Category Archives: SPORTS

MATCH-WINNER: Glen Trifiro’s 13th-minute goal proved the difference as the Central Coast Mariners beat the South Coast Wolves 1-0 at WIN Stadium to reach the FFA Cup Round of 16.

Central Coast coach Phil Moss on Wednesday backed a move for an A-League team to be based in Wollongong, after a crowd of more than 5000 made the trip to WIN Stadium to watch his Mariners defeat South Coast Wolves 1-0 in the FFA Cup.

Fellow A-League club, the Melbourne Victory, eased their way into the FFA Cup round of 16 with a comfortable 2-0 win over Western Australia’s Bayswater City at the WA Athletics Stadium.

Moss’s side struggled with their fitness and a moment of class from Josh Rose and Glen Trifiro, in the 13th minute, provided the win, but the Mariners’ boss was full of praise for both sides.

“I was really happy for the boys because they worked ever so hard for the full 94 minutes,” Moss said.

“I think they showed real glimpses of quality in the first half … not so much in the second half. I think fatigue got the better of us.

“Tonight was probably a fair indication of where we are at, match fitness-wise, against a team that are match hardened.

“We had players out there tonight that you could see were pushing through pain barriers, which is great for our preparation.”

While excellent preparation for the Mariners’ new A-League season, making them the fifth top-flight club into the final 16, the night was a win for football on the south coast.

The Wolves, the current day form of the two-time NSL champion Wollongong Wolves, were impressive as were their loyal fans with drums beating throughout the match, providing plenty of atmosphere.

“I would like to say that any bid for an A-League club from this area should be fully supported,” Moss said.

“It is a fantastic football area and I think, tonight, the Wollongong club really showed they are ready for an A-League team.

“The Wolves were exactly what I expected. I coached in the State League for nine years. I got Trif (Glen Trifiro) and Matty Sim from the NPL last season and they are no longer State League players – they are fully fledged A-League players.

“I thought the Wolves played really well as a team, fought for each other and they were really hard to break down at times.”

His sentiments were echoed by goal-scorer Trifiro.

“I know there is great support in Wollongong. I know they have tried and there has been talk that maybe there is a chance for another A-League team here and, with 5000 turning out tonight, it shows there is support in Wollongong,” Trifiro said.

The Mariners next play three friendlies, one against Melbourne City, before embarking on their next FFA Cup encounter.

VICTORY ADVANCE

The Victory signalled their intentions by fielding a strong team for their FFA Cup opener against a Bayswater City team currently leading WA’s National Premier League, and they also took the chance to unveil their attacking trio of Besart Berisha, Kosta Barbarouses and Archie Thompson.

That trio led to a first half goal to Barbarouses on the back of a final pass coming from Berisha before the Victory then secured the win when Thompson added the second in the 77th minute after being set up tremendously again by Berisha.

It was a competitive showing from Bayswater who are coached by former A-League defender Chris Coyne and featuring some talent in the squad including Todd Howarth, Sam Mitchinson, Devon Spence and Steve Burton.

Despite not being able to match the 4-0 scoreline that the Brisbane Roar beat the Stirling Lions with at the same venue at Tuesday night, it was a dominant showing in the first half from the Victory and then a solid effort in the second.

Gui Finkler and Berisha both created good opportunities to score in the opening 22 minutes for the Victory before their constant attacking forays paid off with a well-worked goal to Barbarouses as they broke down the Bayswater defence.

Mark Milligan was one star who didn’t start for the Victory but he came on as a substitute for Leigh Broxham in the 59th minute and got some good run into his legs.

It was a much-improved effort from Bayswater in the second half and they were within inches of drawing level through a well-taken free-kick from Howarth that was narrowly wide 70 minutes in.

However, the Victory managed to hit back on the counterattack with Berisha passing off to Thompson in the box who then had no trouble scoring to guarantee the win.

source: stuff.co.nz

Western Sydney took down reigning Asian champions Guangzhou Evergrande 1-0 in the first leg of their ACL quarter-final on Wednesday night.

