The Devonport Strikers took to the field for the first time in 2012 on Saturday to play in a new tournament hosted by Launceston City at their ground in Prospect. The Mies Family Cup is made up of eight teams, in two groups of four, & is played with 25 minute halves. Each team played two games in their group & the top two from each group played off in the final.

The Strikers were in group 2 with last season’s Premier League champions Prospect Knights, Launceston City 2 & Launceston United. We were drawn to play Knights at 10:30 am & City at 1:30pm.
Youngsters Adam Gorrie, Keenan Douce, Jesse Curran, Daniel McGinn & Matt Griffiths were all part of the 15 man squad & are all just 15 or 16 years old. Each one of these lads held their own with their performances & showed that they are all capable of pushing for senior selection once we get to the season proper.

In the first game, it was clear from the early stages that the Strikers were a far superior team than their opposition. The Knights were heavily undermanned & had several under 18 & reserve players in their squad. This, however, was irrelevant to the Strikers as their aim for the tournament was to use it as another pre-season training session, get some miles in their legs & get plenty of touches of the ball. It was also used as an opportunity to reward the lads that have been working hard since November by giving them an opportunity to show what they had.

Nat Cochrane opened the scoring in the first half when Chris McKenna knocked down a free kick into his path allowing him to beat the Knights keeper in a 1 v 1 situation. The score remained 1-0 until the early stages of the second half when McKenna finished off the Strikers second goal after a quality run from Connor Lizotte.

The players were rotated off the bench at regular intervals due to the heat but there was at no stage a drop off in the team’s performance when these player or positional changes were made.

The third & final goal was scored late in the game when Keenan Douce knocked an inch perfect cross over to Grant Ashdown to poke home from close range.

At the full time whistle the lads were happy with their first up efforts & showed that, despite a weakened opposition, they could retain their structure & work hard for each other.

The second game against Launceston City was almost a carbon copy of the first game! McKenna scored first this time by sliding in at the back post to put away a great cross from Cochrane. This was the only goal of the half dominated by the Strikers.

Half way through the second half Lizotte was on hand to force the games second goal over the line at the back post after one of many well struck corners from Daniel McGinn.
McGinn then turned provider when he squared the ball for Keenan Douce to score his first goal in senior football & finish off the scoring at 3-0.

Again, it was another game where our boys had in excess of 70% of the possession for the match & they managed to stick to their roles & kept their shape well throughout.

These two wins put the Strikers through to the final against coastal rival Ulverstone at 4:15pm. It had been a long hot day & there were certainly plenty of weary legs amongst the players from both teams which meant the game didn’t reach any lofty heights.

The Strikers went in to the final with 13 players with Lizotte unavailable for the game & McKenna rested. The standard of the game was clearly higher than any other played in the tournament with these two teams having the strongest squads on show.

McGinn & Douce played as dual strikers & were looking menacing yet were unable to craft a clear opening to score. Defensively the lads were looking in complete control as they had been all day & on the odd occasion where Ulverstone attempted a fast break it was mopped up comfortably.

Curran & Chilcott were teaming well together in the middle of the park & were able to feed wide men Cochrane & Ashdown on a regular basis. At times the way the boys knocked the ball around, especially in the second half, was first class & another positive sign from the day.

Neither team was able to trouble the scorers in the 50 minute game which meant a penalty shootout would be required to decide who the inaugural champions would be.

Striker’s goalkeeper Matt Griffiths hadn’t had to make a single save from any of the three games so this would be his first chance to shine for his team, and shine he did! The Strikers youngsters weren’t scared to put their hands up to take penalties in the shootout either which shows their confidence & ability.

Shootout details………..
Ulverstone – Ben Foote – missed – skied over the crossbar

Devonport – Grant Ashdown – scored – As reliable from the spot as ever. Sent keeper the wrong way

Ulverstone – Joel Stone – scored – Very nearly saved by Griffiths who pushed it onto the post only to see it dribble over the line behind him

Devonport – Jesse Curran – scored – expertly dispatched into the keepers top left corner. Unstoppable

Ulverstone – Adam Conkie – scored – sent Griffiths the wrong way

Devonport – Daniel McGinn – scored – sent keeper the wrong way again

Ulverstone – Shaun Conkie – saved – Griffiths dived to his left & saved comfortably!

