Island Bay United AFC

Our last game of the season was against Upper Hutt at Wakefield Park, and even though the result didn't go our way, the manner in which Island Bay went about playing was a nice way to end our season.

The 2nd teams chance for promotion, coupled with the fact that we had no chance of winning our league AND the Capital Football's rules which do not allow Central or Capital Premier players to be dropped to other teams once their regular season has ended, meant that the squad had changed slightly to when we last played Upper Hutt.

Lee Westlake, Steve Davey, Paul Muollo, Ian Paterson and Dave Plowright were all playing Second team so that they could help the fight for promotion to Capital 1, Petero (back in Fiji), Lai and Hicham were A.W.O.L and Zac and Ollie were away. For those of you with Math's issues this means 10 of our regular players were not playing!

What is more important, is that we were able to call upon some experienced players and field a relatively competitive side. I'd personally like to thank Mike, JB, Steve, Peter, Bill and Darren who all put their hands up and played 'almost' like they would have 10-15 years ago. The touch and experience were all there, with the fitness only dying late in the second half.

We started the better of the two teams, pressuring the Upper Hutt defense. Within 10 minutes, a great cross was put across the box, Benn flicked it back over the defenders heads, and Lucci rifled the ball into the top right hand corner, possibly giving us a slightly false sense of security.

Upper Hutt settled into their game, and started finding their attacking players feet via a few long balls. A fast break, off one of our corners, ended in tragedy when our newly formed defense was sliced apart, leaving Steve Hughes to attempt to tackle two players. He got one, but the rebounding ball landed nicely to their other player who slotted home around Chemo's dive. We had a few more scares, but gave as good as we got. 1-1 at the half and we still felt we were in the game.

Both teams came out firing in the second half but it was Upper Hutt who scored first via a poor penalty decision for handball;

Actual handball Definition - Handling the ball involves a deliberate act of a player making contact with the ball with his hand or arm. The referee must take the following into consideration:
• the movement of the hand towards the ball (not the ball towards the hand)
• the distance between the opponent and the ball (unexpected ball)
• the position of the hand does not necessarily mean that there is an infringement

Not: "It was ball to hand inside the box, so I'm giving a penalty"

From there on we struggled to get back into the game. Upper Hutt's tactics were obviously win "at all costs", as pushing, shoving and racist remarks were being thrown around all over the place.

We thought we had a chance to level after a foul in their box, but despite all eleven sets of Island Bay's hands going up in the air, and the ref's whistle going to his mouth, he didn't have enough puff, and so the game played on.

In the last 30, our formation changed to 3-5-2 as we chased a point, but Upper Hutt's players were the fitter, and ran away with the game, scoring twice more when fast breaks down the line were passed back inside for two or three unmarked arriving players to slot home.

We currently lie third on the table (Pending Karori's results) and while I feel deflated over the season's final outcome, I enjoyed playing immensely when we had our good days, and feel proud as punch to have played football with some of the talent that Island Bay's Premier squad turned up with.

The best of luck to Petero and Nate, who are off to pursue new football lifestyles in Fiji and China respectively, to any retiring squad members, and to all of the Island Bay teams yet to finish their leagues.

Go Sharks!

Labels: home, lost, premier, upper hutt

Coming off the back of earning a hard fought point the previous weekend against Wairarapa, to play Miramar (the only team we'd failed to score against in the first round) was going to be a true test of the Premier side's commitment to keeping their league lead.

The Miramar side was bolstered by a few Central Leaguers, who had had their home match against West's postponed (for some strange reason), and this proved to be the catalyst needed to fire up the rest of Miramar's second side.

True to form against teams lower down the table, Island Bay failed to dominate or hold possession, and only had a handful of half chances in the first half. Miramar on the other hand looked dangerous, as the ball was constantly played in the air to Kevin Thompson upfront, who knocked it down well to the other Miramar players breaking forwards and into space.

0-0 at the halftime, and as it was Island Bays defense who were having to work overtime to plug the onslaught from Miramar's fast front men and quick support from their midfield, the Island Bay defenders were happy to have kept the sheet clean so far.

The second half saw a change of formation from Miramar, Left backs playing Right wing and that sort of thing. It seemed to work, with Michele Zanotti delivering a low cross behind our marked up defense to the back post for an untracked man to hammer home from an acute angle, giving the visitors their first goal.

Chasing the game meant changing our formation, and after a few subs, we were playing slightly more aggressive football, but the touch and passion that had been there in previous games was still missing and Miramar's packed defense wasn't opening up.