Neither side could find the back of the net through the first hour of the game in front of 17,093 fans at Parramatta Stadium, with both squandering a number of chances in front of goal.

The deadlock was broken in the 60th minute when Antony Golec’s cross found its way past every set of legs in the box – although Tomi Juric said he got a toe to it – eventually ending up in the bottom-right corner of the net.

The visitors finished the game with nine men, with Goa Lin’s red card prompting coach Marcello Lippi to charge on to the pitch and get in the face of the referee.

In both challenges the Western Sydney players overreacted to the contact, but it was Juric who was shown a yellow card for simulation after a challenge in the box with just seconds left in the game.

The second leg will be played on Wednesday, August 27 at the Tianhe Stadium in Guangzhou.

source: abc.com.au

Roar’s Dimitri Petratos taking a shot. Photo: AAP/Tony McDonough.

The A-League club bested WA local club Stirling Lions 4-0 with the help of Dimitri Petratos, while Palm Beach Sharks beat Hakoah Sydney City East 2-1

The defending champions Brisbane Roar have become the first A-League club to blow away a lower-level opponent in the FFA Cup with a 4-0 round of 32 win over the Stirling Lions on Tuesday night.

The Roar opened the scoring in the first half through livewire forward Henrique before netting three times after the break with goals to Corey Brown, Matt Smith and Jean Carlos Solorzano securing the thumping win over the West Australian State League side in Perth.

The Lions had at least one familiar name in their line-up in former Perth Glory goalkeeper Aleks Vrteski, and managed to be competitive early on in front of a crowd of 1,052.

Despite the quality of their opponent, the Lions created chances in the first half most notably to Hayden Doyle in the 11th minute when his shot hit the crossbar.

Brisbane played a near full-strength lineup, with Matt McKay and Liam Miller the notable absentees, and eventually that paid off.

Henrique broke the game open on 30 minutes with a bicycle kick that came after a pinpoint-accurate corner from star playmaker Thomas Broich, and a saved shot from James Donachie on the goal line.

It took just 10 minutes after the break for the Roar to double their advantage through Brown before captain Smith was another beneficiary of another superb Broich cross to make it 3-0.

The final 4-0 scoreline was then secured when substitute Solorzano tapped home after a free-kick from Dimitri Petratos went close.

The other FFA Cup game on Tuesday night saw Queensland’s Palm Beach Sharks beat the Hakoah Sydney City East 2-1 at Hensley Athletic Field in Sydney.

Source: AAP

Tonight the Western Sydney Wanderers will hope to make up for their shock FFA Cup loss, entering the first leg of their Asian Champions League quarter-final.

They have just suffered a shock loss to a semi-professional side and now the Western Sydney Wanderers are preparing to face a cashed-up Asian juggernaut boasting a World Cup-winning coach.

The Wanderers go into the first leg of their Asian Champions League (ACL) quarter-final against title holders Guangzhou Evergrande on Wednesday fresh off a 1-0 loss to state league side Adelaide City in the FFA Cup last week.

But while the Wanderers are considered giants by Adelaide City, they will appear dwarfed by one of Asia’s most powerful clubs and their endless stream of money.

Marcello Lippi, who guided Italy to their 2006 World Cup triumph, has a squad worth several million dollars stacked with former and current internationals.

Last month he brought in one of the players form his victorious ’06 Italy side, Alberto Gilardino for over $7 million, having also signed Alessandro Diamanti in February for almost $10 million.

Mind-boggling figures when you consider the A-League salary cap is just $2.55 million for the entire squad.

Wanderers striker Brendon Santalab knows better than most just how big Chinese Super League outfit Evergrande are having played in China for three years.

“They are absolutely massive. They’re very wealthy and have players on ridiculous amounts of money,” Santalab said on Monday.

“They wanted to put themselves on the world football map and they’ve done that.

“So for us this is just a great opportunity to come up against a giant like this.”

