-submitted by Derrick Freedman
Just three points separate the top four teams in Division Two of the RASA Summer League as teams look to make their second half push for the championship. Richmond All Blacks are the hottest team in the division as they have won six consecutive matches after a slow start saw them drop their opening two matches of the season.
It was a case of snatching victory from the jaws of defeat last Tuesday for the contenders from Richmond, after going down 2-0 at half time against Bombastic FC on goals scored by Joao Barao and Marco Pegoraro. The second half belonged to the All Blacks who scored 6 unanswered goals. Morten Skriver scored a hat trick to give All Blacks the lead, and teammates Jason O’Hara, Craig Tillotson and Henrik Lauridsen each added a single goal to ensure victory by a lopsided 6-2 margin. The win leaves them tied at the summit of the table with Metropolitan FC who were battling Richmond FC the same night.
The Metropolitan vs RFC game was a tight and cagey affair that saw Richmond take the lead midway through the first half on a great shot by Kyle Kemp. Metropolitan fought hard to get something out of the match, but Richmond held on for the 1-0 victory. Next week Metropolitan hope to bounce back as they face co-leaders All-Blacks in what should prove to be a determining factor for the Division Two League Championship.
Division One is similarly being tightly contested as the race for the Championship has narrowed over the last couple of weeks. Defending champions Delta Blaze led the Division by four clear points at one time, but in week 7 suffered their first league defeat since the 2016 season at the hands of Rino’s Originals, and now find themselves with a single point lead over Westside FC. Blaze could only manage a 1-1 tie with Binger’s Army in week 8. Bryce Connor scored for Blaze and Vikrim Puri scored for Binger’s. Delta Blaze have a game in hand which has become more important for them to win and retain the Championship title.
Westside FC meanwhile have clawed their way up the table and a 2-1 win against Rino’s Tigers has them at 13 points. Goals by Eliot Lynch and Chris Turner gave them the victory as Tigers could only manage a lone goal by Alberto Cirac Perez. In other action, United Nations beat Rino’s Originals 4-1.