We created a few chances, through patches of good football, but unfortunately it was Miramar who scored next, breaking out through the midfield yet again, attacking our back line en mass, and an unmarked David Batty popped up on edge of the area to slam a shot goal bound, taking a nasty bounce in the process and skipping over Dave into the net.

To Island Bay's credit, at 2-0 down, we were still fighting for some sort of comeback, but Miramar weren't playing nasty, so penalties wouldn't be coming to save us this time. Time ran out on the clock before we could score, (and we could have been there all night and still not have forced a save from their keeper, so, well done to Miramar who;

~ took four points from us in two matches
~ kept us scoreless for 180 minutes
~ are the only team we haven’t scored against in 2008
~ ended our unbeaten run at home
~ possibly ended our league contention.

This week we play Tawa out at Redwood Park as we look to improve our overall team game dramatically, win all our remaining games, and put pressure on Wairarapa (playing Upper Hutt) in case they drop points too.

Go Sharks!

Labels: home, lost, miramar, premier

First played second when Island Bay Premiers hosted Wairarapa United on Saturday, although neither team could lay a definite claim to top spot as Wairarapa had a game in hand, and were only 1 point behind.

It was always going to be a tough match, with Island Bay looking to avenge their only loss of the season so far, and Wairarapa wanting to take over the lead on the table. The match started exactly how it carried on, a hard fought contest between two battling sides, capable of playing some high quality football.

Wairarapa took the lead when one of their long balls to their skillful and fast strikers wasn't dealt with effectively enough, and carried that lead into the break as both teams failed to control the game in the mud that was the midfield.

The second half was no different, except that both teams were tired from carrying around several kilos of Wakefield Park mud. Mistakes and goals were definitely going to happen. Unfortunately for Island Bay, it was Wairarapa who scored first, Rabo playing a ball through to Solomon to run onto and slot in around Dave's outstretched arms giving Wairarapa 3 points, or so they thought!

The Island Bay train kept on chugging, and determined not to let them beat us again, we sent Petero up front, brought on fresh legs, and began attacking Wairarapa's defense, sending wave after wave of attacks into the box.

Island Bay's three man defense was still being constantly threatened by the pace and touch of the two Fijian strikers, but were struggling to find good shooting opportunities without the support from their tiring midfield.

A Wairarapa handball in their box resulted in the referee awarding a penalty, which Rodney put away (after the keeper parried the initial kick), and handed the Bay a lifeline.

A cross into the back of their box was headed back across and Petero's resulting bicycle kick forced a great save from their keeper.

A free kick just outside the box was actually a definite penalty (once we reviewed the video).

Lucci was crudely brought down in the box giving the Ref no option but to award another penalty, which Steve Davey dispatched sweetly into the corner (although the keeper seemed concreted to his spot).

This levelled the game for us, and caused snow to fall on the Rimutaka's, so Wairarapa had to go home without setting foot inside our clubrooms to either make snow angels, or beat the road closure.

A remarkable comeback from our team, and a great insight into the determination we can show when we put our minds to it. Still, with the league table the way it is, Island bay will have to win all of their remaining matches, and hope Wairarapa drop a point, before they can claim this seasons Premier Title.

This week we're at home again, this time hosting Miramar, the only team we have failed to score against so far, and we'll be looking to set the record straight!

Go Sharks!

Labels: drew, home, premier, wairarapa

Island Bay Premiers side faced Marist on Saturday, hoping to continue our winning run and cement our position on the top of table. We knew from our previous encounter with Marist that their current position on the table isn't an accurate reflection of the determination of their squad and we'd be fighting for the whole of the 90 minutes for a result.

The game started as we thought it would, scrappy, with both teams struggling to retain possession on the unforgiving pitch. The Marist midfielders (and Marist in general) were closing us down quickly, and making it hard for us to play our quick and free flowing attacking game. Eventually we managed to force a flowing move, a nice pass into the path of Hicham gave him a half chance, and he tucked it away into the corner, giving us the lead into halftime 1-0.

The talk at halftime called for a reshuffle of the team formation in order to cope with Marist's midfield dominance. Unfortunately the change didn't have the desired effect, and Marist pulled even shortly after halftime, when we were overrun in the midfield and unable to make a decisive clearing tackle.

At 1-1 it was all up in the air. Marist were brimming with confidence, and we were unable to relieve the constant pressure by scoring at the other end. With 5 minutes left to play Marist were awarded a penalty when a cross was misjudged and bounced into a Island Bay hand. It was up to Dave Plowright, stepping up from Reserve Goalie to keep Island Bay's unbeaten home run alive, and he put the Marist Striker off enough for him to drive the ball into the post.

