Hills United Go Down Fighting
Hills United showed plenty of grit against APIA Leichhardt in their FNSW NPL Men’s game but were unable to prevent the premiership contenders from squeezing out a 2-1 win last Saturday.
After Glen Kelshaw failed to connect with a header in the sixth minute, the Hills defended stoutly with Ryan Wood again having a frenetic game between the sticks. After a scoreless first half, APIA Leichhardt finally breached the defence in the 60th minute through Ben Gibson.
They increased their lead in the 67th minute when a Sean Symonds header beat a lunging Wood. This spurred the Hills to counterattack successfully when Anthony Frangie combined with Thomas Lopez to make it 2-1 two minutes later. The Hills almost equalised shortly afterwards but Cameron Philip just shot wide of the posts.
The Hills never gave up and almost scored a superb equaliser in the 90th minute but Jordan Lane’s strike just sailed over the top corner of the net.
Hills coach Luke Casserly was pleased with the spirit of his team who are making their debut in the NPL. “They (APIA Leichhardt) are a very good team, they are going to expect to challenge for the title and I thought we were super competitive,” Casserly said.
“The work ethic of the team was outstanding, we were well organised and we really limited them to opportunities – their goals were from set pieces – so it’s a shame that the boys worked so hard and we didn’t get anything from that work.”
The 13th-placed Hills United take on fourth-placed Blacktown City FC this Saturday, May 18, at 7pm.
Hills Women Surprised by Marconi
Hosts Hills United suffered a surprise loss to ninth-placed Marconi Stallions in their FNSW League One Women’s match but still hold onto their top spot. Their first defeat of the season came during injury time and should make them sharper when they face hosts Camden Tigers on Sunday, May 19, at 3pm.
The Hills women lead the standings on 26 points from 11 rounds, with eight wins and one loss, one point ahead of second-placed Mt Druitt Rangers.
Showjumping event in Dural
The Dural & Districts Pony Club will be hosting their Showing Jumping Competition on Sunday, June 2, at their grounds on Bannerman Road, Kenthurst. Champions and Reserve Champion trophies will be awarded for each grade. The first riders will be on the course at 8.30am in Arena One and Arena Two The club said the entries close on May 27. For more details and the schedule, please contact the organisers at duralponyclub@ hotmail.com.