While Evergrande will be heading to Parramatta Stadium looking to keep their ACL defence on track the Wanderers will be eying redemption after falling to minnows Adelaide City.

But far from rattling their confidence Santalab insists the defeat will make them more resolute to prove themselves.

“It hasn’t really shattered the confidence,” he said.

“This will be a test of our character. When you lose to a semi-professional side it’s not nice but we just have to cop it on the chin and we have to make up for it and bounce back in the ACL.”

Having played their last ACL fixture in May the Wanderers have since lost several of the stars that got them to the quarters with the likes of Shinji Ono, Youssouf Hersi, Aaron Mooy and Jerome Polenz having left the club.

They have acquired the likes of Dutch import Romeo Castelen, Brazilian Vitor Saba and Australian youngsters Brendan Hamill and Dean Bouzanis.

All but Castelen will be eligible to play on Wednesday and Santalab says while there is no replacing the past stars, the new recruits will be eager to prove their worth.

“Obviously the players we lost were fantastic for the club but now it’s up to those new players to step in and show what they’ve got,” he said.

“It’s hard to compare these boys with the last but they’ve blended in well and I’m excited to see them play.”

Source: AAP

New signing James Rodriguez scored his first goal for Real Madrid but a late Raul Garcia equaliser for Atletico Madrid saw the first leg of the Spanish Super Cup end level at 1-1.

Former Monaco striker Rodriguez, the Golden Boot winner in the World Cup, slotted home in the 80th minute.

But Garcia scrambled the ball home from a corner as the La Liga champions levelled before Friday’s second leg.

Real’s Cristiano Ronaldo came off at half-time with a suspected back injury.

The world player of the year was replaced by Rodriguez as the Colombia international made his first appearance at the Bernabeu Stadium, where supporters had paid tribute to club legend Alfredo Di Stefano before kick-off.

And the Champions League winners, who added the Uefa Super Cup to their collection by beating Sevilla in Cardiff last week, were a more potent force after the break.

Gareth Bale twice went close for Carlo Ancelotti’s side, first seeing an angled drive saved by Miguel Angel Moya and then testing the keeper again with a fiercely-struck free-kick.

Moya was unable to hold the Welshman’s effort but new Real signing Toni Kroos was unable to convert the rebound.

However, World Cup winner Kroos was involved in the opening goal as the Germany international played in Daniel Carvajal to cross low into the box.

Karim Benzema’s shot was then blocked but the ball fell for Rodriguez to steer the ball home from eight yards out on 80 minutes.

That looked likely to give Real the advantage going into the return leg at the Vicente Calderon stadium but Atletico again showed their resilience to hit back.

Diego Simeone’s side, who have lost the services of Diego Costa, Filipe Luis, David Villa and Thibaut Courtois since losing to Real in the Champions League final, were unbeaten against both Real and Barcelona last season.

And they extended that record when Garcia flicked the ball past Iker Casillas from inside the six-yard box.

source: bbc.com

Ισόπαλες 1-1 αναδείχθηκαν Ρεάλ Μαδρίτης και Ατλέτικο Μαδρίτης στο πρώτο Supercopa de España, αφήνοντας ανοικτούς λογαριασμούς ενόψει της ρεβάνς του “Βιθέντε Καλδερόν” που θα διεξαχθεί στις 22 Αυγούστου (23:30).

Εν αντιθέσει με το ευρωπαϊκό Σούπερ Καπ, όπου παρατάχθηκε χωρίς καθαρό αμυντικό χαφ, ο Κάρλο Αντσελότι χρησιμοποίησε τον Τσάμπι Αλόνσο, ενώ στον αντίποδα, ο Ντιέγο Σιμεόνε επέλεξε τον Γκιγέρμε Σικέιρα αντί του Κρίστιαν Ανσάλντι στο αριστερό άκρο της άμυνας και τον Μάριο Σουάρεθ αντί του Τιάγκο στα χαφ.