The Game ended 1-1 with Island Bay breathing a sigh of relief, and Marist wondering what they had to do to get their second win for the season. This weekend we play Kapiti Coast out at Weka Park, and will hope to get some form back in a season where every point counts so much!

Go Sharks!

Labels: drew, home, marist, premier

Island Bay Premiers had the chance to exact revenge on Western Suburbs for kicking us out of the Chatham Cup on Monday, even if it was West's second team.

Even though they have been struggling in the Capital Premier League so far this season, it was a must win for us if we want to be in the running come the end of the season, and as the table is so close, every point we can take is vital. We had won all our home games so far, (scoring at least three in every game) so we had a lot to play for.

Wests started well, lifted by the inclusion of senior players Rupert Ryan, and Neil MacDonald, who's experience and touch gave Wests more possession than they would have enjoyed without them. We attacked down the flanks and delivered the ball into dangerous areas without causing them too many problems, until 30 minutes in, when a corner was delivered perfectly to Zac, who headed the ball into the man on the near post, and was deemed to let the ball entirely over the line before clearing it. A year ago we would not have had this sort of decision go our way, but luck is actually bred from attitude and self belief, two components which have come a long way this season. 1-0 at Half time.

The second half carried on in much the same vein, see-sawing football, and neither team playing particularly well, when a slow clearance led to a good tackle from a Wests striker, who on his next touch slammed the ball home from 20 metres and tied the game up at 1-1 in the 70 minute.

The realisation that we were in danger of giving Wests their second point in 8 Games finally woke us up, and from then on it was all Island Bay. Lucci pounced on a nice through ball, and drove the ball into the area, giving the Wests defender no option but to attempt to clear, unfortunately powering his header past his own keeper and into the net.

5 minutes later and a poorly timed tackle 25 metres out gave Hicham a chance to flex his calf muscles, lashing a fierce drive into the far netting, and giving us a safety cushion.

3-1 the final score, but Wests will start taking points of teams if they continue to play like that. This week marks the start of the second round, with Lower Hutt hosting us at Fraser Park.

Go Sharks!

Labels: home, premier, western suburbs, won

Another home game on the weekend required another victory for the Premier side as we attempt to climb to the top of the ladder. Karori were joint top of the table, hadn't lost yet in 2008, and have a game in hand aswell, so it was a good time to let our intentions for this season be known. The squad was overflowing with confidence after beating Tawa, and Upper Hutt (Chatham Cup) in previous weeks, and were looking forward to keeping to our winning ways.

We started well in the windy, wet conditions, although perhaps not so great at the back, with a few tense moments as we failed to deal properly with Karori's long floating balls over the back of our defense. Once we'd sorted these out, it was all Island Bay, with Karori's midfield being swamped by Nate, Steve and Petero. Hicham was back from injury, and carving trenches around the Wharfie's defense, taking 20 minutes before scoring a well earned goal, even if it did take a deflection on the way.

We continued to dominate, Karori relying on counter-attacking whenever they could break out of their half. Five minutes before half-time another attack resulted in a corner. Ian fired in a near post cross, which Zac rose up to and rocketed the ball towards goal. The defender on the near post could only head the ball into the top of the net, making it 2-0, and surely requiring a couple of panadol.

Different game, same old Wakefield Park half-time talk. "Third goal will kill 'em off gentlemen!" Karori would have been given a slightly different speech I'm sure, and both teams came out of the dressing rooms fired up.

Karori changed formation to 3-4-3 in an attempt to peg one back and make a game of it, but within 5 minutes Steve Davey had decided the third goal wasn't happening fast enough, so drove one into the top left hand corner from 25 yards, leaving us all gob-smacked, including the stranded Wharfie's keeper.

Karori kept searching for a way back in, and looked to have found one when they were awarded a penalty. Fortunately Shaan gave us some more penalty magic, not only saving the initial kick, but also dealing with the rebound. Karori would score ten minutes later though, bending a freekick around the outside of the wall and in off the post with precision. It was all too little too late though, The Bay has now won all four home games and is sitting in second place, only two points adrift of Tawa.

Interestingly, after SEVEN games, there is only SEVEN points separating the top SEVEN teams. This weekend Tawa face Karori, while we play Upper Hutt, away at Harcourt Park [that'll be twice in two weeks] on Saturday, with a Chatham Cup tie against last years beaten Cup finalists, and Central League Winners, Western Suburbs.

Waterside Karori's Match Report

Go Sharks!

Labels: home, karori, premier, won

On Saturday Island Bay clashed with Tawa, unbeaten and with four wins from five games, they had a right to occupy first place on the table. We were looking to switch the momentum from that of a mediocre side held scoreless by Miramar the week before, to play more of the well oiled, and penetrative style we know we can. The Fans demanded a big game!

