Throughout the 2024 NPL SA season, Front Page Football looks at each week's big winners and losers from the action-packed South Australian top flight. Below are our picks from the second week of the Finals Series.
Adelaide City hosted the MetroStars in the first leg of their NPL SA Semi-Final. (Image: Pagonis Photography)
Winners
Mullen puts Modbury to the sword
Semi-finals are usually tense affairs, and the clash between the Modbury Jets and Campbelltown City at Smith Partners Stadium was no different.
A tight opening period saw Campbelltown's influence grow as the half went on, but the hosts made them work for their chances. Minutes before referee Daniel Cook called time on the first half, Marc Marino found Alex Mullen in the box. Despite being ushered wide onto his left foot, the Sergio Melta Medallist found Ryan Neild's far bottom corner with an exquisite finish to reward Campbelltown's efforts.
Mullen iced the game from the penalty spot when Paul Wilson was sent off for bringing down Josh Mori in the box as the last man late in the game.
This win places Campbelltown City on the cusp of its first Grand Final since the 2020 season. With quality players like Mullen keen to return to that big stage, this lead feels almost unassailable heading into the second leg.
Alex Mullen's brace grounded the Modbury Jets in the first leg of their Semi-Final against Campbelltown City. (Image: Ken Carter)
City and Metro remain strong defensively
Adelaide City's clashes with MetroStars have been captivating in 2024. Their first encounter saw an Adelaide City side, seeking to recover from a challenging start to the year, earn a point with a late equaliser in a 2-2 draw. Few can forget their second meeting when Paul Pezos' side sent shockwaves around the league by putting Metro to the sword with four unanswered goals.
Goals were expected in the first leg of their semi-final at Oakden, but two organised backlines had other ideas. Despite missing Kerrin Stokes, Yared Abetew dropped from the midfield into the heart of the defence and, alongside Gideon Arok, kept the competition's leading goalscorer, Ren Nagamatsu, relatively quiet. Meanwhile, Fergus Lynch and Juan Gutierrez limited Christian Sotira's and Michael Cittadini's influence in the wide areas.
Danny Graystone's side faced a similar predicament, with Jackson Fortunatow dropping into centre-back alongside Noah McNamara and being equally as impressive in that position. The electric attacking duo of Luis Lawrie-Lattanzio and Raphael Lea'i, who did all the damage the last time the two sides met, were also marshalled well by Jackson Walls and Scott Nagel.
While neither team was able to open the scoring in the first leg, it was not for lack of trying. The second leg promises to be a compelling affair between two sides raring to return to a Grand Final.
MetroStars midfielder Cameron Woodfin (left) and Adelaide City's Adam Piscioneri (right). (Image: Will Zhao)
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Losers
Jets continue to be haunted by Red Devils
To say Campbelltown City has been a burden on Modbury's 2024 season would be an understatement. The Red Devils defeated Maurice Natale's side twice in the regular season, costing them a top-two spot in the final round and beating them in the Federation Cup Final.
The Jets have to find a way to reverse that trend to return to the NPL SA Grand Final, with that plan once again foiled by Michael Matricciani's men in the first leg of the Semi-Final, courtesy of two Alex Mullen goals. If a two-goal deficit was not enough to overcome, Natale's side also has to cover for the loss of Paul Wilson due to his red card.
There seemed to be a reprieve for Modbury when Mullen committed a tough challenge late in Saturday's game, but after deliberating with his assistant, Daniel Cook opted only for a yellow card.
The odds are stacked against the Jets if they want to make a second consecutive Grand Final, but that has often been the case for them during their meteoric rise over the past three years.
City denied a late penalty
While the top-seeded teams have the advantage of playing their semi-final second leg at home, the lower-ranked sides can mitigate that by making a strong statement when they host the first leg. After dominating MetroStars three weeks earlier, Adelaide City was keen to do just that, but Graystone's men were up for the challenge.
The 90 minutes took more of the form of a rollercoaster than a football match, with both sides enjoying sustained periods of dominance while also having to work as a collective when their opponents turned the screws on them.
While both teams went close, the most controversial moment of the night came in the 76th minute. An ambitious Adelaide City strike fell to the feet of Patrick Caraccia, who was thwarted by a desperate Fabian Barbiero lunge. Despite City's incessant protests, insisting the MetroStars captain made contact with the player before the ball, referee Eric Ford Sestili and his assistants were not moved, and play continued.
While the game ended goalless, Adelaide City would have loved nothing more than to take an advantage over to T.K. Shutter Reserve for the second leg on Friday Night, with a Grand Final spot on the line.
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