Devonport – Adam Gorrie – scored – Gorrie confidently scores the decisive penalty by sending the Ulverstone keeper the wrong way.

So the Devonport Strikers won 4-2 on penalties & captain Kamil Douglas collected the silverware for a job well done by all the lads involved.

With team structure, rather than scores or results, being the key to the day, it was a job very well done by the whole squad & it gave coaches McKenna, Darren Chilcott & Andrew Meldrum an idea of what the lads may be capable of if they continue to work hard.

Congratulations on a fine victory!!

Strikers Squad:
Adam Gorrie, Bradley Chilcott, Chris McKenna, Connor Lizotte, Daniel McGinn, Grant Ashdown, Jesse Curran, Jordan Douce, Kamil Douglas, Keenan Douce, Matt Griffiths, Nat Cochrane, Nathan Gratton, Scott Wilson & Simon Wilson

The biggest game of the 2011 season to date was upon our boys as they travelled to Launceston to take on reigning back to back premiers Northern Rangers on Saturday.
Ground conditions were surprisingly good considering the recent wet weather Northern Tasmania has been hit with. Rangers won the toss & from the opening kickoff looked to take the ascendancy and, to their credit, that’s exactly what they did.
With Rangers dominating possession & looking solid defensively, the early signs weren’t great for the Strikers. Rangers were the first to score when, after receiving a free kick from a Kieran Mulraney foul on the left wing, Todd Hingston rose to head the incoming cross &, when the ball rebounded off the upright, Hingston was first to react & volleyed the ball into the net.
The Strikers were battling hard & were able to create a few half chances mostly from set plays but they were unable to open their scoring account for the day. The boys were dealt a hammer blow when, on the stroke of half time, Rangers doubled their lead when Patty Lanau-Atkinson was left unmarked at the far post to tap into the empty net after a strong run from Chris Hunt.
Going in at the interval at 2-0 down, coach Tom McGinn was disappointed with not only the score line, but the effort his team were putting in. He encouraged the boys to show some pride in the second half &, if they did so, a win wasn’t out of their reach. McGinn also made several changes to try to throw out Rangers rhythm.
It took just two minutes of the second half for the Strikers to peg a goal back & begin their fight back. The move of Nathan Gratton into the centre of midfield paid immediate dividends when, after a winding attacking run through the middle of the park, he played an inch perfect through ball to Jordan Douce whose first time cross into the 18 yard box was met well by Chris McKenna who headed into the top corner to give the Strikers a lifeline. This gave Devonport a great deal of confidence and they continually put the Rangers backline under pressure for long periods. With the boys needing a result and pushing numbers forward, this left them vulnerable at the back & Rangers capitalised when Andrew Nicholson was tripped in the box with 25 minutes remaining gaining his side a penalty. Hingston stepped up & sent Ryan Keep the wrong way and restored the two goal buffer for the home team.
Despite this goal, the Strikers didn’t drop their heads & continued to pressure the Rangers defence & when substitute Daniel McGinn volleyed home from 12 yards with 8 minutes remaining, a frantic finish to the game was assured.
McKenna & Mulraney both had chances to score in the dying minutes but unfortunately for the boys the final whistle beat them & a heartbreaking 3-2 loss was the final result.
With one game remaining in the league season, the boys will be desperate for a win against Prospect Knights to firstly secure a home final but, more importantly, if Rangers drop points in their final game against Ulverstone, this could allow the Strikers to become league champions.
Good luck to Tom & the team!

