By Chris Hearn (@_ChrisHearn)

Daniel Sotiropoulos and Matthew Iuliano did the damage as Whittlesea Ranges earned a hard-fought 2-0 win over Springvale White Eagles at Epping Stadium on Friday night.


Sotiropoulos' strike came against the run of play midway through the first period, before Iuliano sealed the victory with 10 minutes to play.


In the opening 15 minutes, the Ranges defence had goalkeeper Jarrod Hill to thank after making three miraculous saves, denying Dejan Erakovic, Vojislav Milojevic and Hamish Millar.

Central defender Sotiropoulos then made Springvale pay the ultimate price for the early profligacy.

After three failed clearances following a corner, he found himself unmarked eight yards from goal - his calm finish opening the scoring.

The hosts sprung into life as a result, and were equal to everything that Springvale threw at them for the remainder of the first half, albeit with some luck.

Vojislav Milojevic was played in down the right wing, but his placed effort skidded just wide of Hill's post. The winger was denied again on 36 minutes, Sotiropoulos coming to the rescue as the attacker shaped to shoot.

As the first period drew to a close, openings to Whittlesea trio Daniel Peluso, Iuliano and Matthew Kondevski alleviated the pressure to see the 1-0 lead preserved heading into the break.

Peluso got on the end of Sotiropoulos' clearance, forcing Springvale defender Slavisa Savic into making a cynical foul.

The winger got another chance on 56 minutes, firing straight at Tomic after Iuliano's initial strike was blocked.

The flashpoint of the match came in the 65th minute. Josh Bowen kicked out at Whittlesea left-back John Reale after a tangle of legs. The incident sparked all 22 players to rush to the scene, with Bowen booked for his part, with Ranges forward Peluso also booked for dissent.

As Springvale tired, Whittlesea readied one final assault on Tomic's goal.

Adam Mustadanagic's low strike was saved brilliantly down to Bojan Tomic's right, before Peluso's effort produced a carbon copy of the save that preceded it.

Sotiropoulos' last-ditch tackle on Vojislav Milojevic handed the Ranges possession, and from the next attack, the home side went 2-0 up.

A punt upfield found forward Peluso, who jinked inside his marker to lay a perfect pass to Iuliano to fire a left-footed strike past Tomic to seal the points.

Whittlesea coach Vinko Bulbujasic was pleased with the win and clean sheet.


"It was a good result. Today was about character more than anything else and they did that," Bulbujasic said.

“We took our chances and they didn't, that was the difference tonight."

Buljubasic also reserved praise for Sotiropoulos.



"I thought he was fantastic and could have had a hat-trick himself,” he said.

Injured Springvale striker Nenad Pavasovic praised the performance but regretted his side's wastefulness in the final third.

"If we took our chances it would have been a different ball game, but that's soccer," Pavasovic said.



"It was a disappointing result but I thought the boys played really well."


MATCH DETAILS

Whittlesea Ranges 2 (Sotiropoulos 21', Iuliano 82') defeated Springvale White Eagles 0 at Epping Stadium [HT:1-0]



Whittlesea Ranges XI: 2. Jarrod HILL (GK), 6. Andrew TAYLOR, 23. Daniel SOTIROPOULOS, 15. John REALE, 3. Berkin YURDAKUL, 14. Daniel PELUSO, 16. Mile RISTOV, 10. Matthew IULIANO, 25. Matthew KONDEVSKI (20. James RIZZARDO 90'), 17. Girolam COSTANZA (24. Rami MUSTAFOSKI 86'), 13. Adem MUSTADANAGIC

Unused subs: 4. Christopher STOJCEVSKI, 19. Damian SILJANOVSKI.

Yellow cards: 10. Matthew IULIANO 43'

Red cards: None

Springvale White Eagles XI: 12. Bojan TOMIC (GK), 28. Scott MILLAR (7. Keletso MTHEMBU 75'), 6. Slavisa SARIC, 8. Marcus HOLMES, 4. Joel BOWEN, 33 Zarko MILOJEVIC, 14. Josh BOWEN (18. Ryan DON PAUL 65'), 13. Hamish MILLAR, 17. Slaven VRANESEVIC, 19. Vojislav MILOJEVIC, 21. Dejan ERAKOVIC

Unused subs: 30. Faraz ZENOOZI (GK)

Yellow cards: 6. Slavisa SARIC 52', 14. Josh Bowen 65'

Red cards: None


Image credit: Graeme Furlong