By Sarah Bailey
Hard-fought matches yielded victory to the U8s and U10 Whites last Saturday as the first half of the season concluded.
Healesville’s U8 Dragons played a wonderful game away against Croydon Ranges U8 Reds, winning 8-0 with 5 cracking goals to Hudson Beams, 2 to Kai Smith and 1 to Karl Smith. The boys came out strong, keeping the ball in Healesville’s half and not giving Croydon a chance. All the boys demonstrated exceptional passing and teamwork.
The U9 Redbacks played at home to Croydon Ranges – and wow, what a game! Scoring opened with a unique goal from Levi. We’ll not share which body part was used, but it may well have been a soccer first, Billy scored Healesville’s 2nd, with Arlo burning in a 3rd after some great link-up play and perfectly weighted passing. Willis was the Redbacks’ standout player today, providing excellent defence and all-around structure in the midfield. A great team effort against a tough Croydon side resulted in a 3-3 draw.
Parents turned out early for set-up at the U10 Reds’ home game against Maroondah Utd. After 2 early goals to Maroondah caught Healesville by surprise, Ryan Horn scored to see the game at 2-1 at half-time. Strong defence by Rafe Wiggans and excellent goalkeeping by Darcy Betts contained Maroondah to just a further 2 goals. Despite the 4-1 win to Maroondah, it was a selfless team performance by the U10 Reds.
Saturday saw a solid performance from the U10 Whites against Berwick Thunder, Healesville’s quality passes applying pressure early. Zak was a problem for Berwick, as his attack on the ball and powerful throws from the boundary provided plenty of forward thrust. Goals to Robbie and Will saw Healesville jump to a 2-0 half-time lead, with Austin saving at least 3 goals.
In the second half, a spark from a Robbie bomb out of the backline saw Flynn M swoop in from the forward line, a deliberate defection and turn to leave his defender flat-footed. He centred the ball into the box, where Will finished a clean strike to score his 2nd goal. A few minutes later Will made the most of another forward surge from the Whites to secure a hat-trick. The game ended in a 4-1 Healesville victory.
Healesville’s U12s played away to the second-placed Blackburn Servals in what was their third meeting against a Blackburn team in successive weeks. A perfect morning for soccer was contested between two evenly matched teams – reflected in the 1-0 result. Both sides had plenty of good ball movement and some wonderful skill was on display, but excellent defending from both teams meant chances were few and far between.
Deep into the second half, Blackburn scored the only goal of the game after a quick break, when it had looked as though Healesville would be the team to break the deadlock.
Healesville’s standout players were Bodie Hoogenraad and Julian Bloink.
On a pleasant winter morning, Healesville’s U14 girls lined up against ladder leaders Pared in a top-of-the-table clash.
Healesville’s defences were tested early and the Reds were under pressure for most of the first half, but they held on to deny many of Pared’s several attempts on goal. The Reds weren’t allowed many offensive opportunities, and by half-time were down 2-0.
The second half provided the Reds with some opportunities in attack, but the opposition goalkeeper was resolute and thwarted all Healesville’s efforts to find the back of the net.
While the girls worked hard, gave their best and kept their heads up all game against a well-drilled opposition, by the final whistle Pared had scored a further three goals for a 5-0 win.
In a contest whose 6-0 scoreline didn’t represent the quality of play, the U14 boys fought well all game. They likely won all stats except the main two: shots on target and goals. They will take that confidence into the next phase of the season.
Another tough day at the office for Healesville reserves against a very skilful Dynamo side saw Healesville trailing by 3 goals at half-time. The team never let their heads drop, and a well-organised second half saw Healesville concede only once more while creating a few more opportunities themselves. A valiant effort by Healesville, but a 4-0 win for Dynamo.
Both Will Watson and Asha Shannon impressed in the Healesville team, especially since they’d already played in their regular U14s match.
As with the reserves, Healesville’s seniors were up against a very skilful Dynamo side. A penalty for handball saw Healesville take the lead as a very composed spot kick by Pete Fiek delivered his 1st goal of the season. A couple of errors and 2 great finishes saw Dynamo quickly turn the game on its head to lead 4-1. Just before the half-time break a great through ball by John Caloutas was seized upon by Ben Maunder, who finished sublimely with his weaker left foot to give Healesville hope going into the second half.
The score remained at 4-2 for the majority of the second half, as Healesville couldn’t quite capitalise on a couple of opportunities to get within a goal of the home team. A delightful chip with five minutes to go ended any hope of a Healesville comeback, and the result was 5-2 Dynamo’s way.
Special mentions must go to goalkeeper ‘Frankie’ Michael Grayson (in only his seventh game of soccer) for an excellent second-half performance, and to Will Watson, who played a great half having already played two games beforehand.
