Three Kings United v. Glenfield Rovers, 050915

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Appeal United's Only Hope After Glenfield Defeat

by Jeremy Ruane

Three Kings United will be hoping the appeal of their thirteen-point deduction for fielding an unregistered player goes their way after they were relegated from the Lotto Northern Premier League on Saturday.

A 2-1 defeat at Keith Hay Park by outgoing champions Glenfield Rovers brought an end to United's six-season spell in the Premier League, unless their appeal regarding the handling of Tom Konusi's transfer back to the club from Auckland City at the end of the ASB Youth League competition ends favourably.

The Northern League's management team certainly hasn't come out of this episode smelling of roses. The issue first came to light in May, when Hamilton Wanderers appealed their 2-0 defeat at Keith Hay Park on the grounds that Konusi wasn't a registered Three Kings United player.

Their appeal was upheld, and before United next played, the transfer of Konusi back to the club from Auckland City was duly recorded on 15 May on the Auckland Football Federation's transfer listings page.

Konusi had played a part in all United's games up to and including the Hamilton encounter, so a retrospective appeal with regard to this was duly submitted. But it took over three months before a ruling was made on this appeal, and when it was announced last month, United dropped from mid-table into the relegation zone, the make-up of the entire league table significantly altered by their loss of points.

Since this verdict was announced, United haven't even won a meat raffle, let alone a Premier League fixture. And fortune was against them in this encounter, as they hit the woodwork three times in a match in which both goalkeepers produced fine saves.

Luck didn't favour either team in this encounter, as they endured a display from referee Cory Mills which … to say this was not the finest hour-and-a-half of his officiating career is being decidedly diplomatic.

Now the blunt version - he had a right royal shocker, and both teams were frustrated beyond belief with his inconsistencies. This was never a ten-card game, but United finished the match with three players booked, and Rovers six, one of whom, Peter Jones, was twice shown the yellow card, with the red following on the second occasion, four minutes into the second spell.

In fairness to the referee, he did get this one spot on. Jones' first booking was for something innocuous, but he had already been spoken to twice, so was walking the disciplinary tightrope. His second yellow was sheer stupidity - following through after the ball had gone and having lost possession in the process.

When you see players from both teams surrounding the referee at half-time seeking clarifications about certain decisions, you know there's a problem. Generally, Mr Mills didn't enhance the game with his efforts, and the lack of certainty re what was and wasn't acceptable endeared him to neither side on this occasion.

Glenfield was first to threaten, Joe Edwards getting in behind United's offside trap in the fifth minute before chipping a cross which invited Alex Feneridis to let fly on the volley. United 'keeper, Sacha Nathu, saved well given he was still recovering his position.

The home team responded six minutes later, Dylan Manickum working a one-two with Max Manko before shooting straight at Dave Ellensohn, who produced a fine save low to his left seconds later to keep out a Konusi effort, after the midfielder had gone round Jones to engineer the opening.

In the fourteenth minute, Manko - he led United's attacking line well - held off the challenge of Sam Mathews before releasing Nick Hindson down the left. He cut inside before letting his fly, his shot taking a deflection off Nathan Jury and flying past Ellensohn, only to bounce to safety off the base of the far post.

After Andrew O'Toole had curled one past the far post, Glenfield opened the scoring in the 26th minute. Referee Mills awarded the visitors a free-kick some thirty-five yards from goal, but Chris Bale's delivery was the key to the goal. It caught Nathu out of position, and the retreating goalkeeper could only help the ball on its way into the net.

United were still reeling from this blow when O'Toole played in Edwards behind the offside trap five minutes later. Nathu raced out of his goal and cleared off the toes of the speedster as he approached the penalty area.

After Jones and the solidly performed Tommy Webb had combined to deny Konusi, both goals came under threat in the 41st minute. United captain Harrison Nash directed a volley straight at Ellensohn, who promptly launched the ball downfield, where Bale judged the bounce better than two Three Kings defenders, only to guide his volleyed lob into the grateful hands of Nathu.

Right on the stroke of half-time, Glenfield should have doubled their advantage. Bale swung a corner over to the far post, where Jones rose high to head the ball inside for Feneridis. He somehow volleyed over from inside the six yard box - by his standards, a bad miss.

And one which United's tireless midfield toiler, Marshall Gurney, so nearly punished just seventy seconds into the second half with a wickedly struck twenty-five yard curler which beat Ellensohn all ends up, only to rebound to safety off the far post.

Jones received his marching orders shortly afterwards, but Rovers never missed a beat despite his departure, Bale displaying some nifty footwork to evade two challengers before lashing a shot past the far post within sixty seconds of his team's

numbers being reduced.

