By Martin Stern
Football South Burnett
June 30, 2014
It was another big weekend of South Burnett Football before the school holiday break, with Nanango travelling to Kingaroy to take on Gunners in all three grades, and Barambah’s men’s teams clashing with Wests on Barambah’s home turf at Murgon Showgrounds.
In Kingaroy, all three Nanango sides were expected to win – and a win for the so-far undefeated Nanango First Division side would mean they would win the 2014 Minor Premiership with four games to go.
So naturally, there was a lot of interest in this match – and it lived up to expectations.
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Nanango Too Good In 1st Division
Gunners put up a valiant fight against the undefeated Nanango side in the Division 1 tie.
It took a long-range screamer from Kieran Askin to put Nanango in the lead in the 19th minute.
Then in the 25th minute, Kieran Mangan found plenty of space on the left flank and latched onto the ball, giving the Gunners’ keeper no chance.
Gunners had very little of the ball up front and struggled to threaten the staunch Nanango defence.
Meanwhile it was the Gunners’ defence that was under plenty of pressure, and they did well not to concede again in the first half.
In the second half, Nanango continued to press Gunners’ defence.
In the 62nd minute, Thomas Mangan pounced on a failed clearance from the Gunners’ goal square to make it 3-0.
Then in the 85th minute, Elliot Mangan found himself one-on-one with the keeper but made no mistake, giving his side a 4-0 win and the First Division Minor Premiership.
With four games to go before the finals, there is a huge chance that this well-drilled Nanango side will go through the season undefeated.
They are playing some intelligent football topped off with clinical finishing.
Best on the park for Nanango were Kieran Askin, Kieran Mangan and Jeff Frolhoff.
For Gunners it was Neil Gurnet, Mitch Potter and Matthew Majer.
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Nanango Hold On To Early Lead
In the Women’s Division clash, top of the table Nanango were favourites to beat an ever-improving Gunnettes side.
Nanango stamped their authority on the game from the outset, when Cassie Kelly gave her team the lead in the 4th minute after Gunnettes failed to clear out from defence.
Three minutes later, Raegan Campbell pounced on a loose ball to make it 2-0.
To their credit, the Gunnettes didn’t let their heads drop and started to use their midfield to apply pressure to the Nanango defence.
And in the 26th minute they were rewarded for their strategy when Kiara Wright found some space and went on to beat the Nanango keeper to pull one back for her team.
Nanango responded from the kick-off and just one minute later Raegan Campbell got her second for the day, blasting the ball into the Gunnettes’ net from the edge of the penalty box.
In the second half, Nanango camped in the Gunnettes half and though Gunnettes had plenty of ball and plenty of chances, they could not capitalise.
But credit must go to the Gunnettes’ defence, who really numbered up in the second half.
Best for Nanango were Raegan Campbell and Maxine Evans, while Danielle Janz and Eloise Mashford played well for Gunnettes.
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Gunners Surprise In Division 2
Second Division has been the closest fought of the three divisions with not much between all four teams.
Despite what the competition table reads, all four teams are still in play with a genuine chance come finals time.
But on Saturday Gunners started out in the worst possible way, conceding a goal in the 2nd minute of play when Nick Krauksts jumped onto a mix-up between the Gunners’ keeper and their defence to give Nanango a very early 1-0 lead.
However the remainder of the first half was fairly even, although Nanango looked the most likely to score.
The second half was similar but Gunners started to make inroads into the Nanango defence as the minutes ticked on.
In the 65th minute, Adam Dingle equalised for Gunners after a poor clearance from the Nanango defence.
This goal seemed to lift Gunners, and their confidence grew as the match progressed.
However neither side could find a winner in a very close game.
Best for Gunners were Matthew Majer, Adrian De Marco, and Gary Honhold.
Nick Krauksts, Clarence Rolley and Ty Flavill were the pick for Nanango.
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Barambah Retain Standings On Home Soil
At Murgon, Wests continued their improved Second Division form with a hard fought 0-0 draw against Barambah.
In First Division, Barambah had a 4-0 win and edged closer to holding on to their second spot on the ladder.
Their win featured a brace of goals from Richard Boles, which confirmed that his hat trick a fortnight ago was not a one-off.
The women’s game was postponed and will possibly be played on the Ekka Holiday weekend.
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Full Results:
In Kingaroy:
- 2nd Division: Nanango 1 (Nick Krauksts 2nd) – Gunners 1 (Adam Dingle 65th)
- Women’s Division: Nanango 3 (Cassie Kelly 4th, Raegan Campbell 7th, 27th) – Gunnettes 1 (Kiara Wright 26th)
- 1st Division: Nanango 4 (Kieran Askin 19th, Kieran Mangan 25th, Thomas Mangan 62nd, Elliot Mangan 85th) – Gunners 0
In Murgon:
- 2nd Division: Barambah 0 – Wests 0
- Women’s Division: Postponed
- 1st Division: Barambah 4 (Richard Boles 22nd, 84th, Sheldon Livingstone 1st, Chris O’Loughlin 25th) – Wests 0
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Football’s Super Soccer Mum!
Apart from having a swag of top-notch male players in their squads, most people give the credit for the dominance of Nanango’s 1st and 2nd Divisions over the last three years to a woman: coach Lauren Mangan.
Lauren has guided the Panthers to two Premierships since taking up the post in 2012, and looks set to rack up her third this year.
Her devotion to the game – and to her players – is so complete that even pregnancy failed to put a dent in her stride.
Lauren has been a constant figure on the Panthers’ benches at all their games this season, coaching right up until the delivery of her new son Caleb just three weeks ago.
And on Saturday, she and Caleb were out on the Kingaroy soccer fields as usual, cheering the Panthers on as they battled it out with Gunners.
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Next Matches
Football will be taking a short break over the winter school vacation, but will be returning for the 12th round of the South Burnett Evolution Solar Football League on Saturday, July 12, at Nanango and Kingaroy.
- In Nanango, Panthers v Wests (2nd Division: 12:30pm; Women’s Division: 2:00pm; 1st Division: 3:30pm).
- In Kingaroy, Gunners v Barambah (2nd Division: 2:00pm; Women’s Division: 3:30pm; 1st Division: 5:00pm).
