South Wagga Warriors vs Wagga United
Southies v Wagga United
A Match Report
Sunday July 25th 2021, Showgrounds.
Sixth placed Wagga United travelled the K & ½ up Docker Street from their Duke of Kent Oval home to the Southies’ Showgrounds, to face the People’s Club in the Friendly Derby. The inner city sides last faced off in Round 6, when United fought back hard with ten to go from two goals down to earn a point. Would Souths’ keep their foot on the throat this time? Or Would United start where they left off? Each XI also had a gale force South Westerly wind to deal with, as well as a soggy pitch, but thankfully the God of Rain appeared to be on smoko.
Football had lost 44 matches in all grades last week and with a lower pressure front causing 35 further casualties this round, The Southies’ Leonard Cup side were lucky enough to strut their stuff on Sunday. Every Round 13 First Grade Women’s match had been washed out last week, and after some deliberation, so were the Men’s. They had wished hard to play again and thankfully they had the chance.
Southies and Wagga United were the opening act in a three course football feast. The often maligned Showy pitch hosting the only Women’s Football match in Wagga this weekend. Wagga United’s Men were grateful for their neighbours replacing hostility with hospitality as they ‘hosted’ Leeton United in the Pascoe Cup, followed by South Wagga’s Men finishing the day against Tolland. Other matches in the Leonard and Pascoe were played at Young, Junee and Cootamundra.
Captain Kaye Noonan’s South Wagga couldn’t believe their luck, at the Showy two rounds in a row! In 1969 You Can’t Always Get What You Want was sprayed by Mick Jagger’s lips on us
🎵 But if you try sometime you find
You get what you need 🎵
A game. Finally. However, United started better, finding passes and runs in behind surprisingly easily against Finals chasing Souths. Unfortunate bounces annoyed the United bench and despite their domination of possession it was South Wagga with the early chances. Kayla Kopp tested the agility of the United keeper who parried well low to her left. Aimee Tramacchi enjoyed a sighter and Shayan Ibrahim found the side netting. Random bounces did nothing to enthuse Wagga United.
Other sides have always used the state of the Showground pitch as a stick to beat the People’s Club
(as if playing them twice a year in the Pascoe wasn’t enough).
High salt levels in a rising water table around the Hospital District were caused by urban expansion; two new Suburbs, a Juvey and the upcoming asphalt & concrete – innovation which lead to the destruction of native vegetation and the overwatering of European gardens that comes with the ¼ Acre Australian Dream, effectively making green carpet impossible.
Comparatively the grassy snooker cloths that are the other Wagga Football fields, sharehouse with a creek.
1998 saw the Council address these urban salinity issues facing the community around the Hospital District by installing a herringbone drainage system (me neither) specifically under a particular piece of hallowed turf that sits exactly between a Greyhound Track and Trotting Track. In their words…
“The aim of the basin is to drain excess water from the shallow water table at the Showground during the wetter winter months”
Alas when torrential rain hits Wagga: The Showy isn’t just the best ground in Wagga, The Showy’s the only ground in Wagga!
Just like Brisbane awarded the 2032 Olympics.
However, Souths’ exceptionalism proved short lived. United’s quick passing made a mockery of a groggy Souths, finding interchanges in the penalty remarkably easy. Kara Dyason did her best at centre back to shepherd them back, much to the chagrin of the Official who abruptly awarded a penalty for an innocuous-if-reckless challenge on the United striker, with her back to goal 19 diagonal yards away in the old money.
Wagga United gleefully took the opportunity facing the goal, Sans Kara, from 12 yards. 1-0 to the Visitors ‘13 in.
Lucy Johntson, her penultimate match for the People’s Club, drove forward in tandem with Kaye and Dee Green towards the Orange goal. Slicing through the midfield became a rite of passage for Southies but a roll call began to form of green girls shocked by the cat like reflexes of United No.1.
Souths found incisive balls past the Clever Crow’s backline frequently but fruitlessly. United grew in confidence as they dealt with the pressure. In the first half Souths had nine corners to two but not once threatened, as the South Westerly became a United Westerly, blowing each cross aimed to the front post safely back the other way.
Aims’ had enough of these weak efforts, angrily she went thwack! So far deep on the right wing, she was offered a spot on Talkback radio.
The United GK was not done with her party tricks. Have a go real go she smiles, saving & sending the Crows forward once again.
United started the second half faster than Souths, as they had the first. A beleaguered Tiff in goal did her best to keep Southies in it. United found their star Flick, moonlighting as Alex Morgan on the Showy touchline again & again. Flat out like a lizard drinking with hips like a snake she shimmied out of challenges and exploited the wide spaces the best pitch in Wagga™ offers.
Souths’ passes struggled to get their passing game going from defence to midfield yet magically as they passed the centre circle the one-twos whizzed magnetically. Marwa Sulalmain courageously slicked passes with Kaye and Johnno to feed Aims, Kayla and Shayan over and over and over like Hotchip with a baked potato. Southies strikers laid back too far as their shots fired over and over and over and over like a monkey with a miniature symbol.
United clawed back the ball and the momentum. They got a corner, finally. Same flag Souths had eight attempts previous 45. Swung up too high and it was met superbly by the United Westerly. Drooooooooping back into the box. The ball rode waves off players in front of Tiff, as it were a coke bottle at Bells Beach.
Drilled forcefully into the netting, United were up 2-0 in the ‘57.
Every Souths backline had seen enough and with their Premiership hopes on the line any caution was discarded like strapping tape in a Sunday Shower. Stacey snaked through only to find the No.1 unforgiving. India combined and shot over. Kaye and Johnno fired up and feinted in, out, in and zeroed in. To no avail.
Southies’ Leonard had finally been back on the paddock, inextricably revoked and only a handful of games to get on, but as Mick Jaggers’ Stones’ told us all those years ago
🎵 You can’t always get what you want 🎵
South Wagga 0 – 2 Wagga United
Miq Hargreaves