We started well, straight from the first whistle we settled into our attacking gameplan, looking to break Tawa's spirit early. The breakthrough came inside the tenth minute, Luciano Colucci was played through by a great ball, cut inside his man and smashed the ball in near post. We wondered if Tawa were shellshocked then, but they certainly were ten minutes later, when a pass back from their goalie found the centre back dispossessed by Lai Gatarua who spotted the keeper off his line and expertly chipped the ball into the top left hand corner from outside the box, giving us a two goal cushion.

Tawa struggled to get back into the game, but began to break through from midfield and push the ball wide, pulling our back three out of position, and opening up little holes. A couple of near misses, led into a few great saves from Shaan, but a neat one two in our box saw an easy tap in and the half ended 2-1.

The message was clear. Tawa had to attack, and we needed to score first to put the game to bed. So that's what we did. Ian Paterson flew down the left wing, cut inside a few of their defenders and slotted home within ten minutes of the restart. Tawa weren't phased though and their constant pressure showed why they are at the top of the ladder, eventually breaking our defense down again, and a glancing header was simply finished off at the far post as we all stood ball watching. A tense and defensive final ten minutes was eaten off the clock and Island Bay emerged with a 3-2 victory, pushing us back into third spot, 2 points off the lead.

This week is a Chatham Cup Round, with Island Bay facing Upper Hutt at Harcourt Park.

Go Sharks!

Labels: home, premier, tawa, won

A youthful Kapiti Coast United turned up to do battle against us on Saturday, coming off the back of a 2-1 loss at home to Miramar.

After having drawn last week against Marist, the mood in the dressing room was one of determination. We feel as a squad we can foot it with the title contenders, and the bar needed to be raised higher than our previous performance.

We started well, composed and attacking minded, Hicham finishing another great passing move within the first 10. He calmly rounded the keeper 5 minutes later, and Island Bay were firing on all cylinders.

To their credit Kapiti were not fazed in the least by conceding twice in 5 minutes, and settled into the game, creating space in midfield, and trying to poke holes in our defense. With a nasty wind swirling around the park, we were loath to concede free kicks close to our goal, but we did, and with 20 left in the half, Chemo our keeper watched a ball change direction on him at the last minute and bulge the net as he was stranded in mid air.

Kapiti were lifted, and continued to attack us whenever they could find a gap. Yet another free kick was launched at us, and unfortunately Chemo could only take the pace off it, leaving me to make a failed attempt to clear off the line. 2-2 at half time.

Letting Kapiti back into the game was obviously not good enough, so after the break we sent another man forward, looking to break the game down in Kapiti's half, and pressure them into mistakes. Steve Davey was once again "Johnny on the spot" rewarding the team for a flowing attack with the lead again.

Kapiti were still attacking us all over, and it wasn't until late in the game when Steve smashed a free kick off my balding head and into the top corner that the game was put beyond doubt.

Final score 4-2. This week we'll travel away to the Wairarapa on Sunday, to see if we carry on our winning ways, and carry on climbing the table ladder.

Go Sharks!

Labels: home, kapiti, premier, won

Having lost to Lower Hutt both times last year, and to their Central League side in the Chatham Cup, we knew they weren't going to be pushovers this time around.

The game was played in the pouring rain, which at times turned the game into a theatrical event, rather than a footy game, both sides overrunning the ball as it stuck in pools of water, and having the ball bounce 20 feet overhead whenever it hit a hard patch.

After 15 minutes of first game jitters, the pre-season training and effort that the squad and management had put in paid off, and we settled into a rhythm with lots of precise passing and good ball control. One particularly nice set of passes later Lucci had rounded the keeper and we were up 1-0.

From then on we maintained possession, and played in Lower Hutt's end of the field for the most part of the first half, occasionally letting them out for a quick break, or a hopeful long ball over the top of our defense. Hicham Kamri, one of our new faces, struck twice, both times receiving the ball with his back to goal, spinning his man and tucking the ball into the corner of the goal from the edge of the area.

The halftime talk was simple, "It's 3-0, and the game should be in the bag, so lets make sure!"

Lower Hutt obviously had a rev up at the break, and came out looking to peg us back, but aside from the odd perfect through ball, and a few fast breaks the length of the field, failed to get a shot on target.

Hicham's strength saw him latch onto a massive punt from Chemo, and slot under their keeper to complete his hat trick and effectively kill the match off with 10 minutes to go.

This week we're away to Marist at Kilbirnie Park. Good Luck to all the Island bay teams.

Go Sharks!

Labels: home, lower hutt, premier, won