Altona City U18s v Keilor at Kim Reserve, Altona

On a bright sunny day with a stiff breeze up and down the pitch the U18s approached the game against a higher placed team in positive mood.  Although the boys were quiet before kickoff they were all determined to get a good result.  Decco backed up in goals once again with Jb and Luke on the bench as Ryan was out with the flu.

We played the first half into the wind and Keilor played their usual neat passing game using the one two to good effect.  The defence had to work hard from very early on to keep Keilor out.  Despite having the majority of the possession and pushing forward Keilor did not create too many scoring opportunities.  They created most chances down their right wing but were constantly thwarted by Dean at left back and Hoang on the left wing.  On one counter attack Karlo was pushed in the back winning a free kick taken by Jamie who drove the ball over the top of the wall into the top right corner unfortunately hitting the crossbar.  Decco was marshalling the defence well from the goal, his voice clearly heard by everyone!  James and Harrison regularly ran the ball out of defence to release Harley and Karlo.   On one occasion Harley picked up the ball on the left wing and was fouled with a tackle from behind and had to be helped from the field.  From the resulting free kick by Hoang their goalkeeper punched it clear.  After treatment Harley returned to the field in determined mood.  Ted picked up the ball in midfield and passed to Karlo who threaded a perfect diagonal ball for Harley to run onto and clinically finished beating the keeper low to his right.  Keilor counter attacked but Decco in goal was too good for them and the halftime score remained 1-0 to Altona.

With the wind at their back in the second half Altona played a more positive passing game and took control of the game.  Despite a number of dubious free kicks Keilor still couldn't convert their chances until a blatant hand ball in the box went unnoticed by the referee and despite loud appeals from the Altona boys the goal was awarded.  Unfortunately frustration got the better of Harley who told the referee what he thought and received a red card as a result.  Down to ten men the Altona boys did not drop their heads but if possible worked even harder.  Ted and Jamie in the midfield must have covered tens of kilometers through the course of the game!  After great build up play on the right hand side pressure from Dat forced the defender to concede a corner.  Hoang put in another perfect corned into the 6 yard box which the defence cleared only as far as Karlo on the edge of the 18 yard box who drilled the ball home through a sea of legs to deservedly regain the lead.   Inevitably Keilor responded by attacking hard but the defence maintained their composure clearing their lines regularly.  Karlo having worked tirelessly and still recovering from illness made way for Alistair who immediately made an impact as the lone striker putting all three of their defenders under pressure.  It was Altona's turn to attack on the counter and won a number of free kicks in their half.  One free kick from about 35 yards was taken by Chris which was dipping below the cross bar forcing a really great save from the Keilor keeper.  Keilor took advantage of our boys tiring due to being down to ten but numerous saves by Decco and strong defence kept them at bay.  Dean too was recovering from illness so made way for Jb who immediately shut down the threat from the speedy Keilor right winger.  Despite being under pressure the boys continued to play their passing game bringing the ball out of defence and threatening their goal and running down the clock.  A deserved win against a side that has so many skills that they do not need to resort to dirty play! 

Final score: Altona 2 - Keilor 1

Scorers: Harley Vescovi, Karlo Strmecki

Man of the Match: Anthony Decorado