Woden-Weston 1 (Olaide Yinka-Kehinde 6’) drew. Tuggeranong United 1 (Shane Murray 75’)

The Wanderers were searching for a win to keep their slim finals chances alive, and got off to a flying start inside the opening 10 minutes. A poor Tuggeranong pass at the back was eagerly picked up by Olaide Yinka-Kehinde and he raced through before finishing tidily for the first goal of the game.

The half swung back and forth from there but United were doing plenty of the attacking, but unable to make a number of chances and corners count as the break approached and the two teams headed into the sheds after 45 minutes with the solitary goal to separate them.

The second half continued with Tuggeranong having plenty of the ball, and although it took half an hour the visitors finally conjured up an equaliser. United were awarded an indirect set piece and when the ball was dished off to Shane Murray the midfielder made no mistake as he rifled it home to level the scores.

Both teams looked to break the deadlock in the final moments but were unable to find the breakthrough and instead shared the points. Tuggeranong now face a massive clash with second placed Canberra Olympic next week while Woden-Weston take on Gungahlin United.

 

Riverina Rhinos 3 (Darren Bailey 39’, Joe Preece 72’, Mitch Bagiante 73’)def. by Monaro Panthers 2 (Daniel Felizzi 13’, Sam Smith 31’)

The Riverina Rhinos overcame a two-goal deficit to run out 3-2 winners against Monaro Panthers in Griffith on Saturday afternoon.

Monaro got off to a strong start, as they scored just 13 minutes in thanks to Daniel Felizzi. They continued to attack the home backline and it paid dividends shortly after the half hour mark as Sam Smith netted in Griffith for the second time this year to double the advantage of the Panthers.

But nine minutes later the hosts had a lifeline as a penalty was awarded, and Darren Bailey stepped up to convert from the spot and bring his side within a goal as the teams headed into half-time.

But the Rhinos took the game by the scruff of the neck in the second half as they chased an unlikely victory. With just under 20 minutes to go Artur Rattel burst forward and after beating a number of opponents lifted the ball over to Joe Preece who thundered home on the volley.

And just a minute later momentum did it’s thing as the Rhinos headed forward again and Mitch Bagiante netted to put his side ahead. That was enough for the Rhinos as they held on to an important win ahead of a visit from Canberra FC next week, while Monaro will host Tigers at Riverside Stadium.

 

Belconnen United 4 (Phil Borgeaud 16’, Dustin Wells 26’, 89’, Marty Raines 36’)def. Canberra Olympic 2 (Daniel Colbertaldo 6’, Roko Strika 8’)

Belconnen United overcame a two-goal deficit inside the first 10 minutes to storm home and record a 4-2 victory over Canberra Olympic at McKellar Park.

The visitors got off to the perfect start on Saturday night when Daniel Colbertaldo netted just six minutes in, and a penalty two minutes later converted by Roko Strika had them up by two goals and cruising early on.

But the hosts struck back and eight minutes later Phil Borgeaud got them on the board to cut the lead in half. United had momentum and ten minutes after their opener Dustin Wells finished a good move to level scores and there was still time for Marty Raines to score nine minutes before the break to give United a previously unlikely lead heading into half-time.

The second half began as a tight affair with chances harder to come by, but United were happy to hold on to their advantage and let Olympic chase the game and the three points as the game wore on. With the game fizzling out United struck once more as Wells grabbed his second in the final minutes of regulation, and Belconnen held out to record a much needed 4-2 that pushes them into fourth spot on the table. Olympic meanwhile are now back in second ahead of a meeting with third placed Tuggeranong next weekend.

 

Gungahlin United 0 def. by Canberra FC 1 (Michael Taurasi 34')

Canberra FC jumped outright top of the league on Sunday with a 1-0 win over Gungahlin United thanks to Michael Taurasi’s goal.

Full report here.