The visitors continued to make light of their numerical inferiority over the next few minutes, aided by a wild Scott Wallace corner, the United man inadvertently sparking a Rovers counter-attack.

Mikael Munday - he had a terrific game - was the recipient of the wayward delivery, and he instantly Bale down the left. He raced on, only for the retreating figure of Hindson to cut off his route to goal.

Steaming up in support, however, was Mathews, who, upon receipt of Bale's pass, promptly let fly, forcing Nathu to produce a superb parried save low to his right. Munday's resulting corner was cleared to Mathews, whose fierce drive deflected to safety off Nash in the 53rd minute.

End-to-end action ensued, Ellensohn parrying from Manko - no-one in a teal shirt was following in - before Mathews and O'Toole worked a one-two which culminated in the former being forced wide by Nathu, who was out of position when Mathews finally crossed, his delivery arcing across the face of goal with Bale vainly striving to head home.

Every once in a while in this encounter, referee Mills got a decision spot on, and in the 57th minute the advantage he played following a foul on Wallace allowed Manickum to progress with the loose ball before playing in Manko.

He beat an opponent before producing a shot on the turn which forged a path through the legs of Ellensohn, only to be thwarted by the goalkeeper's rear end as he went to ground. Certainly not an approach you'll ever find in any goalkeeping manual, but effectively nonetheless. And never has a custodian been happier to grab a ball from behind him!

On the hour, another driving run through midfield by Mathews culminated in a lay-off for Bale, who ignored the midfielder as he continued his run through the inside left channel. Instead, he went to the right, where O'Toole delivered a deep cross beyond all bar Edwards, whose return invited Bale to let rip.

Nathu parried this effort to safety, then looked on as United went all out in search of an equaliser as they finally started to make their numerical advantage count. Try as they might, however, they couldn't make it count on the scoreboard.

Manko was unable to guide his header on target from a Gurney cross, while some fine defensive work by Sam Jasper thwarted both Manickum and Konusi after Tim Myers had ignited a counter-attack in the 64th minute.

Ellensohn raced off his line to save superbly at the feet of Manickum two minutes later, while the woodwork intervened once more to Three Kings' chagrin sixty seconds later, Nash's header hitting the bar after a Gurney corner wasn't cleared.

Cue more of Mr Mills' weird and less than wonderful interpretations of reality, as Myers, who had been booked for the softest of fouls in the first half, took out Bale near the touchline in the 69th minute.

It looked to be a certain second booking for United's defensive powerhouse, but to the disbelief of all-comers, he got off scot-free, while Bale was the one who ended up getting a talking-to from the referee … this one well and truly defied logic!

The ten men persevered, and were rewarded for their tenacity nine minutes from time when Bale got the better of Myers in midfield before striding on to batter a twenty-five yarder over the head of Nathu - 2-0, a goal which effectively condemned United to the drop (although in the end, this result mattered not, due to Melville United's defeat of newly crowned champions Eastern Suburbs).

After Nash and Jay Bracken exchanged curling efforts on goal, the home team went desperately close to pulling a goal back in the 84th minute when Manko and Manickum worked a one-two which put the former in on goal with just Ellensohn to beat.

The 'keeper pulled off a splendid blocking save to keep alive his hopes of keeping a clean sheet, but within sixty seconds those hopes were dashed, as Myers headed home a Gurney corner - 2-1.

United piled on the pressure in pursuit of an equaliser, with Manickum flicking on a Hindson cross for Manko in the 87th minute. The striker was denied the chance to head home by the flying figure of Munday, while moments later, Gurney went close once more with another long range curling effort which missed the far post by an ever-decreasing margin.

Quite where the referee found seven minutes of stoppage time from remains to be seen. Two were for the substitutions - thirty seconds each, but there were no other stoppages, so one can only surmise Mr Mills was adding time on for the recording of bookings, the majority of which were avoidable via a combination of consistency and quality communication from the referee, and players simply thinking the game.

When the final whistle sounded, there was obvious disappointment among the Three Kings players, a number of whom have sported the club's colours throughout their midgets and junior days. Their survival hopes hinge on events off the field of play, but as things stand right now, they'll be playing First Division football next season.

United: Nathu; Wallace, Nash, Myers (booked, 23), Greenslade; Konusi (Rathbun, 72 (booked, 87)), Moody, Gurney, Hindson (booked, 88); Manko, Manickum

Glenfield: Ellensohn; Jury (booked, 39) (Hafiskadic, 89), Carpenter (Jasper, 58 (booked, 90)), Webb, Jones (booked, 37, 49 - sent off); O'Toole, Munday, Mathews (booked, 73), Edwards; Bale, Feneridis (booked, 21)

Referee: Cory Mills

Northern League