However right from the starting whistle the boys showed that they meant business with some, at times, great football on display. The high intensity, high quality start put the opposition on the back foot early and this scrambling start was perfectly demonstrated when Carey chased down and blocked an attempted clearance from the keeper  to leave himself with a simple tap in, 1-0.

The boys at the back were extremely solid (Ash, Clinton, Kane and Marko) which allowed the midfield to get on top and create a number of opportunities.  Dana eventually put the team up 2-0 with a great goal after slipping past a couple of defenders and beating  the keeper with a neat finish on the angle. He would have been happy to see that one go on with Dan unmarked and clear in the middle for what would have been a simple tap in. A miss there would have no
doubt resulted in a over the top barrage of abuse from his strike partner. 2-0 up at half time and things were looking good.

The opening 10 minutes of the second half saw Meadow Park trying to claw one back with a number of half chances falling their way which they were unable to convert. After withstanding a period of pressure the Old Carey boys once again got on top with particularly strong periods of play from Ash, Ryan and Pinches in the middle of the park. Repeated off-sides prevented further goals until Pinches popped up with a classy finish in the corner from outside the box after some neat work from Steph up front, 3-0.

The quality slowly dropped out of the game for the last 10, but not before a thunderous shot from Marc from well outside the box burst the net to leave the game 4-0 (if people tell you that in actual fact it was a misplaced looping  cross that was fumbled into the net by the keeper then please ignore them).

POSITIVES

The first win in pre-season will provide some much needed confidence to the team so close to the start of the season. The back 4 provided great protection for Chris and were rewarded with a clean sheet. The midfield played some great football at times with good interplay with all the strikers. Steph had a particularly strong game holding up the ball allowing the midfield time to join in the attack.

Best: Ryan, Ash, Pinches, Steph

NEGATIVES

Ability to play for 90 minutes. Although at times to football on display was fantastic, there were patches where the intensity wasn’t what it was needed to be. Against stronger opposition this will no doubt be punished.

Let us know what you thought of the match in the comments section below.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

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Old Carey’s debut appearance in the State Knockout Cup ended in heartbreak after an unlucky 0-1 defeat to their State 3 opposition.

While Nunawading City were overwhelming favourites to win the tie, they will walk away relieved to have picked up the victory when for long periods they looked second best to the Canaries.

The SK Cup tie saw coach Kotsabouikis hand full debuts to Schmidhuber and Aydin, Old Carey’s formation taking on a familiar shape.

For the first 10 minutes of the tie, the two league gulf between the teams was apparent; Nunawading retained possession and built pressure, while Old Carey appeared rushed on the ball.

Old Carey were however granted an excellent opportunity to hit the front. Schmidhuber, while attempting to close down the ball, intercepted an under hit pass from the Nunawading keeper and found himself one on one.  Unfortunately for Old Carey, the Nunawading keeper to managed to smother the ball and atone for his previous error.

Then came the most contentious moment of the match. Schmidhuber, who was coming back from an offside position, intercepted a back pass from the Nunawading stopper to his keeper, and was 10 meters in the clear, one on one with the keeper. The referee and her assistant inexplicably flagged Schmidhuber for offside, despite the ball coming from an opposition player. The decision was difficult for the Canaries to swallow.

The controversial tone of the match continued when Paton went down injured, having seemingly landed awkwardly on his left leg and jarring his knee. Without backup keeper Alex Bondoux on the bench, Paton had little choice
but to continue after receiving treatment.

Chances were at a premium in the first half. Maxi of Nunawading flashed a shot wide after some attractive interplay out wide on the right, and a long drive flew over the bar in one of Nunawading’s few clear shots at goal.  Schmidhuber flashed an angled shot just wide, as Old Carey began to wrestle control of the match, particularly through the central midfield pairing of Pereira and Lorenzo.

Nunawading then almost hit Old Carey on the counter-attack. After a period of sustained Old Carey pressure, Nunawading broke at pace. The Nunawading Striker could only plant his angled shot wide however, with pressure from Aydin and Paton putting off the striker.

As the first half drew to a close, Old Carey looked the better and more confident side, as they continued to push Nunawading and looked the more likely side to break the deadlock. Amin should have won his side a free-kick on the edge of the box after some neat skill, however the referee failed to see what everyone else at the ground had – 0-0 at the break.

The second half was an even tussle between the two teams.

Old Carey began to find success down both flanks, with Mehdi and Amin continuing to look dangerous. On 57 minutes, Schmidhuber did brilliantly to turn his man out wide on the right, and then picked out Pereira excellently at the back post, however he could only put his free header wide from a reasonably tight angle.

