at the edge of the area, Turner ignored the calls to take it to the corner flag and instead played it inboard to Cameron Steele. He slid it in front of Phillip Kantzos on the byline, who crossed for an easy Gutierrez tap-in to finish a beautiful piece of play.
The visitors weren't done yet though, as they added further salt to Knights wounds with another goal one minute later. A long clearance from the Lions defence set Turner off in a one-on-one footrace, and he was able to beat his man to the ball, take a touch past the goalkeeper and finish into an open net to secure his brace.
That proved to be the last action before the final whistle, as the Lions ended as 4-1 winners and moved into fifth spot on the table. They'll host Olympia next Saturday night looking for their fourth straight win, while the Knights will look to bounce back against the Hobart Zebras on Friday night.