That, in short, is the summary for the Greek-Australian teams participating in the new national football competition of Australia as the fifth round comes to a close.
"Painless” draw for Megas Alexandros
Yesterday Megas Alexandros drew 2–2 at home with Wollongong. The Greek-Australian side twice fell behind on the scoreboard, but both times managed to come back. The loss of points doesn’t affect its qualification to the “final eight,” which has already secured, but it may impact its ambition to finish top of the group.
At present, Yiannis Anastasiadis’ team sits first with 11 points, but now feels Marconi’s breath closer behind, as Marconi also won yesterday, 2–0 against South Hobart in Tasmania. Marconi is now level on 10 points. Wollongong remains mathematically in contention with 7 points in third place, while South Hobart lies at the bottom without a single point.
In the next and final group-stage round, the sixth, Megas Alexandros travels to Hobart to face South Hobart. On paper, the “yellow-and-blacks” should have little trouble securing all three points and finishing top. In the other match, Wollongong will host Panagiotis Tsekensis’ Marconi — a clash expected to be intense. The home side must win by a wide margin to draw level with Marconi on points and surpass it on goal difference. A tall order, but as the saying goes, anything can happen in football…
Melbourne Hellas shooting for the stars
Saturday brought mixed emotions for those of us supporting our Greek-Australian teams. Melbourne Hellas continued its winning streak, while Sydney Olympic once again conceded in the dying minutes, letting victory slip from its hands.
Hellas hosted Broadmeadow and, with little trouble, prevailed 2–0. Thus, the team remains unbeaten and is the only side in the competition to have achieved “five out of five.” Sitting comfortably on top with 15 points, Hellas advances to the final eight as group winner.
Sydney Olympic: the “curse” of the final minutes
Sydney Olympic drew 3–3 with Moreton City and now relies on “mathematical miracles” to qualify as runner-up. At the moment, Moreton City sits second with seven points, Sydney Olympic third with four, and Broadmeadow fourth with three.
Broadmeadow has been eliminated, but that doesn’t mean it will surrender easily to Sydney Olympic’s ambitions next Sunday. The Greek-Australian team needs a big win — and preferably a clean sheet. At the same time, the “blue-and-whites” of Sydney will be hoping their sister club, Melbourne Hellas, will “crush” Moreton City in Queensland by as many goals as possible, so that Olympic can overtake them on goal difference in the event of a tie. As we’ve said many times before — and we’ll say it again — hope dies last.
Full results – Round 5
- Sydney Utd – Wests APIA 1–2
- Sydney Olympic – Moreton City 3–3
- South Melbourne – Broadmeadow 2–0
- Heidelberg Utd – Wollongong Wolves 2–2
- Preston Lions – Canberra Croatia 0–0
- South Hobart – Marconi Stallions 0–2
- Avondale FC – NWS Spirit 1–0
- NE Metrostars – Bayswater 2–0
Full schedule – Round 6
Friday 14 Nov – 19:35
Moreton City – South Melbourne (SBS On Demand)
Saturday 15 Nov – 13:00
Avondale FC – Preston
Saturday 15 Nov – 15:15
Wollongong – Marconi (SBS)
Sunday 16 Nov – 13:00
Broadmeadow – Sydney Olympic (On Demand)
Metrostars – Sydney United
South Hobart – Heidelberg Utd (On Demand)
Sunday 16 Nov – 16:30
Canberra Croatia – NWS Spirit
Wests APIA – Bayswater
All matches of the Australian Championship are broadcast across SBS channels — both the main SBS network and SBS On Demand.
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