Στο πρώτο ημίχρονο ο Κριστιάνο Ρονάλντο κινήθηκε σε ρηχά νερά και ήταν εμφανής η απουσία των Άνχελ ντι Μαρία, Χάμες Ροντρίγκες στο δημιουργικό σκέλος, με συνέπεια η κατοχή της Ρεάλ Μαδρίτης (67%) να είναι ανούσια, αφού πέραν μιας κεφαλιάς του “CR7” στο 41ο λεπτό ο Μίγκελ Άνχελ Μογιά δεν απειλήθηκε.

Η Ατλέτικο Μαδρίτης είχε κλείσει καλά τους χώρους, τηρώντας κατά γράμμα το 4-4-2 (ιδιαίτερα θετική η παρουσία των Σουάρεθ και Γκάμπι στα χαφ), ενώ σε διάστημα λίγων δευτερολέπτων απείλησε με τα σουτ των Μάριο Μάντζουκιτς (14′) και Σαούλ (15′).

Κάποιες ενοχλήσεις στο γόνατο, σύμφωνα με ισπανικά Μέσα, υποχρέωσαν τον Αντσελότι να αντικαταστήσει τον Ρονάλντο με τον Ροντρίγκες. Ο Σιμεόνε, από την πλευρά του, διατήρησε πιστά το 4-4-2, περνώντας τον Αντουάν Γκριεζμάν (στο 57′) για να τονώσει τη γραμμή κρούσης των “ροχιμπλάνκος” και τον Ανσάλντι (στο 64′) για να προστατεύσει τον “κιτρινισμένο” και προκλητικό Σικέιρα.

Η μεγαλύτερη ευκαιρία του αγώνα, μέχρι εκείνη τη στιγμή, καταγράφηκε στο 69ο λεπτό, όταν μετά από δυνατό φάουλ του Γκάρεθ Μπέιλ και απόκρουση του Μογιά, ο Τόνι Κρόος αστόχησε από πολύ κοντινή απόσταση. Εν συνεχεία το πιο αξιοσημείωτο γεγονός ήταν η αποθέωση του κοινού στον Άνχελ ντι Μαρία, ο οποίος ως γνωστόν αποτελεί μεταγραφικό στόχο αρκετών ομάδων.

Το πρώτο επίσημο γκολ του Ροντρίγκες (στο 81ο λεπτό), έπειτα από φάση διαρκείας στα καρέ της Ατλέτικο, όπου ο Καρίμ Μπενζεμά δεν κατάφερε να σουτάρει και ο Ανσάλντι να αποκρούσει, έδωσε στην Ρεάλ το προβάδισμα, αλλά ο Ραούλ Γκαρθία απάντησε στο 88′ και ο επαναληπτικός της Παρασκευής (22/8, 23:30) απέκτησε επιπλέον ενδιαφέρον.

Οι συνθέσεις

Ρεάλ Μαδρίτης (Αντσελότι): Κασίγιας, Καρβαχάλ, Πέπε, Σέρχιο Ράμος, Μαρσέλο, Αλόνσο, Μόντριτς (78′ Ντι Μαρία), Κρόος, Μπέιλ, Ρονάλντο (46′ Ροντρίγκες), Μπενζεμά.

Ατλέτικο Μαδρίτης (Σιμεόνε): Μογιά, Χουανφράν, Γκοντίν, Μιράντα, Σικέιρα (64′ Ανσάλντι), Γκάμπι, Σουάρεθ, Σαούλ (57′ Γκριεζμάν), Κόκε, Γκαρθία, Μάντζουκιτς (78′ Χιμένες).

Πηγή: contra.gr

Με τον καλύτερο τρόπο ξεκίνησαν το πρώτο τους φιλικό για τη νέα χρονιά οι Λιονέλ Μέσι και Νεϊμάρ, οι οποίοι κατάφεραν να χριστούν αμφότεροι σκόρερ, μόλις 12 λεπτά μετά από την έναρξη της αναμέτρησης με την Λεόν.

