First round back and first three points in the bag. I went down to Avenger Park expecting a win. We were playing a full-strength squad and were coming off of five competition games already from the OFC Professional League. Avondale on the other hand were fielding a new(ish) coach and a significantly refreshed squad with only five of their starters having played last year.

The first 15 minutes were dire to be honest and I don’t believe either team managed to get a shot away. It was a little rough and a little cagey which I guess is to be expected in the first round of the season. Thankfully it was South who broke the deadlock when Mikkola, collecting the ball from a transition play, dribbled into the box and powerfully shot past the keeper to give South the lead. Not only was the original midfield interception promising to see, but as was the supporting attacking runners which spread the Avondale defence. South looked best in these plays in the first half for sure.

The rest of the first half saw South probably get the better of the game, but it was in the second half that things really started to turn for Hellas. Avondale failed to hold onto the ball much in the second half and unlike the first it seemed South were controlling the play, rather than looking to catch Avondale on transition. Uchida had a few half chances, and we peppered the Avondale box with a number of shots, but we had to wait until the 75th minute for Giannakopoulos to double our lead. From a goal kick, Giannakopoulos managed to win the ball and play Cocks wide. Cocks then played the ball into the box, which ultimately found an unmarked Giannakopoulos who banged it home.

It was a great result for South and a little worrying for Avondale who seemed to be without answers for the second half. The win is critical for us especially considering the upcoming run of games will overlap with our OPL commitments – which will stretch our squad and force us to play more youth.

A few thoughts, I think Cocks offered good energy coming on and put up a much better showing than I had seen in the OPL so far, conversely, I think I would like to have seen more from Swibel who has otherwise been in good form for in our OPL games. That said we have a number of attacking options – Mikkola was explosive in the first half and Uchida was a constant threat in the second. What’s certainly more positive compared to last year was the ability of Pasquali and Giannakopoulos to control the midfield and shield our defence. Fornaroli as a result was starved of any decent service and when the ball did come his was a fresh and energised Eliopoulos was easily able to contain him. So overall I think we have good squad balance and I like what I saw.

Hume City up next for our first game back at Lakeside for the year… let’s go!