SOCCER ASPENDALE is on the verge of clinching promotion from State 7 South-East. Last season Aspendale finished third-last in State 5 but under the promotion and relegation rules in force due to a league restructure it dropped down two divisions to the newly created State 7. It was a bitter pill to swallow but under new coach Jason Grieve it has rebounded in style and has a three-point buffer over fourth-placed Keysborough District with two games remaining. The top three clubs are promoted with the fourth-placed club thrust into a promotion play-off with its State 7 North-West counterpart. Aspendale has…
Author: Craig MacKenzie
SOCCER FOOTBALL Victoria dumped Western United from all FV competitions last week effective immediately. The move followed the Federal Court’s decision to order WMG Football Club Limited to be wound up in insolvency. WMG held the franchise for Western United’s A-League participation and was the entity through which it competed in FV competitions. The decision has important consequences for local clubs especially through its impact on promotion and relegation in VPL1 the league in which Langwarrin competes. There will be a flow-on effect of Western United’s demise throughout the State Leagues where most local clubs compete. In a statement released…
SOCCER FOUR games remain for Mornington to cling onto second spot in State 1 South-East and earn a play-off with its State 1 North-West counterpart for the right to play in VPL2 next season. It has been a decades-long saga for the Seagulls as the road to compete at an elite level has proven to be a heartbreaking journey. Mornington’s first tilt at promotion from State 1 came in 2014 when the Seagulls finished second to Eastern Lions and only the champions were promoted. For the next two seasons the then NPL became a closed shop with no promotion or…
SOCCER LANGWARRIN, Skye United and Baxter are staring down the barrel of relegation. In a dismal season for local clubs only Mornington retains a genuine chance of promotion while Mentone already is relegated from State 6 and Mount Martha looks condemned to finish in the bottom two in State 7. Langwarrin blew a 2-0 lead at Lawton Park on Saturday and missed a golden opportunity to leapfrog opponent Brunswick City eventually going down 4-3 and ending a crazy helter-skelter VPL1 clash with just nine players. Langy led after seven minutes when Brad Blumenthal was at the back post to tap…
Soccer BAXTER and Chelsea face a day of reckoning when these State 4 rivals clash at Baxter Park on Saturday. It’s a do-or-die derby and one that will go some way to deciding their respective outcomes this season. The home side’s recent form is abysmal losing its last five games as it slowly but surely has been dragged into a relegation dogfight. Baxter’s matchday squad contains players who have played at a much higher level and the club is at a loss to explain why they are underperforming right now. As the players are inching closer to the relegation abyss…