The Senior Men recorded their biggest ever win in their short history after they dispatched Fraser Park 6-1 at Ian McLennan Park and maintained their unbeaten record at home.
Michael Trajkovski continued his goal scoring form by scoring four whilst Genki Iwata and Zander Alston also chimed in with goals. In amongst the carnage, Alexander Nicolosi scored a worldie for Fraser Park.
Flame almost got off to the perfect start when a neat little combination of passes across the top of the box saw Matthew Mazevski cut in behind the defence however his left foot strike was well saved by Amaro Ferreira.
Seconds later, Fraser Park moved the ball swiftly up field which culminated in a shot from Nicolosi from distance that was well cleaned up by Jordan Bruce.
After a lightning start from both teams, the game settled a little bit and it wasn’t until the 20th minute that it reignited. A quick break from Flame saw Mitchell Turner use his pace to beat a defender however his shot went straight to Ferreira.
On 23 minutes, Flame took a deserved lead. Some neat footwork on the left saw Iwata swing in a dangerous ball. Trajkovski read it well nipping in front of Ferreira to flick it on and into the goal.
The goal lifted the home side another level and just a few minutes later, Iwata threaded the needle to send Turner through however a heavy touch saw Ferreira smother the effort.
On the half hour, a Fraser Park free kick midfield was thrust deep into the Flame penalty area. The ball seemed to come off a Flame head as it bounced toward goal however Bruce managed to read it well to pull it down.
Iwata was in everything and just minutes later, he latched onto a loose ball from the edge of the box only to see it drift just wide.
Right on the stroke of half time, Zander Alston drove into the penalty area and whipped a ball across goal finding Trajkovski who was in the right place at the right time to make it 2-0 at the break.
Flame was good value for their lead, and it was going to need a herculean effort from Fraser Park to get themselves back into the game.
Right from the restart, Nicolosi saw that Bruce was off his line and from 50 metres managed to beat him with an incredible effort and just like that, the deficit was halved.
It seemed to inspire the visitors as Nicolosi’s snapshot from the edge of the box flew just over.
Flame quickly found their rhythm after that set back and a swift counter attack on 57 minutes saw Turner break free. He timed his pass to perfection sending Iwata through on goal and he made no mistake tucking it beyond Ferreira restoring Flame’s two goal buffer.
On 68 minutes, Fraser Park substitute David Ustimenko blasted a shot that was a little too hot to handle however Bruce managed to regain possession just in the nick of time with players descending.
A couple of minutes later and the game was as good as done. An amazing team goal that started with the midfield working the ball forward. Iwata and Turner again linked up with a deft touch as Turner squared across goal for Trajkovski who made no mistake in securing his hat trick.
Just two minutes later and with their tails up, Flame again produced a goal straight out of the top draw. It was the Iwata and Turner show as they once again linked up to dissect the Fraser defence. This time sending Sam Alston away down the line. His squared pass found brother Zander who finished with aplomb with as good of a team goal you’ll see all year.
Turner’s second half was outstanding. With his confidence high, he let loose a cracking effort not long after that had replacement goalkeeper James Husoy scrambling.
As the game ticked over into injury time, it got worse for the visitors as Ustimenko was dismissed for a crude challenge on Gjorsevski. From the resulting free kick, Yianni Fragogiannis nearly snuck his shot past the goalkeeper inside the near post.
In the dying seconds of the game, another raid by Flame saw Trajkovski bundle the ball over the line to make it six completing the rout.
Coach Andrew Paine was delighted with the performance, particularly the second half.
It was a really good performance. Patient during the initial phases of the game, and then played some really nice broken play football in the second half. It was satisfying to see our attacking line rewarded for their efforts to make forward runs.
No surprises with Michael Trajkovski named player of the match. Worked hard all game and was rewarded for being at the right place, right time.
Saturday 13 April @ Ian McLennan Park | Round 10
Flame’s Under 20’s moved to the top of the table following a come from behind 2-1 win over Fraser Park.
It was a lacklustre and frustrating first half from Flame which saw Fraser hit the lead on 29 minutes through Bassam Aoun.
Flame fired up in the second half and started peppering the Fraser Park goal.
Just as things were looking dim for Flame, Liam Hoyn turned the game on its head chimming in with a flick on header with ten minutes to play to draw them level. It was deserved on the balance of play.
It was rather fitting that Hoyn bagged a goal as he played his final game for the club this season as he embarks on potentially a new career in Spain.
Within seconds, Mitchell Despotovski snatched on a loose ball on the edge of the box to curl one into the bottom corner and just like that, Flame were now in front.
They managed to see out the game and take themselves to the top of the ladder with that win.
Player of the match – Jake Morris.
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