The Canary back 4 of Skalkos, Udorovic, Aydin and Davidson were looking increasingly comfortable, and they were able to repel the Nunawading attacks on the few occasions they managed to break from midfield.

For all of Old Carey’s territorial dominance, they were unable to create many clear cut chances or penetrate into the Nunawading 18 yard box.

Kotsabouikis introduced Kokkinos for his Old Carey debut, in the hope that he could manufacture a way through the Nunawading back 4.

On 74 minutes, Udorovic found himself a long way forward, and thought he had done enough to win either a free kick or, at the very least, a corner. The referee however awarded a goal kick, which was taken quickly by Nunawading. They broke down the Canaries left flank, and managed to find space to cross the ball low into the box from the byline. Maxi hit his strike through the legs of Davidson and into the bottom corner. It was a cruel blow to Old Carey, who did not deserve to be trailing their State 3 opponents.

Lorenzo then made way for Howard, making his Old Carey debut in the process, who injected more pace and urgency into the Canary midfield. Howard was quick to make an impact, releasing Kokkinos expertly down the left, only for his cross to be cleared.

Captain Udorovic was then replaced by Edwards, also making his Old Carey debut, as the Canaries pushed for an equaliser.

The further Old Carey pushed forward, the more vulnerable they became to a Nunawading counter-attack. Paton was called upon to make two smart saves, firstly from a header which came as a result of a deep cross to the back post, and a point blank save with his legs when one-on-one with a Nunawading striker.

As the game wore on, the Canaries began to tire and Nunawading managed to retain the territorial advantage needed to prevent Old Carey from snatching an equaliser.

An undeserved 1-0 loss for the Canaries, but plenty of positives to take from the match.

While Old Carey have been drawn at home, the unavailability of Wilcox Field has meant that the match has been moved to a neutral location.

The Round 1 clash will now take place on Saturday 10 March 2012, with kick-off at 2pm.

Details are as follows:

Old Carey S.C. -v- Nunawading City F.C.
Saturday 10 March 2012
Kick-Off @ 2.00 pm

Knox Regional Football Centre
Cnr High Street Road & George Streets
Wantirna South

Old Carey were one of many teams to be afforded a first round bye, and will now eagerly await their second round opponents.

Stay tuned to www.oldcareysoccerclub.com for the latest news on the Pelada Cup, and to find out who the Canary Girls will face in Round 2 of the Cup.

The draw for Round 2 will take place on Tuesday 20 March 2012.

The fixture will take place on 10 March 2012 at Carey Grammar Sports Complex.

More to follow shortly…

Check in to the club webpage tonight to find out who the Canaries first round opponents will be.

While club registrations usually take place in mid March, the same has been brought forward by reason of both the Seniors and Girls teams entry into the Mirabella Cup and Pelada Cup respectively.

All players will be required to register prior to being able to participate in an FFV sanctioned match (league and cup matches).

Accordingly, all players are strongly encouraged to attend the night, which will feature a BBQ in the club rooms. 

Registration fees for season 2012 are $360 (includes FFV Registration, Insurance, 2 x socks and 2 x shorts), and payable by way of:

• - Cash
• - Cheque (payable to “Old Carey Soccer Club”)
• - EFT into the following account:
• Old Carey Soccer Club
  BSB: 063010
  Account no. 11458251

It is hoped that all players make payment at, or prior to, this event.  If you have any questions about the registration process, please contact the Club Secretary at info@oldcareysoccerclub.com.

With many new faces at the club, the night will provide a fantastic opportunity to get to know the members of the club

Supporters are also more than welcome to attend the event.

Old Carey SC again recovered from conceding an early goal to come away with a comfortable 4-1 victory at Kingston Heath Soccer Complex.

In very warm conditions, Old Carey SC came up against Whitehorse United of Provisional 3.  Despite the league difference, the game would be an early test as to where Old Carey are at, Whitehorse having finished just outside the promotion places in season 2011.

The game got off to a fiery start, with both teams struggling to create any early chances.  Old Carey were rushed in possession, and looked to penetrate early rather than keep possession. 

With Whitehorse playing a high line, there was a lot of space for the Canaries strikers to run into, however Michael was caught offside on the few occasions the ball was played through to him.

On the 14^th minute, Old Carey fell behind.  In what was one of Whitehorse’s first forward flourishes, they managed to catch the Old Carey back 4 square and play an attacker through one-on-one.  While Paton was able to block the first attempt, he could do nothing about the follow up which found itself nestled in the back of the net despite the efforts of Travis.

The goal spurned Old Carey into action.  Michael got the better of his marker down the left, but was unable to put a shot on target from a narrow angle.  Tim then sore a long range shot drift wide.

