Football – U16 Maccabi boys go close in U18 decider

WHILE an Eastern Suburbs Football Association (ESFA) U18 boys’ division 1 grand final win over second-placed Pagewood-Botany last Sunday at Hensley Field proved just out of their reach, a MaccabiHakoah Lions side – comprised of players aged just 15 and 16 – can be proud of finishing runners-up. Despite playing against teams with players a year or two older than them, these brave young Lions posted six wins, two draws and four losses to place fourth at the end of the regular season. They then won an elimination minor semi-final 4-3 over Maroubra and booked their spot in the decider after winning an absolute epic of a preliminary final in a penalty shootout after extra-time, over an older Maccabi-Hakoah side that were the deserving ladder leaders (minor premiers). Their proud coach Michael Synnott told The AJN, “The boys had to make a pre-season decision on whether to play again in U16s, or in U18s, and if the latter, most likely put themselves out of contention to play in the end-of-season Champion of Champions tournament. “They made up their minds to play in the U18s, because they wanted the challenge of testing themselves in harder games. “And while they struggled early on in the season, and it took a few matches for them to get used to the extra physicality of playing against older teens, they just got better and better.” Their grand final opponents finished the regular season in second spot and had conceded the least goals and scored the most goals in the competition. Pagewood scored first midway through the first half, but the Maccabi boys hit straight back two minutes later in an attacking raid finished off nicely by Mark SPORTS BRIEFS minutes later via a penalty goal. Maccabi was unlucky not to hit back – but by then a win was beyond their reach, and one more goal by Pagewood sealed a 6-2 win. Ollie Satusky was named by Synnott as the team’s MVP for the season. The Maccabi-Hakoah boys wearing their runners-up medals. Greenberg, to go into the break all square. Maccabi had the first on target shot in the second half and looked the more likely to score for the following 10 minutes. But Pagewood then scored backto-back goals in the space of five minutes, both off free kicks – one indirectly off a loose ball, and the other directly in a superb, looping strike. Down but not out at that stage, the boys in blue reduced the deficit to 2-3 with about 16 minutes remaining, when Ben Palmer neatly finished a brilliant raid that began in his team’s own half, shifted to the right and then the left wings through a series of passes and fast breaks before a spot on centre kick set up the scoring opportunity. Unfortunately, a defensive error then opened the door for an unmarked Pagewood player to score almost immediately, and again three “In the first half, our game plan was to sit a little deeper back in order to contain Pagewood, who are a very strong team, and I felt that worked really well,” Synnott said. “Pagewood were too good in the second half but, as I said to the boys afterwards, while the result didn’t go our way, they should feel very, very proud of themselves overall for what they achieved this season in U18s. “If they stick together, they could go all the way next season.” Meanwhile, in men’s ESFA preliminary finals, Maccabi-Hakoah Saturday division 4 side bowed out with a 0-4 lost to Easts.

SOURCE: AJN