The Kings Reserve ground has been the venue of many previous clashes between the Magpies and the Hawks, with some emphatic victories recorded by the hosts, including a couple of Cup games. Nevertheless, Hahndorf went into the Cup tie against the favoured Hawks determined to give a good account of themselves.
The early going saw the Hawks get straight into their short passing, possession style of game but the Magpies were quick to harass the hosts and defenders Brendan Kilpatrick, Stuart Thomas, Matt Filmer and the “Swiss Maestro” Sam Putallaz repelled the initial attacks.
cSol Scopazzi, Ben Stewart, “El Capitano” Davd Grant and the ever-reliable Steve Ness patrolled the Hahndorf midfield and they worked hard to dispossess their opponents. The Magpies pounced on a loose Hawks pass and released striker Nathan Roennfeldt who raced down the flank, his pacy run earning the visitors a corner.
Quickly taking the kick, Roennfeldt found Putallaz just outside the penalty area and the Swiss Maestro transferred the ball onto his favoured left foot. The goal beckoned and Putallaz unleashed a tremendous strike that took the barest of touches off a Hawks defender before thundering into the net.
The goal shocked the Hawks and they tried to respond immediately but the Magpies did not give them any space to test out custodian Jarrod Kennedy. Hahndorf pressed forward and almost extended their lead when an attacking throw found Scopazzi and he rounded his marker to shoot from an acute angle, the ball sliding across the face of goal and striking the far upright.
The Hawks answered with a good opportunity but Kennedy made a great one-on-one save. He repeated his exploits soon after, earning a bloodied nose with a terrific stop from close range as the hosts intensified their attack. Grant and Kilpatrick combined to repel a promising move by the Hawks and the Magpie defence gained some respite with Grant moving the ball forward through Ness.
The industrious midfielder exchanged passes with Scopazzi before finding Stewart on the edge of the box and he stuck a solid shot that the Hawks’ ‘keeper saved. A further attacking move saw Roennfeldt and Stewart set up Ness but he blazed his shot over the crossbar. The Magpies paid for their profligate finishing when the Hawks found an equaliser, a fine cross reaching an isolated Hawk at the far post and he drove his header back across goal and into the net.
With parity restored, the two teams exchanged chances as play went end to end. The Hahndorf defence continued to play well and made some timely interceptions to deny the hosts the scoring opportunities their possession warranted. The Magpies too had a few late chances as the teams went into half time on level terms.
Hahndorf went onto the front foot in the opening minutes of the second half with Scopazzi rounding off a good move but his docile strike at goal was easily saved. The Hawks wrested back the initiative and enjoyed an extended period of good possession, their persistence rewarded with a long-range goal. Struck from well out on the flank, the lofted shot, which may have been a miss-hit cross, deceived Kennedy to just squeeze under the Magpie crossbar.
Hahndorf answered the goal with a series of attacks but they could not fashion any clear-cut opportunities despite applying pressure in the attacking third of the pitch. Scopazzi maintained his first half form and won many of his midfield battles while Stewart was uncanny in his ability to find an outlet in tight circumstances.
The Magpies wasted a free kick against the Hawks defensive wall and the match became an arm wrestle with a few willing tackles beginning to emerge from both teams. Stewart was a favoured target, his sleight of foot deceiving several Hawks players and the home side accumulated a flush of yellow cards during the match.
With twenty-five minutes remaining, Hahndorf brought on Mitchell Miller to add some pep up front, the youngster keen to add senior goals to his under16 tally. A chance fell to the Magpies but Scopazzi blasted his shot well over the target and soon after Filmer was excellent in defusing a threatening Hawk attack.
A quick free by Putallaz found the substitute out wide and Miller tried his luck from an acute angle but his speculative lob passed over the crossbar. Stewart continued to draw fouls with his dextrous footwork and as the twilight of the match approached, Putallaz fired a free kick high of the target.
Scopazzi and Miller played some neat passes to set up Roennfeldt but the Ruud van Nistelrooy doppelganger found the side netting with his rasping shot. The Magpies continued to search for an equaliser but the ball refused to fall their way in the contested Hawks’ penalty area.
Another fine move involving Miller, Scopazzi and Roennfedlt gave Stewart a chance but the shot lacked the power to find its way past the Hawk’s goalkeeper. With the final minutes looming, the hosts had the chance to put the result beyond doubt but Kennedy produced an incredible double save from close range to deny the Hawks’ forward.
Despite the narrow loss, the Magpies showed tremendous spirit and drive to push their opponents the entire match, the performance auguring well for their form in upcoming league fixtures. Best on the day for Hahndorf was a close run contest with many Hahndorf players raising their game, however taking the honours was Sol Scopazzi for his tenacity and determination. Others with outstanding contributions included Ben Stewart, Sam Putallaz, Jarrod Kennedy and Matt Filmer.
Reserves
On Sunday, the Hahndorf Reserves travelled to the Northern suburbs to take on Macedonia United, the Sunday side currently top of Division 3 and they took advantage of their superior numbers to record an 8-1 win
It was an inauspicious start for the Magpies as they began the match with only nine players present. Macedonia made the most of their two-man advantage to put three goals past the visitors before Hahndorf gained a further player after thirty minutes of play.
Goalkeeper Blake Horton had plenty of work to do for the Magpies along with the rest of the Hahndorf defence, Bob Edwards and Tim Staniford leading by example. Later, another Magpie entered the match but Hahndorf only managed to play with a full complement of players for a further twenty minutes before Luke Jones was forced from the pitch with an injury.
Despite the odds being stacked against them, the visitors put in a creditable performance with young Hamish Vickers showing outstanding class throughout the match and it was he who scored Hahndorf’s goal, making it 4-1 at the time.
The weight of numbers, combined with the large expanses of Macedonia’s pitch, proved too much of a hurdle for the Magpies to overcome and they bowed out of the Cup with the loss. However Coach Bob McIntyre was happy with the effort of the players given the circumstances and singled out Vickers for his Man on the Match performance with Edwards and Staniford also earning plaudits.
Next week sees the return of league action with the Hahndorf Magpies travelling to Birdwood to take on Hills rivals, Torrens Valley.
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