Just before the 20^th minute, tempers flared after a heavy tackle on captain Udorovic saw the Canaries captain left in a heap on the floor.  At the next opportunity, Monty committed a foul on that same player, and the match began to look like a regular season affair rather than a mid February friendly.

Shortly after, Old Carey were back on level terms.  After winning a free-kick 30 yards from goal, Michael stepped up and saw his free kick come back off the upright, only for the ball to rebound into the bath of Bang who had the easiest of finishes.

Despite getting back on level terms, Old Carey struggled to keep possession for long periods.  They were however in front just after the half hour mark.

In what was almost a repeat of his earlier opportunity, Michael found his way past his marker on the left before cutting in side and placing the ball past the Whitehorse keeper.  It was a calmly taken goal and gave Old Carey a narrow, but deserved lead at the break.

The intensity of the match began to wane in the second half, due to the oppressive heat and the limited fit players on the bench for Old Carey. 

It was of little surprise that Whitehorse were able to carve out some early chances in the second half. 

A long range shot was fumbled by Paton, however he was able to do just enough to divert the ball away from the Whitehorse striker following in to ensure he wasn’t left with the simplest of finishes. 

Paton would soon after be called into action again with a smart double save.  A free-kick from 25 yards was parried wide by Paton, and he was able to keep out the follow up from a tight angle.

Old Carey then changed their system, and found began to regain control of the midfield.  Monty, Tim and Diego began to find more of the ball in the middle, and the back 3 suddenly found more time and space on the ball.

Against the run of play, Old Carey killed off the Whitehorse resurgence with an excellently worked third goal.  Michael continued his impressive game, getting free on the right and curling an exquisite cross into the back post to Stanner, who had pulled off his marker, who planted his header past the Whitehorse keeper.

Stanner had another chance to get on the scoresheet, however his shot was comfortable for the keeper, with Nick possibly the better option in the middle of the park.

The game had now slowed to almost walking pace, as the conditions got the better of the players.  Both teams were seeing out time for the final whistle, however there was time for Michael to score his second of the game, again breaking clear of the Whitehorse defence and calmly slot the ball past the onrushing Whitehorse keeper.

More promising signs for the Canaries early in their pre-season preparations.

Old Carey SC picked up their first win of 2012, with a deserved 3-1 win away from home at Gibb Reserve.

In windy conditions the Canaries were able to recover from an early setback, conceding in only the third minute, to over run and outplay their Provisional 2 N/W opponents.

After falling behind early due to a defensive mix-up, Old Carey took time to settle into the match and find any kind of fluidity to their game.  It was little surprise, as 6 new names had found their way into the senior squad.

For the first half an hour, the Canaries struggled to retain possession and had done rather well to keep the score at 1-0 .

The complexion of the match was changed by a piece of individual brilliance in the 32nd minute.  Michael did well to earn a free kick 25 years from goal, being brought down after turning his marker expertly.  Mike then took the free-kick himself, and got the ball to dip and curl into the far corner, leaving the Roosters keeper no chance.

Old Carey suddenly looked far more comfortable – and it wasn’t long before the Canaries were a goal to the good.

On the stroke of half time, Old Carey showed just how quickly you can turn defense into attack.  Morris won the ball in his own half, and hit a delightful defense splitting through ball into the path of Richard, who broke clear of the static defence, before unselfishingly rolling the ball into the path of Danny who had the simplest of finishes. 2-1 at the break.

Old Carey commenced the second half where they had finished the first, looking more and more comfortable and confident as the match wore on.

The back four looked increasingly in control of proceedings, comfortably absorbing the Roosters attacks (so much so that Chris Paton didn’t have to make a save in the second half), and retaining possession for prolonged intervals.

A combination of Diego, Joao and Tim took control of the middle of the park, and regularly broke up the midfield play of the Roosters.  Kotsabouikis was able to experiment with his line up, however the changes didn’t upset the balance or the control of the Canaries.

However as comfortable as they looked, Old Carey were still only a goal to the good.

As the match drew to a close , Old Carey created more and more chances.  Alexis planted a diving header wide after an excellent cross from Monty, while Macca hit a volley high and wide after some enterprising wide-play from Michael.  Diego then saw a 35 yard piledriver fly aggonisingly wide as Old Carey continued to push for a third goal.

Michael almost put the ball on a plate for Richard, after he turned his marker and squared the ball to Richard, who had the ball taken of his toes by the Roosters keeper as he shaped to apply the finish – preventing a certain goal.

Old Carey got the third goal their performance deserved with virtually the last kick of the game.  Again Michael was involved, whose left footed shot was well saved by the Roosters keeper; however Richard was on hand to tap the ball into an empty net.

All things considered, an excellent first up performance by the Canaries.