The Marconi Stallions were thwarted by a clinical Sydney Olympic side at Marconi Stadium on Wednesday, June 12.
There were two goals in each stanza, with Abraham Majok and Roy O’Donovan netting goals before the half-time whistle, followed by Adam Parkhouse and Jack Simmons in the second half, seeing the visitors secure a deserved three points from the match.
On a cold Wednesday night at The Palace fans braved the elements to watch two NSL giants come face-to-face in Round 19 of the National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s competition.
There was action from the onset as a chance came in the 7th minute through James Temelkovski, but his effort couldn’t meet the target.
Fans didn’t have to wait long for a goal, with the visitors opening the scoring in the 12th minute of the match.
The goal came as O’Donovan made a forward run and passed to an open Majok, who confidently slid the ball into the bottom corner.
The hosts looked poised to retaliate in the 20th minute as Temelkovski worked his way into a great position, but when he couldn’t find the space to get a shot off, passing the ball to Franco Maya whose effort flew left of the target.
Marconi earned a free kick in the 27th minute after Jackson Bandiera brought down Maya on the edge of the box, however the hosts weren’t able to capitalise on the opportunity.
A free kick in the 39th minute saw Marconi come close again but the impressive effort by Maya was kept out by Sydney Olympic ‘keeper Noah James.
Sydney Olympic doubled their advantage in clinical fashion just before the half-time break, this time through veteran Roy O’Donovan.
A poor touch from Temelkovski saw the ball come straight to the feet of O’Donovan, who showcased his experience by calmly sending the ball into the back of the net, giving his team a valuable advantage at half-time.
O’Donovan came close to making an early impact in the second half; however his effort was kept out by Marconi custodian James Hilton.
Domenic Costanzo came agonisingly close for the Stallions in the 50th minute, but his impressive effort was tipped over the crossbar by James.
Nathan Millgate hit the back of the next in the 63rd minute through a header, but for the second match in a row his goal wasn’t awarded due to a foul in the area.
Frustration mounted through the next stage of play as the game became more physical, but it was calm confidence that saw the visitors extend their lead further.
Oliver Puflett sent a ball overhead to Parkhouse, who slid the ball past Hilton to secure a third for Olympic in the 77th minute.
Moments later Olympic took their lead even further, this time through Simmons.
Puflett again set up a great opportunity for his side and Simmons took a touch before clinically finishing to secure a fourth goal in the 78th minute.
Although Marconi injected some fresh legs to the field, they weren’t able to make an impact on Olympic’s controlling, leaving the visitors and their travelling fans with a resounding victory and three points at the full-time whistle.
Source: By Madeline Riley, Football NSW.
