WOLVES MAUL THE SHARKS

                                    2025 NSW NPL MENS 1 MATCH REPORT 

                                   ROUND 25 

                        SUTHERLAND SHARKS v WOLLONGONG WOLVES 

                                        WOLVES MAUL THE SHARKS

 

At Seymour Shaw Park on the artificial turf, the Wollongong Wolves accounted for the Sutherland Sharks by three goals to one with a brace to Nicolas Olsen and another by Alex Masciovecchio. Yerasimakis Petratos scored one in reply to deny the Wolves a clean sheet in the 90+2 minute.  The Wolves moved the ball around a pace which made things difficult for the home side.  Though the Sharks had a few chances they could not breach the Wolves’ domain, except towards the conclusion of the game.

 

The Wolves kicked off proceedings and ran towards the northern end. Before long Leo Mazis dispossessed Woon Sub Sim and Lachlan MacDonald ran down the right and slotted the ball to Jordan Roberts , but the Wolves’ custodian Daniel Solsky managed to take his effort. The Sharks looked for an early goal as Matthew Moric worked his way into the box and slipped allowing the Wolves to re-group. 

 

At the opposite end, Masciovecchio made a foray into the box but before he could muster anything, he was tackled. However, the Wolves were not going to kept at bay for too much longer. In the seventh minute, Flynn Madden burst into the box and moved around the Shark’s central defender Ikko Ehode Arimoto. He inconvenienced Madden who fell to ground from his trip.  A penalty kick was awarded. Olsen stepped up as usual for these situations, He subsequently powered his left footed spot kick into the lower right corner of the goal. The Wolves were now with an early advantage. 

 

A couple of minutes later Ben Giason dispatched a cross into the box with the Shark’s goalkeeper, Danijel Nizic and Sharks’ captain grasping the ball. In the eleventh minute as the Wolves were gaining momentum, an Olsen free kick was swung in with Dylan Ryan meeting but alas, could not  bring up the desired outcome. A minute on, Giason attacked, and a defender got a touch with a corner kick emanating. Olsen provided the   curling corner kick which traversed into the centre, but an infringement was spotted by the man in charge. Marcus Beattie intercepted a Matthew Jackson pass before a Moric cross went across with no-one  from the Sharks in attendance.to capitalize.

 

A ground-breaking run by Olsen saw Lachlan Scott getting the ball with a deft pass to Masciovecchio and he provided a snapshot on the turn. This moment in play deserved a positive outcome. However, it was not to be and Nizic with an acrobatic save held sway.  Later a Giason cross very nearly edged inside the far goal post from his right sided position. Banri Kanaizumi, back in the line-up after the previous week’s suspension, blocked then cleared Macdonald’s cross. Woon Sub Sim cleaned up an errant Sutherland pass into the box.

 

Kanaizumi roamed forward determinedly and at the end of this enterprise, Madden skied the ball over the goal. 

 

A purple patch for a few minutes from the twenty-third minute saw Sutherland with several attacks. Roberts was found in space before delivering a cross to Tarig Maia who began the season with Sydney United 58.  He was quite a dangerous player during proceedings. This time the ball went over. Kotaro Katsuta made inroads until he met Sub Sim who got in the way and won possession. Jackson looked to shoot but Giason was there to block.

 

In the twenty-sixth minute, Scott received the ball and set sail for the goal. Nizic charged out to narrow the angle with Scott’s effort being wide. Two minutes later, Kanaizumi kicked out Mohamed Ahmed’s ball to clear the danger. Maia was through on goal with Solsky surging out  to deny,  with the chance going begging.

 

The Wolves had other ideas when Olsen produced a dynamic drive from a Scott delivery. It passed narrowly wide of the target and following a Scott  backheel , Masciovecchio  shot from close vicinity. However, Nizic thwarted. Madden made an enterprising diagonal run from right to left  in the thirty-seventh minute before Scott received his pass. The Wolves’ captain and striker struck, only for Nizic to be an obstacle to repel this advance with a top save.

 

Leo Mazi  fashioned  a shot  that flashed narrowly by the right post and Sutherland was thwarted  by a whisker, when a Maia intention from his position on the left whacking into the cross bar. 

 

On forty minutes however, the Wolves increased their advantage,  deservedly so. A slick and quick counterattack saw a marauding Olsen going down the right side with Giason setting him on his way, before moving the ball to Masciovecchio at the far post to slot home.

 

Sutherland looked to respond in kind, when a Maia cross was taken low by a diving Solsky.

 

At the interval, the Wolves had made most of the running and had two goals to show for their eager endeavour.

