It was a midfield masterclass from the Bentleigh Greens who claimed Community Shield honours with a 3-0 rout of 2015 Minor Premiers South Melbourne at Kingston Heath.
All three goals came from behind the front third as Liam McCormick, Wayne Wallace and Troy Ruthven all netted in a clinical second half from the hosts.
The contest was fiery from start to finish, with nine yellow cards and a late red card to Nick Epifano dished out in a heated affair.
Amongst the flying tackles and all-in brawls were half-chances aplenty scattered across the first 45 minutes.
Wallace fired an early snap shot across the face of goals on six minutes, before South Melbourne defender Luke Adams powered a header into the side netting at the other end.
Ryan Paczkowski made his presence felt early, running onto a Luke Pilkington pass before quickly firing off a low effort from the left wing.
South ‘keeper Nikola Roganovic was attentive to the danger and rushed out to meet the shot and deny the Englishman.
The absence of Milos Lujic was felt by the visitors, who offered 17-year-old Andy Kecojevic a start up top, alongside Marcus Schroen who played just behind the youngster.
The makeshift forward looked to collect the ball in deeper areas, and while he put in an industrious shift, was restricted to attempts from long-range.
Kecojevic did well on 39 minutes to wriggle into a pocket of space, but caught his 30-yard effort wrong as the ball bounced clear of the left-hand-post.
Wide-man Epifano was afforded space to run into behind the strikers, enjoying a fruitful half against Bentleigh defender Josh Brindall-South, who had a tough time containing the starlet.
His close control and blistering pace saw him break free of his direct opponent, swinging onto his right foot and testing Ryan Scott on the stroke of half-time.
Matthew Theodore had the final chance of a tame opening stanza, attempting a snapshot on the edge of the 18-yard-area that trickled just wide of the right stick.
The second half saw the two sides flesh out more clear cut opportunities, including the opening goal from McCormick on 49 minutes.
Chris Lucas just a minute earlier had scooped a close-range effort over the bar, with the ball almost immediately sent back into the South Melbourne defensive area.
A little scrap saw the ball break for McCormick who made no mistake, sliding a low shot past Roganovic into the back of the net.
Soon after it was 2-0 as Ruthven hit a pearler of a free-kick into the top left corner, to cap off a superb game he had in the palm of his hands.
It was a cruel reminder of last season’s Grand Final, which saw the midfielder hit a similarly spectacular effort to decide the contest.
Another solid contributor was Scott in goals, who was proving an able replacement for the departed Alastair Bray.
A stunning triple save on the hour mark – twice denying Schroen after initially stopping Kecojevic’s point-blank finish – kept momentum in the favour of the Greens, before Wallace stepped up to effectively kill the game.
The Englishman applied a confident finish to capitalise on Lucas’ expertly timed back-heel to all but secure the result.
Fullback Brad Norton tried the audacious in an attempt to claw his side back in the game, but again Scott came up trumps, clawing his stunning 25-yard effort over the crossbar.
Frustrations eventually boiled over for the losing side as Epifano was sent off in injury time for what appeared to be a lashing out on Wallace.
It ended in a handshake between the two players as Epifano was given his marching orders – the FFV confirming he is free to play in the season opener next week against Heidelberg United.
For the victors, they head into an opening round clash against Bulleen Lions with silverware in their hands and confidence in their stride.
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Bentleigh Greens 3 (McCormick 49’, Ruthven 58’ Wallace 64’) defeated South Melbourne 0 at Kingston Heath [HT:0-0]
Bentleigh Greens: 1. Ryan SCOTT (GK), 5. Jack WEBSTER, 6. Liam MCCORMICK, 8. Wayne WALLACE (c), 9. Christopher LUCAS, 10. Tyson HOLMES, 12. Joshua BRINDELL-SOUTH (11. Dion KIRK 58’), 15. Ross ARCHIBALD (4. Milos RIDESIC 85’), 16. Troy RUTHVEN (3. Nathan TIDMARSH 82’), 22. Ryan PACZKOWSKI (14. Danny CHARALAMBOUS 73’), 24. Luke PILKINGTON
Unused Substitute(s): 21. Kaine PIERCE (GK)
Yellow Card(s): Brindell-South 22’, Archibald 37’, Ruthven 39’, Paczcowski 55’, Wallace 90+3’
Red Card(s): Nil
South Melbourne: 1. Nikola ROGANOVIC (GK), 2. Tim MALA (12. Amadu KOROMA 82’), 4. Michael EAGAR (3. Kristian KONSTANTINIDIS, c), 5. Luke ADAMS, 7. Nick EPIFANO, 8. Matthew THEODORE (14. Chris IRWIN 68’), 11. Brad NORTON, 16. Matthew FOSCHINI, 17. Marcus SCHROEN, 23. Andy KECOJEVIC (77. Steve HATZIKOSTAS 68’), 99. Iqi JAWADI
Unused Substitute(s): 22. Zaim ZENELI (GK)
Yellow Card(s): Schroen 12’, Theodore 24’, Mala 27’, Hatzikostas 78’
Red Card(s): Epifano 90+3’