This is the overall picture for the three Greek-Australian clubs participating in Australia’s new national football competition, following the completion of Matchday 6, the final round of the group stage.
South Melbourne would certainly have preferred to make it “six out of six,” but on Friday night they settled for a 2–2 draw against Moreton City in Brisbane. It was a rather inconsequential result for the Melbourne “blue and whites,” but very important for the home side, who with that single point secured second place and a spot in the quarterfinals.
We could also say that Hellas did not do Sydney Olympic any favours, as Olympic needed a Moreton City loss.
From Friday night, Sydney Olympic already knew they were eliminated from the next phase, so yesterday’s match against Broadmeadow in Newcastle had no impact on the table and was essentially procedural — though with a matter of pride at stake. Sydney Olympic won 4–2 and can at least say they bowed out of the tournament with their heads held high.
In the group standings, South Melbourne finished first with 16 points, Moreton City second with eight, Sydney Olympic third with seven, and Broadmeadow fourth with three.
Alexander: eyes on the final eight
In Group 2, Heidelberg United (Alexander) drew 2–2 in Tasmania against South Hobart, but already knew from Saturday that they had mathematically secured top spot.
They knew it because Wollongong may have thrashed Marconi 5–0 — the side coached by Panayiotis (Peter) Tsekenis — but they needed to win by six to achieve a better goal difference. This must be one of the rare occasions in football when a team wins 5–0 but cannot celebrate, as it still does not grant them qualification to the next stage.
In this group, Alexander finishes with 12 points, Marconi with ten, Wollongong also with ten but in third place, and South Hobart with one point.
Matchday 6 results
Moreton City – South Melbourne 2–2
Avondale FC – Preston 1–1
Wollongong – Marconi 5–0
Broadmeadow – Sydney Olympic 2–4
Metrostars – Sydney United 2–0
South Hobart – Heidelberg Utd 2–2
Canberra Croatia – NWS Spirit 0–1
Wests APIA – Bayswater 4–1
Quarterfinal schedule
The competition now moves on to the quarterfinals, featuring the two Greek-Australian clubs from Melbourne. Alexander will host the NE Metrostars, while South Melbourne will face NWS Spirit. The schedule is as follows:
Friday (19:45):
Wests APIA – Marconi
Saturday, 12:35 pm:
Avondale – Moreton City
Saturday, 3:35 pm:
Heidelberg United (Alexander) – NE Metrostars
Sunday, 3:05 pm:
South Melbourne – NWS Spirit
It is reminded that all matches of the Australian Championship are broadcast on SBS channels — SBS and SBS On Demand.
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