Spring Gully, Shepparton United in eight-goal League Cup thriller

The Reds rallied from 3-1 down early in the second half to force a 4-4 draw with a strong Shepparton United outfit in the pool 2 clash.

"We weren't good in the first half, but in the second half we played a lot better,'' Spring Gully coach Simon Smith said.

"It was a really good game. Shepparton United is a good team and they're a physical team.

"At 3-1 down I thought we were in for a long afternoon, but the most pleasing thing was that the girls didn't give in. We started to put some passes together and we looked like a different team. We could have won it in the end."

Letesha Bawden continued her good form to score twice for the Reds, while Izzy Monotti and Paige Conder added one goal each.

Olivia Saron scored a brace for Shepparton United and Maria Villani and Rebekah Lawson completed the scoring.

In pool one, injuries played a major role in the Strathdale and FC Eaglehawk 1-1 draw at Beischer Park.

Eaglehawk played the second-half with just eight players after suffering three injuries in the first half.

Strathdale also had its injury woes in the second half and was reduced to nine players in the latter stages of the match.

Both goals came in the first half, with Jess Dover's goal for the Borough cancelled out by Stephani Mcdonald's strike for the Blues.

Considering the injury carnage, Eaglehawk coach Kieran Forrest was elated his side walked away with a draw.

"It was a frustrating day... the players were dropping like flies,'' he said.

"The girls did a great job to dig in after half-time. It was a long 45 minutes, we defended really well.

"Our back four was outstanding. I was so proud of the way they worked together."

Strathfieldsaye Colts United collected the three points in the other pool one match after Shepparton South was forced to forfeit.

LEAGUE CUP MEN

Strathdale opened its League Cup campaign in fine style when it produced one of its best performances of the season.

The Blues defeated arch-rival FC Eaglehawk 3-1 in pool one at Beischer Park and put a severe dent in the Hawks' hopes of qualifying for the final.

Alastair Merkel gave the Blues a dream start when he scored in the opening minute of the match.

Brandon Mountjoy levelled the scores for the Borough with a goal in the 14th minute, but the Blues responded through classy midfielder Matt Gallagher.

Strathdale's decision to bring Keian Tramm off the bench midway through the second half paid dividends.

He sealed the game for the Blues with a goal 12 minutes before time.

The Hawks battled hard, but were fragile at the back in the absence of suspended duo Brent Hamblin and Prince Quansah.

In the other pool one match, Shepparton South proved too good for Strathfieldsaye Colts United 7-2 at Club Court.

Giordan Longano and Josh Brown scored for the home side in a performance club keeper and president Phi Berry described as "encouraging".

"We were pretty excited about it,'' Berry said.

"We were 5-1 down at half-time and then we held them to 2-1 in the second half, which was encouraging.

"I think we had three players start for the first time. It was something we can build on for the championship."

Shepparton United and Tatura grabbed control of pool two.

After losing to Epsom in championship play last month, Tatura bounced back to defeat the Scorpions 4-1.

A first-half goal from Cooper Arkinstall put Epsom on track to record another upset win.

However, the Ibises dominated the second-half on their home turf.

Epsom led until the 63rd minute before Tatura unleashed a four-goal barrage in 19 minutes. Former coach Tristan Zito and star midfielder Cody Sellwood scored two goals each for Tatura.

Shepparton United defeated Spring Gully 6-2, but Reds' coach Tony McQuillan said the scoreline didn't reflect how competitive his young side was.

"I thought we were pretty amazing, actually,'' McQuillan said.

"We played really, really well. The difference between us and them was their clinical finishing. We conceded a few goals from unforced errors, but I was very pleased with the effort. We'll take positives from it."

Josh Woods scored both goals for Gully.

"It was great to see some growth from such a young team competing against guys that have NPL experience and a couple of imports,'' McQuillan said.

"I can't fault our boys. It was a great learning curve for them."

Championship play resumes in League One Men and League One Women next weekend.

League One Men

Pool 1 - Strathdale 3 (A. Merkel, M. Gallagher, K. Tramm) d FC Eaglehawk 1 (B. Mountjoy); Strathfieldsaye Colts United v Shepparton South.

Pool 2 - Shepparton United v Spring Gully United; Tatura 4 (C. Sellwood, T. Zito 2) d Epsom 1 (C. Arkinstall).

League One Women

Pool 1 - Strathdale 1 (S. McDonald) dr FC Eaglehawk 1 (J. Dover); Strathfieldsaye Colts United 3 d Shepparton South 0 on forfeit.

Pool 2 - Shepparton United 4 (O. Saron 2, R. Lawson, M. Villani) dr Spring Gully United 4 (L. Bawden 2, I. Monotti, P. Conder).

League Two Women

Pool 1 - Castlemaine 7 (B. Tolland, K. Sparks, S. Tigges, A. Bruin, I. Browne, V. Thoma, C. Grainger) d Swan Hill 0; Kyneton 9 (L. Campbell, E. Minter 2, B. Randle, A. Coleman, S. Hooppell, Z. Hooppell, I. Morris-Perrott) d Epsom 0.

Pool 2 0 Golden City v La Trobe University N/A.

League Two Men

La Trobe Uni Black 0 lt Border Raiders 2 (S. Wanesiofa 2); Swan Hill 1 (C. Brown) lt Golden City 2 (T. Dooley, J. Maung Oh Ngwe); Deniliquin Wanderers 4 (M. Rourke, B. Maunganidze 2) d Golden City Rams 2 (H. Htoo 2); Shepparton Jaguars 0 lt Shepparton 4.

Youth

Epsom 3 (S, Van Tiggelen, N. Mulcair, H. Aung) d Castlemaine 0; Spring Gully United 4 (N. Armstrong 2, W. Harding, A. Coughlan) d Golden City 1 (P. Htoo); Tatura 1 (A. Mercuri) lt La Trobe University 4 (E. McAuley, J. Fodor, L. Yates, J. Clemens).

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