Football - SIFL
Wednesday, 20 January 2010 08:01
Written by Tom Gurney

---

The SIFL’s Premiership matches saw few surprises on Saturday. None of the top three slipped up meaning the league table was little changed from where it was Friday night. It was a different story in  First Division, however, second placed Reunited slipped up against the in-form Anzacs, whilst the Voodoo Child had to fork out for an extra match ball as not one, but two hat tricks were scored in their encounter against the Crazy Turks. Four hat tricks were scored in all last Saturday. For that and more, read on below.

Puxi Lions began 2010 where they left off 2009, in form and in pole position. They ended Saturday night with their season targets still firmly in sight. The Lions, formerly Les Bleus, showed no signs festive frivolities as they steam rolled the Cosmos 8:2.  Sam Russell, at the centre of most passages of play that saw the Cosmos promoted last season, was once again in fine form, picking up the MoM award and banging in two goals, but he appeared to be the only man not waving the white flag for the league’s second bottom side. Allen Mendel grabbed a hat trick for the Lions but not their MoM, that honour went to Mehdi Belhadia who also got on the score sheet for the Lions. Zafra, Dron, Chevallier and Witkowski found the back of the net while Witkowski saw red towards the end of the match for an over the top tackle.

Games in hand are of little use if they are not capitalised on. The Krauts were defeated 6:0 by the Azzuri on Saturday in a win that cements the  Italian’s hold on second place and kept the pressure up on the Lions. The win means the Azzuri lie just one point behind the leaders with both teams having played 8 games. Guillaume Leclercq became the division’s joint-top scorer, netting his ninth, tenth and eleventh of the season on Saturday. Leclercq also took home the MoM award to bring his tally to two for the season, one less than Adam Kluger who added to his own goal count on Saturday with a solitary strike. Souza and Roberto scored the others for the Azzuri who’s day was only spoiled by Olivier picking up a yellow late in the game.

With those two results in mind, the Shooters could not afford to slip up, and they did not. 6:3 they ran out comfortable winners against the Oranje, who were not able to capitalise on the Vikings’ day off. Jon Banks (MoM) retained his grip on the golden boot award with his tenth and eleventh of the season. Ayrton Viera also grabbed two to bring his tally to 6 in 5 games, following his summer transfer from the Lationos. Mo Buglow was able to brush aside concerns over his winter weight gain to record his second of the season and his first in three months with a fine strike whilst the Sifl's favourie kiwi Roland Broughton notched his ninth of the campaign. Benoit Doche became the Oranje's joint-top scorer this season with his first half strike whilst goals from Marnix Drysdale (MoM) and Tang restored some pride for the Dutch. Oranje remain in fifth place on 7 points, one point above the Beaver, the Krauts and Cosmos who are tied on 6.

Were Steve Miranda be playing for professional club, he would likely have been given the freedom of the city. He will have to settle for the freedom of I Love Shanghai. A Steve Miranda-inspired Voodoo Child picked up three more points on Saturday as they disposed of the Crazy Turks 6-2 in a performance which their veteran player-manager Ian Dixon described as the best of the season. Miranda banged home a hat trick in a fine second half display for the Child which ensured him his second MoM award in as many weeks. Miranda, with five goals in two games may well now be the Child's all time top scorer. As if to remind the Voodoo Child they did have strikers, Andrew Hamilton came to life on Saturday, reminding the Child that they do indeed have a strike force. He too took home a match ball knocking in a hat trick of his own. The Voodoo's goal-fest nearly doubled their goals scored column this season (now 13) and raises them above the Turks and the Coreans into sixth place.

It was a good day for the Voodoo too, and they did not even play. Third placed the Anzacs went to ReUnited on Saturday as the team in form having won three of their last four matches. Ian Mote's solitary strike was enough to extend that run and in doing so, the Anzacs leap-frogged Reunited into second place. ReUnited have a game in hand, but the 1:0 win for the Anzacs mean it is they that now trail top spot by just five points.  Lee Kirk picked up the MoM award for the Anzacs whilst Amine Hammadi got the honours for Reunited on his debut.

The Shanghai Krauts - Die Zweite continued their steady rise up the table on Saturday as they took maximum points from the Long Tang in a game that saw them run out 3:1 winners. Wang Le offered some resistance scoring for Long Tang and picking up the MoM, but goals from Eric Nerlinger, Mario Becherer and Qi Wei, his first of the season, did the damage for the Krauts. Qi Wei's performance earned him the MoM award and the victory bang in the middle of the table with 14 points from their first 9 games. Defeat from Long Tang leaves them bang at the bottom, with just 4 points and a solitary victory in their opening 10 games.

The division's other game saw Shanghai 2000 pitted against the out-of-form Corea. In a close encounter, Wang Zuo's seventh and eighth goals of the season proved to be the difference between the teams with the game ending up 3:2 to the Shanghai 200. Zuo pocketed his second MoM award of the season and a second goal of the campaign for Wang Ke ensured that the Century Park outfit took home their first points of the year. Jin Cheol Chae's two debut goals gave Corean some hope, but it wasn't to be. The defeat leaves Corea second from bottom, and scratching their heads as to where to turn to next. Victory for Shanghai 2000 leaves them trailing to Reunited only on goal's scored and just two points adrift of the second automatic promotion spot.

January 16 Results

Premiership
Shooters 6-3 Oranje
Azzuri 6–0 Krauts
Puxi Lions 8-2 Cosmos

First Division
Reunited 0-1 Anzacs
Shanghai 2000 3–2 Corea
Crazy Turks  2–6 Voodoo Child
Shanghai Krauts Die Zweite  3–1 Long Tang

January 23 Fixtures

Sifl Qualifiers
Voodoo Child-Beaver 2pm
Shanghai 2000-Oranje 12pm (CP)

Hebiguchi Cup Quarter Finals
Azzuri-Shooters 10am
Anzacs - Cosmos 12pm
Voodoo - Japan 12pm
Puxi Lions-Shanghai Krauts Die Zweite 2pm

Premiership
Krauts-Vikings 10am

< Prev		Next >