Report by Chris Caldwell

 

Reigning champions Perth SC maintained their perfect start to the 2017 season on a balmy Saturday night at Dorrien Gardens when they defeated one of their title challengers, Floreat Athena, 3-1.

Gustavo Catarcione netted his fourth goal in three games in the first half before further strikes from Andreas Theodosiades and Niccolo Sabatini, which sandwiched a Kristopher Gate effort for Athena, to send Ramon Falzon’s men clear at the top of the ladder.

“Three wins in three games is a really good start,” beamed the delighted Perth boss at the final whistle. “The boys stuck to the plan from the start and I think we hit them on the counter really well.

“But on the other hand, we can’t get away from that goal we are conceding in every game. We need to get back to work because we haven’t had a clean sheet yet.”

Perth struck an important early blow in a match that kicked off in uncomfortably humid conditions when Catarcione finished off good work from marauding right back, Roberto Del Borrello in only the eighth minute.

With neither side firing on all cylinders in the first half, it wasn’t until the final 15 minutes that Floreat became a threat with Jesse Fuller and Jonathan Stynes both finishing tamely when well placed.

The visitors started the second half the brighter with Stynes coming agonisingly close to converting Clayton Arnez’s cross, but it was the home side who struck a decisive blow in the 53^rd minute when the impressive Theodosiades finished coolly after collecting Sabatini’s incisive pass.

Athena pulled a goal back just six minutes later when skipper Gates bundled home a cross from substitute Andrew Scaldaffero, but their hopes were all but ended in the 70^th minute when Catarcione slipped the ball into ex-Floreat man, Sabatini, who finished well to make it 3-1.

Home keeper Francis Soale then came to the fore with two impressive saves. The first came on 77 minutes when he denied Stynes, while the second, which he just got finger tips to, deflecting Gate’s goal-bound effort onto the bar, was worthy of the points on its own.

Athena coach Glen Grostate, while disappointed at the conclusion, wasn’t downbeat.

“It’s a tough place to get the points but I thought at 1-0 we were in it and then we came out and changed our style and our set-up and it was working – we scored and we hit the bar,” he said.

“It was a tough night for us; we have five first-teamers sitting in the stand – it’s hard, it’s just hard with half a squad.

“I’d have taken a point because we’re not talking about five ordinary players being missing. But we didn’t fight the fight, we lost the fight, we failed. They were stronger than us tonight, it is what it is, hands up and you just have to take it.

“Today was a momentum game. A win would have taken us to nine points, but we still have six and I’m not too concerned about it.”

 

Perth SC 3 (Catarcione, 8; Theodosiades, 53; Sabatini, 70)

Floreat Athena 1 (Gate, 59)

Saturday, March 4, 2017

Dorrien Gardens

Kick-off: 8.00pm

Referee: Josh Mannella

Assistant referees: Michal Jasinski and Liviu Katona

 Perth SC: 1. Francis SOALE (gk), 3. Andreas THEODOSIADES (11. Matthew MILENKOVIC, 55), 4. Adrian MADASCHI, 5. Niccolo SABATINI, 6. Clark KELTIE (C), 9. Gustavo CATARCIONE, 10. Nicholas AMBROGIO (20. Paul ZIMMARINO, 88), 13. Rocco PIZZATA, 15. Harley ORR, 16. Kieran COLWELL (2. Alex SILLA, 71), 19. Roberto DEL BORRELLO.

Substitutes not used: 14. Cameron TEECE, 23. Daniel PASSARELLI.

Yellow card: Del Borrello, 52.

Red cards: Nil

 

Floreat Athena: 1. Jason SALDARIS, 3. Clayton ARNEZ, 2. Shaun TIMMINS, 6. Jesse FULLER, 8. Jonathan STYNES, 10. Kristopher GATE (C), 11. Dennis GALAN (5. Bobby WILSON, 71), 12. Jackson MORGAN, 13. Zelfy NAZARY, 16. Ryan MALTON (4. Andrew SCALDAFFERO, 55), 33. Christopher SALDARIS.

Substitutes not used: 20. Derek Data, 18. Patiente ILAHAMBAYE, 23. Jordan BARBAS.

Yellow Cards: Scaldaffero, 69; Nazary, 83.

Red Cards: Nil