Emotions were high as the Strikers prepared to face their nearest coastal rival in the last league game of the season at Valley Road. Sadly, Strikers Life Member & vice president Paul Bubb passed away suddenly early in the week leaving everyone involved with the club in a state of shock.
Tom McGinn did his best to get the boys focussed on the game as they looked to continue their championship bid. The game started without much goal mouth action although the home side were dominating possession.
At the 30 minute mark, Strikers’ captain Chris McKenna gave his team the lead when he controlled well & drove the ball into the far corner of the net from a tight angle. Despite their dominance, the Strikers were unable to add to their lead prior to the half time interval.
Devonport stepped it up a gear after half time & it seemed only a matter of time before more goals were scored. Surprisingly, it wasn’t until 60 minutes in that the lead was doubled when McKenna was again on hand to put the ball into the net when the ball was crossed to him at the far post.
Another display of poor discipline from Ulverstone’s Joel Stone saw him sent off after 70 minutes & he was lucky not to have been dismissed earlier for persistent infringement of the rules. This effectively ruined any chance of an Ulverstone fight back and only increased Devonport’s dominance of the game.
McKenna scored his third when he outjumped his marker & headed past the Ulverstone keeper. This gave McKenna his fourth consecutive hat trick & secured a comfortable three nil victory for his team.
The club should be very proud of the way they handled themselves after such a sad start to the week. Paul will live on in our memories for many years to come & we will be eternally grateful for his dedication & hard work which has gone a long way towards making our club so successful.
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PLAYER OF THE MATCH: Chris McKenna

Swing the night away at the Devonport Soccer Club
to the music of Billy Whitton and the Swingin’ Hepcats.
Great fun for all ages. Refreshments will be available.

SATURDAY 30 JULY
8.00 — 11.00pm Move & Groove with the Swingin’ Hepcats

Devonport Soccer Club, 34—44 Lovett St., Devonport

Full $15, Concession/Member $12

Bookings preferred, (03) 6420 2900 or www.decc.net.au

Door sales available on the night (unless sold out prior to the event)

For more information on other events, go to http://www.devonportjazz.com/

Senior match report – Valley Road, Devonport

Saturday July 16, 2011

The Strikers were again at home on the weekend coming up against Riverside Olympic. It has been a somewhat difficult season for Olympic, who have been heavily hit with injuries throughout their season. Tom McGinn & his team were more than aware that the visitors still had plenty of quality in their squad & a tough encounter would be ahead of them.

The Strikers hit the lead early in the match, through an unlikely source, when defender Kamil Douglas nipped in at the back post to head home a long throw from Scott Wilson which was flicked on by Strikers captain Chris McKenna. Five minutes later the lead was doubled when Jordan Douce’s pace caused problems for the Olympic defence. Douce drew the goalkeeper & then squared the ball from the touchline to McKenna who struck it into the empty net from 8 yards.

The Strikers continued to dominate the remainder of the first half, but, the Olympic back line did well to prevent any increase to the score before the interval.

Again, just like the previous week’s game against Burnie, the lads went in at half time with a 2-0 margin which could have easily been more. Confidence was high amongst the team, and they were keen to try to match their second half performance from the previous game, where they put five second half goals away.

Robert Macdonald scored around ten minutes into the second half when he placed the ball past the keeper after the Olympic defence was pressured into conceding possession by Bradley Chilcott & McKenna played Macdonald in to score.

McKenna then scored his second & third goals of the match in quick succession. The first came from a quick switch of play from Wilson which McKenna controlled & volleyed in from 18 yards. The second came after a strong run by Kieran Mulraney, who cut the ball back where McKenna was waiting with his back to goal, after a quick turn he drove home the Strikers fifth of the game.

The next goal was similar to the previous one but, instead of shooting, McKenna laid the ball back to Douce & he despatched the ball with precision into the top corner from 15 yards giving the keeper no chance.

Next it was Bradley Chilcott’s turn to add his name to the goal scorers list. Douce ran onto McKenna’s switch of play &, with the goal keeper out of position, he squared the ball to Chilcott to score into the empty net.

The eighth, and final, goal of the game came when, substitute, Connor Lizotte played a perfect through ball to McKenna who ran from just inside his defensive half, thus beating the offside calls, and chipped the advancing keeper from about 15 yards on a 45 degree angle. The ball dribbled into the net despite the efforts of the chasing Olympic defenders.

