Match report: Unicycles 4-2 Intergalactic
A late double was not enough to reverse Intergalactic fortunes as they plunged to a 4-2 loss against VUWAFC Unicycles.
The first half was a tense and deadlocked affair but a penalty at the cusp of the break put Victoria 1-0 up. That goal proved to be the difference as the second half slipped into a rhythm of Unicycle superiority, which remained unbroken until the final few minutes. Two quick succession goals from the then scoreless Inter almost set up a grandstand finish, but it was too little too late and the game ended in a scoreline that accurately reflected the match.
The goals:
Shannon Doyle (Unicycles, 40th minute) A poorly timed tackle took down an onrushing Zac Phillips in the box, and the ref didn’t hesitate in awarding the spot-kick. Doyle stepped up and confidently slotted the ball into the bottom left corner, with goalie Phil Connor unfortunately covering the bottom right.
Matty Greenwood (Unicycles, 52nd minute) In what would be a common theme throughout the match, the Unicycles counter-attack came through a huge burst of speed from Matty Greenwood down the left-hand slide. Through and away with the defence trailing behind him, Greenwood was able to calmly slot the ball in.
Callum Martin (Unicycles, 62nd minute) A headed corner is the main way defenders score goals, and it’s how Martin got his here. Prior goal scorer Shannon Doyle lifted a corner to Martin’s end of the area, where his header snuck through an impressively crowded area to land in the bottom right unhindered.
Tom Doyle (Unicycles, 73rd minute) Quick-fire and powerful counter-attacks were one of the keys to VUW success and it worked again with Doyle. Despite having shots blocked a couple of times by the Inter defense in the initial spurt forward, the attack managed to keep momentum and a sliding pass saw Doyle in a good spot to absolutely blast the ball into the back of the net.
Marcus Sadler (Inter, 78th minute) A through ball down the line released the Inter attack, and though the cross would be repelled off the head of a defender, it put the ball in a good enough position for Sadler to place a pass into the net.
Jake Roberts (Inter, 80th minute) The second half’s end mirrored the first’s finale. After Sadler with one his common creative bursts into the area was hacked down, the ref blew for a penalty at the same place where Shannon Doyle had scored his. While keeper Coghill would get close to the down-the-middle effort, it wasn’t enough to prevent Jake Roberts from halving the deficit.
The pivotal moment: While the Unicycles would reign ascendant during the second half, the first was quite tight-knit and the best opportunity pre-penalty would actually fall Inter’s way.
In the 16th minute breakout attack, the lethal combination of Sammy Leung and Marcus Sadler saw Inter off and away as Leung was released down the right hand side. His shot managed to evade the keeper but in heartbreaking fashion bounced off the woodwork.
The stars:
Unicycles: Matty Greenlaw I meant it when I said a huge amount of VUW’s counters came through Greenlaw’s pace down the left. Again and again, the Unicycles would channel through him, and as evidenced by his goal. He actually came heartbreakingly close to a brace as another long-range effort bounced off the post.
Intergalactic: Marcus Sadler As Inter slipped further and further behind, Sadler looked more and more like their chance to get back into the match with his bouts of creativity and inspiration making him a nuisance for the VUW defense. Sadler made good on the promise he showed, winning a goal and penalty for his team.
The Bad Boys:
Unicycles: Matty Greenlaw (yellow)
Intergalactic: N/A
The comments:
Phil Connor, Inter keeper: 4-0 would be a bit upsetting given it was a close game, so I’m happy to get two goals at the end. But we were well in it in the first half, yet at the second’s beginning, we were a little slow to pick up the game. I think one of the problems might have been too many subs - we lost our consistency.”
Callum Martin, Unicycle defender and goal-scorer: “First win of the season! We played really well today, which was great to see after being trounced last week.
“It was pretty even first half could have gone either way then. But in the second we took control in the first five minutes, and after the first goal went in they started pushing harder and left some gaps for us to exploit and score through.
“The two goals at the end made the scoreline reflect the way the game went. It was a lot closer than 4-0 would have been.”
The meaning:
Both sides came into the match off of very different results; Inter had won 7-0 the previous week while VUW lost 7-2. So for the Cycles, it’s about the best bounce back they could have hoped for, whereas Inter blew a chance to put some wind in their sails.
In terms of standings, the pair are neighbors for now; VUW sit in 4th on 4 points while Intergalactic are a place behind on 3 points, though with a game in hand.
The future:
Boyd Wilson plays host to the Unicycles vs Tims Boys at 1 pm on Sunday, October 3rd, while an hour later at Alex Moore Intergalactic will kick off against Summer Rangers.
The rest:
Man Titty 9-1 Red Barons
Summer Rangers 1-5 SkuxxFC
Tim’s Boys 4-2 WCU