Πιο συγκεκριμένα, ο Αργετνινός προτού καν συμπληρωθούν 3 λεπτά στον αγώνα έστειλε με κεφαλιά την μπάλα στα δίχτυα για το 1-0 και στη συνέχεια το λόγο πήρε ο Νεϊμάρ, ο οποίος λίγα λεπτά αργότερα έκανε 2 τα τέρματα των “μπλαουγκράνα”.

Το γκολ του Μέσι:

Το γκολ του Νεϊμάρ:

Ολα τα γκόλ του αγώνα:

Πηγή: contra.gr

33 ημέρες μετά την ανακοίνωση της μεταγραφής του, ο Λουίς Σουάρες παρουσιάστηκε επίσημα τη Δευτέρα (18/8) από την Μπαρτσελόνα, πριν από την έναρξη της φιλικής αναμέτρησης με την Λεόν.

Ο Ουρουγουανός επιθετικός πάτησε το χορτάρι του “Καμπ Νόου” για πρώτη φορά, με τους φίλους της Μπαρτσελόνα, αλλά και τους συμπαίκτες του να τον χειροκροτούν κατά την είσοδό του στον αγωνιστικό χώρο, πριν από τη σέντρα στην φιλική αναμέτρηση των “μπλαουγκράνα” με την Λεόν.

Ο Λουίς Ενρίκε δεν συμπεριέλαβε τον πρώην άσο της Λίβερπουλ στην αρχική 11άδα, ωστόσο αναμένεται να τον χρησιμοποιήσει κατά τη διάρκεια του αγώνα για να πραγματοποιήσει το ανεπίσημο ντεμπούτο του με τη φανέλα των Καταλανών. Δείτε το VIDEO της εισόδου του Σουάρες στο “Καμπ Νόου”.

Πηγή: contra.gr

Chelsea survived an early scare to convincingly sweep aside a determined Burnley side and earn a 3-1 victory at Turf Moor.

The hosts went completely against the script in the 14th minute when Scott Arfield fired past Thibaut Courtois, starting ahead of Petr Cech in the Chelsea goal, to send the home fans into raptures.

However, that lead lasted just four minutes, as Diego Costa opened his Blues account, lashing the ball into the bottom corner after a low Branislav Ivanovic cross had come back off the post.

The goal of the game came just four minutes after the equaliser, when Andre Schurrle emphatically finished off a fine throughball from Cesc Fabregas to give the visitors the lead in the blink of an eye.

Not content there, the Premier League title favourites notched a third in the 34th minute, with Ivanovic getting in on the act.

As a result, the second half was not much of a spectacle, with Chelsea happy to take their foot off the gas whilst simultaneously keeping a dogged Burnley side at bay.

A booking for Costa was the only sour point in what was an impressive performance from the Blues, and sent a clear message to their title rivals in the process.

Jose Mourinho has a habit of grabbing the headlines, and he certainly did that prior to kick-off, as it was announced Courtois would start in place of Cech in the Blues’ goal.

And after Burnley had soaked up early pressure, Courtois’ first job was to pick the ball out of his net.

A left-wing corner was not properly cleared by the Blues’ backline, with the ball played back into the feet of Arfield, who had the time and space to pick his spot past the Belgian stopper from the edge of the box.

The Clarets’ goal certainly jolted Mourinho’s men into life, and they were level just four minutes later.

Ivanovic was picked out on the right wing, and his low cross, whilst being poorly directed, almost caught Burnley goalkeeper Tom Heaton out, but the ball ricocheted into the path of Costa, who swivelled and fired the Blues level from eight yards.

Then came a thing of beauty. Ivanonic picked Fabregas out on the edge of the home side’s box, and whilst shaping to shoot, delightfully laid the ball through to Schurrle, who finished brilliantly on the run.

The action was relentless at this point. Minutes later came arguably the game’s major talking point. Costa latched onto a woeful backpass from Ben Mee, knocked the ball past Heaton, who seemed to catch the Spanish striker, but referee Michael Oliver adjudged Costa’s tumble to be simulated, and booked him for diving, much to his and his manager’s surprise.