So, all in all, it was a very impressive effort from the Strikers in this game. They put away plenty of chances & were extremely solid at the defensive end with Ryan Keep not forced into making a save in the full 90 minutes.

Just three games remain for the season now &, even though they hold top position by two points on the ladder, the Strikers are fully aware that they could finish anywhere from first to third come seasons end. The games against fellow title aspirants Northern Rangers & Prospect Knights in the last two rounds are obviously crucial, but, equally so the next league game against fourth placed coastal rivals Ulverstone.

This weekend the lads are off to Hobart to take on Olympia Warriors in the Lakoseljac Cup Semi Final. All the best to coach McGinn & his squad & let’s hope they can return with a Grand Final spot!

Under 18 match report – Valley Road, Devonport

Saturday July 16, 2011

The Devonport Strikers hosted Riverside Olympic this week, coming off a 1-1 draw last time the two teams met.

The game started slowly but, before long, Matt Smith was played through as the Riverside keeper advanced and Devonport was unlucky not to get the early goal. Only a few minutes later, the ball was up the other end of the park and after a cross into the box, the clearance was blocked and a Riverside attacker poached a goal to put them up 1-0.

The Devonport boys tried to keep their heads up, but for the next ten minutes it was obvious the intensity had dropped off a little, with a few turnovers coming out of it. With the Riverside outfit playing a reasonably defensive style, the Devonport forwards were getting a little frustrated as they had a couple of near misses on goal.

A blistering shot on goal from Brady Grey just outside the box was just wide of the mark, but it gave the boys a bit of hope going into the back of the first half. Chances continued to come for Devonport, but none were finished well enough. The boys went back into the sheds 1-0 down.

After the break, both teams seemed to have raised the bar slightly, but Devonport looked to almost have the upper hand. With plenty of runs still coming through, many a shot was made by the Strikers with a handful of them missing by the smallest of margins. But the attacking pressure applied meant that Riverside could make a few breaks of their own, once giving Devonport a scare when Matt Griffiths had to come out of his box to save a one on one. Nevertheless, Devonport had the most of the attacking field position but from the numerous shots made, the back of the net still couldn’t be found by either side.

After a solid five minutes of constant attacking pressure from Devonport, the Riverside goalkeeper kicked long and the whistle went for full-time. A good match all-round, but the Devonport boys were unlucky as the match ended a 1-0 win to Riverside.

League 1 match report – Valley Road

Sunday July 10, 2011

Third placed Devonport were looking to get back on the winners list when they played last placed Launceston City X-Factor at Valley Road.

Devonport started well and put the X-Factor defence under pressure from the first whistle. Jesse Embrey gave Devonport lead after 15 minutes and then doubled it soon after.

X-Factor grabbed a goal back before half time to go the break 2-1.

Devonport continued to control the game after half time and the pressure paid off again as the visitors conceded an own goal and when Jesse Embrey completed a great return to form scoring his third goal for the game the result was beyond doubt.

Final score: Devonport Strikers 4 – Launceston City X Factor 1

Under 18 match report – Valley Road, Devonport

Saturday July 9, 2011

As the U18 strikers jogged onto the Valley Road pitch, with two games in a row under their belt and a third victory in the U19 cup, the boys had high hopes to keep up their winning streak against Burnie United.

The Strikers did not get off to a great start as constant turn over’s lead to a free kick given to Burnie United just outside the box, which was scored, as the Devonport keeper was confused by players running in front of him. 0-1 to Burnie.

Even though the score remained the same till half time Burnie was lucky not to concede as good chances to level the score were unluckily squandered by the Devonport front men.

With a new attitude, the Strikers came on in the second half determined to get the win. As the Strikers began to control the game more chances were created and substitute Harshil Singh smashed in a goal from the 6-yard box as the defenders had fumbled the ball. From then on the Strikers began to dominate possession and a few quick short passes near Burnie’s penalty box led to a simple finish for Adam Gorrie allowing Devonport to go in front.

