In what was one of the toughest challenges of the season, our 2nd XI took on the league-leading Newington 2nd XI. Undeterred and motivated by their recent competition win, our boys were eager to leave their mark on Lower Park. The match was highly intense, and neither team managed to break the deadlock in the first half. However, everything changed in the 57th minute when Oscar Pestonji (Y9) delivered a masterful curling corner kick, which Jonothan Lamwarren (Y10) perfectly connected with – his 3rd crucial goal in three matches. The crowd erupted with excitement, rallying behind our boys in cerise and blue. The intense contest continued, and with only three minutes left on the clock, Malcolm Deegan (Y12) was brought down in the box, resulting in a penalty. With nerves of steel, he calmly placed the ball into the bottom left corner, sealing an emphatic victory that showcased the remarkable development of the 2nd XI team since the beginning of the season.
If there was a ‘Match of the Day’ in the GPS competition, then the 1st XI match would have been it. Since their narrow defeat to Newington in Rd 1 last season, the team had crafted 10 wins in a row, and they were determined to demonstrate how far they’d come since that setback. With a strong crowd and Lower Park in excellent condition excitement filled the air as the match kicked off.
In the second minute, Oliver Burnett (Y12) drove down the left wing and narrowly missed the goal, setting the tone for a half of close chances. The Newington defence proved resilient, closing spaces effectively and making it challenging to find the back of the net. The second half saw more opportunities for our team, while our defence held exceptionally strong to deny Newington from open goal-scoring chances. The last few minutes of the game were on a knife’s edge, with Newington winning free kicks in advanced positions, and Joeys quickly responding with threatening counterattacks. Ultimately, the match ended 0-0 which was a fair result given the outstanding defence shown by both sides.