 

Sutherland were out the blocks quickly as play resumed. Solsky grabbed a Maia cross, Beattie intercepted a Maia pass, and Petratos produced a targeted effort that went on its way into Solsky’s arms. A desperate tackle by Sub Sim on Maia, saved a delicate situation. Another Maia  shot rained in and Solsky again was equal to the task on fifty-four minutes. Moric charged down the left and worked the ball to MacDonald. Before he could cause damage , the Wolves defensive line held up. 

 

The Wolves were not resting on their laurels as a two-goal advantage can be rectified by opposition, as indeed  it has been done in numerous  past games. 

 

Nizic took the ball off Madden as he got close after Scott had assisted with the ball.

 

 Buesnell was dispossessed by Mazi on the left, but he had the last laugh when he trailed back to determinedly win it back. Beattie later blocked an attempted Petratos cross. A minute after the hour, Scott worked his way forward with Arimoto in tow, sniping. Scott kept going despite the attention before releasing the ball. Alas, nothing of any note emanated. Giason set Scott  forward and a corner kick was the result. An ensuing Olsen corner kick was headed out by Arimoto. 

 

Sutherland must have felt some  frustration  as nothing was coming off for the home team. A MacDonald cross travelled wide of the post. Mazi found space to enact a shot which only the fingertips of Solsky was the difference between success and failure. A corner kick by Jackson from the left was headed by Arimoto on target to the near post. Solsky went down to save  on the line and the referee looked hard and diligently to make sure the ball had not crossed the line, then checked with his assistant.  Substitute Brendan Gan, an experienced player, former Sydney FC player and returning player from eleven years in Singapore to his original first-class club, was brought out  in order to spruce up the Sharks attack. 

 

The Wolves were in a happier frame of mind.  Ryan put the ball to the far post after substitute Sebastian Hernandez had switched play from the left to right with a swerving cross field pass.  He in turn crossed low to the far post where Scott was lurking. He put the ball across the goal face, and it was cleared away by a defender. 

 

With three minutes to go, the Wolves achieved their third goal to ensure a certain victory. A long goal kick was launched by Solsky. Katsuta got his head to the ball in his own half, but it went backwards, allowing Olsen to steam forward. Nizic left his line to go low and get the ball, but Olsen skirted him and controlled before sealing the victory with an acute angled action. This was Olsen’s thirteenth goal of the campaign.

 

The Wolves could not preserve a clean sheet as a penalty decision was given when Sebastian Duarte was adjudged to have  impeded Gan just inside the penalty on the right side. Petratos took the penalty and dispatched it forcibly past Solsky into the goal. 

 

The Wolves deservedly had won the contest and their quest for semi-final football is still intact. Sutherland slip into the danger zone but their improved second half performance augurs well for their next assignment.

 

 MATCH STATISTICS 

 

SUTHERLAND SHARKS……………..1

 

Yerasimakis Petratos 90+2 pen

 

WOLLONGONG WOLVES F.C………3

 

Nicholas Olsen 7’ pen  86’, Alex Masciovecchio 40’ 

 

@ Seymour Shaw Park, Miranda

 

SATURDAY 26th July 2025

4.00 p.m. kick off 

 

SUTHERLAND SHARKS  

Coach: Steve Zoric

1. Danijel Nizic, 2. Lachlan Macdonald, 4. Lachlan Fields, 3. Jordan Roberts (88. Brendan Gan 52’) 6. Mohamed  Ahmed, 10.Yerasimakis Petratos, 12. Ikko Ehode Arimoto, 15.Matthew Moric, 19. Tariq Maia (9.Jaden Gasking 59’)  22. Kotaro Katsuta,  77. Leo Mazis (44.Tye McGowan 84’)

Substitutes not used: 30. Sebastian Arranz 21. Marcus Fernandez 20. Jacob Tresoglavic.

Yellow Cards: Jordan Roberts 45+1’

Red Cards: nil

 

WOLLONGONG WOLVES 

Coach: Julio Miranda 

13.Daniel Solsky, 2. Harrison Buesnel, 4. Dylan Ryan (8. Sebastian Duarte 82’), 7. Woon Sub Sim 17. Marcus Beattie 21. Nicholas Olsen, 23. Flynn Madden, 29. Ben Giason, 24. Lachlan Scott (Capt.) (77. Raphael Le’ai 74’), 25. Alex Masciovecchio  (?Sebastian Hernandez 59’),29. Ben Giason. 

Substitutes Not Used: 1. Oliver Yates GK  , 10. Liam Ball 15. Dax Kelly

Yellow Cards: Alex Masciovecchio 53’

Red Cards: nil

 

 Referee: Luke Chapman

Assistant Referees: Joshua Eisner and Matthew Harris

Fourth Official: Daniel Comofsky

 

By Malcolm Rowney