As the game went on Burnie seem to drop their intensity and the Strikers took advantage with Brady Grey volleying in a brilliant cross and giving Devonport a 3-1 lead. The Strikers kept pushing to get more goals and Josh Harris capitalized scoring a goal.

Just before the full time whistle a lack of communication in Burnie’s back line saw Harris again pounce and calmly finish into the back of the net.

Full time score Devonport Strikers 5 – Burnie United 1

Goal scorers: Harshil Singh, Adam Gorrie, Brady Grey and Josh Harris (2).

Match report by Harshil Singh

Under 18 match report – Valley Road, Devonport

Saturday May 28, 2011

Devonport hosted Northern Rangers at home in what was shaping up to be a good game.

In good playing conditions both teams started well. Unfortunately Rangers were a bigger and older squad and soon scored. With plenty of pressure, Rangers found the net another three times in 20 minutes and Devonport found themselves down 4 nil.

We managed to hold of till half time and went into the break disappointed with the score line. After a team talk and cool down we started the second half, Devonport shaped up well and started playing good football and managed 2 goals and could have scored again but were called offside.

With the majority of possession we were unlucky not to draw the game but the 90 minutes came too quick and Devonport went down 2-4 in a close finish.

Goal scorers were Josh Harris and Jordan Mansour

Report by Jack Dance

Senior match report – Valley Road, Devonport

Saturday July 9, 2011

Saturday’s game saw the Strikers looking to extend their winning streak to ten games against the visiting Burnie United team at Valley Road. When the two teams clashed back in April, it was the Strikers who were victorious 2-1 after fighting back from being a goal & a man down when Luke Burton was harshly sent off. This game was also the start of the Strikers current winning streak.

Devonport looked good on the ball in the early stages of Saturday’s game & it seemed only a matter of time before they hit the scoreboard. This came when, after a through ball from Bradley Chilcott, Chris McKenna knocked the ball past the advancing keeper towards the goal & Jordan Douce ran in & put it into the empty net before the Burnie defenders could clear.

Burnie occasionally looked dangerous but, through solid defending, Ryan Keep wasn’t forced into making any saves & was relatively quiet for the half. The visitors’ usual discipline problems were rearing their ugly head yet again & a series of stupid fouls were conceded for late & dirty challenges. The worst of these was when serial offender, Peter Van Ek, was outclassed by Robert Macdonald in front of the clubrooms & resorted to a form of headlock tackle dragging Macdonald to the ground head first! The yellow card was rightly shown for this incident & Van Ek was lucky to stay on the park with many more filthy tackles dished out in the remainder of the game.

The lead was doubled when, after McKenna’s header from a corner was blocked on the line, Kieran Mulraney was on hand to smash the loose ball into the net from just 3 yards out.

The score remained 2-0 at half time & the Strikers were well in control but looking to convert more chances & put a big score past the visitors.

It was pretty much all one way traffic after half time & the Devonport lads transferred their dominance on to the scoreboard which would be pleasing for Coach Tom McGinn.

McKenna scored his first, and the teams third, when he slipped his marker & was left unmarked to head home Douce’s well struck corner about ten minutes into the half. McKenna doubled his tally not too long after when, after two Burnie defenders failed to clear a cross, and he hit a right footed volley into the corner of the net to make it 4-0.

Douce scored a well earned second goal when he outpaced the Burnie defenders before cutting back & driving the ball into the roof of the net from just outside the 18 yard box. Mulraney also scored his second for the game to make it 6-0 before being substituted along with Grant Ashdown & Chilcott.

With two minutes remaining, Burnie scored a consolation goal when, from a dubiously awarded free kick, Ashley Smith flicked on a header into the far corner giving Keep no chance to save.

The Strikers weren’t finished yet & McKenna rounded out his hat trick (and 19^th of the league season) when he again headed in from a Douce corner.

This made the final score an emphatic 7-1 victory for the Strikers & keeps them in the title race for another week.

This weekend sees the boys again at home, this time against Riverside Olympic in another must win match.