A solid display, with goals by four players, gained Northern Spirit a home win, and the largest 'goals for' score in their four year history, over an attacking but flat Wollongong Wolves. Mick Hickman, the Spirit coach, started Scottish youth import from Rangers Stephen Dobbie, and gave a first start to former Australian U17 goalkeeper Jacob Rex.
Spirit played well last weekend but were perhaps fortunate to come back with a point to keep them in the top 6 race, all because of Dobbie's exploits off the bench.
The stupid decision to play the South Melbourne game on Friday night but not allow Spirit to play on that, their usual night, meant that Spirit were out of the top 6 race when they took the field, and Wolves a far shadow of the 'back-to-back Champions years.
The game started with both sides knocking in speculator balls to test the opposing goalkeepers and with the Wolves applying their quick 'snatch and grab' approach it was a move by Spirit's Dobbie in the 4th min that caused the first drama. In a 50/50 situation, he collided with the advancing Wolves keeper Dean Anastasiadis. After 2 mins of attention he was substituted with 16 year old Justin Pasfield. He re-appeared after the game with his arm in plaster.
In the 13th min Michael Cartwright hit a long ball over the static Wolves defensive line and Dobbie ran through to collect it. With the young keeper spreading himself he deftly slipped the ball under him and in to the net. It wasn't 4 min before Wolves replied when Dustin Wells, denied a route to goal, slipped the ball back to Stuart Young. Young hit a wicked out swinging shot from 22m, which cannoned of the keepers left upright and bounced into the goal to even the score.
In the one of the best spells for Wollongong 3 mins later Paul Reid hit a snap shot which just went over the crossbar, and then Naum Sekulovski hit a shot, from a ball played back by Young, which Jacob Rex did very well to one-handedly force away from the goal.
Scott Thomas was starting to get forward from midfield for Spirit on the left, and in the 33rd min he got up, turned inside, and sent a cross over the defence for a charging Adam Griffiths to volley into the goal. The reply again came quickly from Wolves, when a minute later Paul Reid got on to the end of a Young through ball, and with more than a hint of offside, he scored.
Just before half-time Craig Foster took a free kick on the left and lobbed it to an unmarked Cardozo whose header sailed past Pasfield and into the bottom left side of the Wolves goal.
Wolves changed two players at half time, and whether that was the cause I don't know, however didn't look quite as dangerous with Sekulovski off the park. In the 49th min Simon Bell got his head to the ball in the area and the header bounced forcefully back off the crossbar. In the 54th min Wolves were denied a penalty by Brett Hugo when Young was brought down heavily.
In was all one-way traffic as Spirit kept possession, and first Dobbie, then Thomas, Cardozo and Foster had chances. Adam Griffiths contributed again in the 67th min but this time by supplying a through ball to Thomas whose forceful run ended when he slotted home a goal past the exposed Pasfield.
Although Pasfield couldn't keep them all out, but he did keep out Cardozo in the 75th min when he got down to his right and one-handed parried the shot away, and then in the 83rd he got his legs in the way of a Cardozo shot to save the Wolves.
Wolves attacks were few, but in the 85th min Con Anthopoulos struck a 35m shot, which bent deceivingly and rebounded off the crossbar. The last attack for Spirit gained goal no. 5 when Griffiths headed across goal to Cardozo who got in a free header from in the box.
Spirit coach Hickman felt after the match that the team he'd put together was gelling but far too late in the season. He hopes to be able to go on with the job next season. Some fans chanted other suggestions. Spirit's best were Scott Thomas, Michael Cartwright, Adam Griffiths, Noel Spencer, Stephen Dobbie.
For The Wolves a special mention must go to 16-year-old Youth League reserve goalkeeper Justin Pasfield who came on after serious injury to Dean Anastasiadis in the 6th min. Although he may be faulted for one or two of the goals, he also made at least three superb one-handed saves and stared down a rampaging Pablo Cardozo. Well-done Justin! Best were "I've never been involved with such a heartless dispirited display from professional players who want to earn heaps of money," Corry said.