Bayswater City are one point away from ending their eight-year wait for a league title after a 2-1 win at Fremantle City in the penultimate round of the NPLWA – Men’s season.
The leaders remain three points and goal difference clear of Olympic Kingsway with a game in hand and will lift the trophy if they avoid defeat in either of their final two games against Stirling on Tuesday and Perth SC next weekend.
Despite the loss, Freo moved out of the bottom two on goal difference after results elsewhere, although they have played a game more than Balcatta who are now in 11th.
NPLM RESULTS, FIXTURES & STANDINGS
It was a return to Hilton Park for Bayswater head coach Matty Sparrow who had guided Freo to the NPL two seasons ago via the inter-divisional playoffs. His side were quick out of the blocks on Saturday afternoon as Declan Hughes’ corner was glanced on by Chris Jackson for a third-minute lead.
Fremantle levelled through a set piece of their own on the quarter hour mark when Ben Steele headed Charlie Chechlacz’s corner back across goal with Nick Ambrogio on hand to score.
The decisive goal arrived in the shadows of half-time when Hughes’ free-kick from wide on the right went in off the unfortunate John Chalmers for an own goal.
Freo could have pinched a late point, but Lewis Italiano denied Paul Zimarino. Bayswater were able to see it out and finish the season with an undefeated away record.
Earlier in the day, Kingsway applied a bit of pressure on Baysie and kept their slim hopes of defending their title alive after a 2-0 win at Perth SC.
Mateusz Zaniewski saved from Tyler Garner and Joe Hobson in the first half, but the deadlock was eventually broken on 69 minutes when Garner finished from just inside the box.
Liam Boland scored from close range late on as Olympic bounced back from their heartbreaking loss on penalties to Brisbane City in the Hahn Australia Cup on Tuesday night.
At the bottom of the league, Balcatta Etna dropped into the relegation play-off spot after losing 4-1 to Perth Glory.
Glory took a lead into half-time thanks to Sebastian Despotovski’s penalty and they doubled their lead eight minutes into the second period when Adam Bugarija threaded through for Arion Sulemani to score.
Ben Hinshelwood sneaked in behind the Glory defence to pull one back for the visitors but Glory scored twice more through Adam Bugarija and Gio De Abreu in the final 12 minutes as the hosts ran away with the win. Glory’s place in the Top Four Cup is now locked in, while Etna can now only overtake Fremantle in their bid to stay up.
That’s because Sorrento confirmed their safety after beating Western Knights 2-1 at Percy Doyle Reserve.
Corey Sutherland nodded in from close range on six minutes after Franco Vila helped on Neil Kilkenny’s corner. Kilkenny’s drilled effort from range doubled the Gulls lead as they took a handy buffer into the second period.
Steve McGarry’s side let slip a two-goal lead last week at Armadale and they went down to 10 men for a second game in a row when Vila collected his second yellow card on 52 minutes.
Jesse Lazzaro found Henry Curtis, who cut back on his left foot to curl in and send a scare through the Sorrento camp with 15 minutes remaining. But the home side held firm and stay in the NPL next season with Knights who will finish in mid-table.
Elsewhere, Perth RedStar extended their unbeaten run to 13 games after a 3-1 win away at already-relegated Floreat Athena.
Liam Reddy saved Noah Shamaki’s penalty on 16 minutes and RedStar immediately made the home side pay when Benson Nsegetse’s through ball found Daryl Nicol who did the rest.
Sam Pollard’s cross ran for Nsegetse to double the lead before the break and yet another RedStar victory was all but secured when Matt George struck from inside the area on 56 minutes.
Abraham Mathet put in Jim Simm’s cross from a yard out to score for a sixth time since joining Athena mid-season. But it proved only to be a consolation for Floreat who will be hoping to avoid a winless campaign at home to Balcatta next week, while RedStar need four points from their remaining two games to host an elimination final in September’s Top Four Cup.
Finally, Leigh Griffiths scored a perfect hat-trick as Stirling Macedonia hammered Armadale 6-0 in the first game of Round 21 on Friday evening.
Stirling’s finals hopes were ended on Tuesday night when they were defeated by fourth-placed RedStar. They took their frustrations out on their opponents, who had Griffiths’ former Mandurah head coach John Baird in the dugout for the first time since he was announced as the new head coach at Armadale.
Griffiths opened the scoring with a stunning free kick on seven minutes and doubled his tally when expertly finishing Brent Quick’s cross with his non-preferred right foot.
Dejan Spaseski volleyed in Griffiths’ corner at the back post for 3-0 and it was four at half time when Samuel Dweh latched onto Sam Wynne’s pass and fired in from a narrow angle.
A short corner resulted in Griffiths crossing for Asher Nelson to score from close range before Griffiths completed his treble when heading in Callum McKenzie’s cross.