However, a third goal soon followed, with Ivanovic on the end of the move this time, volleying in from six yards from a Fabregas corner, although Sean Dyche would not have been happy with Burnley’s lacklustre marking.

The second half offered little in the way of goalmouth action as Chelsea took a step back.

Courtois was called into action by the impressive Arfield, who brought the best out of the Belgian, who was at full stretch to tip a fine strike over the bar.

Didier Drogba’s late appearance got the away fans’ pulses racing, but the result, and the emphatic response to falling behind, certainly reiterated many experts’ view that this Chelsea side is the team to beat this season.

source: skysports.com

Πραγματοποιήθηκε η κλήρωση του Κυπέλλου Ελλάδας και στον πρώτο γύρο η ΑΕΚ θα αντιμετωπίσει τον Φωκικό. Η Λάρισα κοντράρεται με τον Ολυμπιακό Βόλου ενώ ο Απόλλωνας Καλαμαριάς με τον Άρη και ο Ηρακλής με την Λαμία. Σε δύο γκρουπ με 14 ομάδες το καθένα, τα οποία βγάζουν 7 νικητές, έχει χωριστεί ο πρώτος γύρος του Κυπέλλου.

Οι πρώτοι αγώνες θα γίνουν στις 28-30 Αυγούστου ενώ οι επαναληπτικοί 12-14 Σεπτεμβρίου. Οι 14 ομάδες που θα προκύψουν από τον πρώτο γύρο θα κληρωθούν με τις 18 ομάδες της Σούπερ Λίγκας και θα σχηματίσουν 8 ομίλους τεσσάρων ομάδων. Η κλήρωση θα γίνει βάσει γκρουπ δυναμικότητας.

Αυτά είναι:Στο πρώτο γκρουπ μπαίνουν οι 8 πρώτης της περσινής σεζόν. Δηλαδή, Ολυμπιακός, ΠΑΟΚ, Ατρόμητος, Παναθηναϊκός, Αστέρας Τρίπολης, ΟΦΗ, Εργοτέλης και Λεβαδειακός. Στο δεύτερο γκρουπ είναι οι Παναιτωλικός, Πανθρακικός, ΠΑΣ Γιάννια, Καλλονή, Πανιώνιος, Πλατανιάς, Βέροια και Ξάνθη. Στο τρίτο γκρουπ είναι οι δύο ομάδες που ανέβηκαν από την Φουτμπολ Λιγκ, Νίκη Βόλου και Κέρκυρα και όσες ομάδες καταφέρουν να προκριθούν.

Οι αγώνες θα είναι μονοί στους ομίλους με γηπεδούχο την “αδύναμη” ομάδα και θα περάσουν στην επόμενη φάση οι δύο πρώτες του κάθε ομίλου. Από εκεί και πέρα, στην επόμενη φάση ξαναμπαίνουμε στην διαδικασία των ζευγαριών και των διπλών αγώνων, διαδικασία που θα πάει μέχρι τους ημιτελικούς. Στις 9 Μαΐου στο ΟΑΚΑ θα πραγματοποιηθεί ο τελικός.

Νότιος όμιλος
Χανιά-Άλιμος
Αχαρναϊκός-Φωστήρας
Ηρακλής Ψαχνών-Επισκοπή
Καλλιθέα-Απόλλων Σμύρνης
Παναχαϊκή-Πανηλειακός
Ερμιονίδα-Παναιγιάλειος
ΑΕΚ-Φωκικός

Βόρειος όμιλος
Ηρακλής-Λαμία
Αναγέννηση Καρδίτσας-Εθνικός Γαζώρου
ΑΕΛ-Ολυμπιακός Βόλου
Αιγινιακός-Αγροτικός Αστέρας
Πιερικός-Τύρναβος
Απόλλων 1926-Άρης
Δόξα Δράμας-Ζάκυνθος

Πηγή: Madata.gr