Four games in this special edition Team of the Midweek (TOTMW?) sees us select a condensed 11 players for an all-star starting line-up of the best performers from the Round 20 games over the last two days.
***
GK: Chris May (Melbourne Knights)
There were scenes from the away support as May stepped up in extra time to block McCormick’s spot kick to salvage a point for the Knights. Up to that point he had also played an immense game, pulling off a bunch of saves to bail his defence out on numerous occasions.
CB: Roddy Vargas (Green Gully)
Used all his nous and experience to thwart South’s advances for the best part of 90 minutes. Would be devastated that Lujic scored the winner, as up to that point the veteran had his measure, frustrating the striker.
CB: Jack Webster (Bentleigh Greens)
There are games where the Webster and Topalovic combination works so well in unison that one or the other could make Team of the Week. It’s Webster this time, as besides his defensive performance in keeping away the Knights for the majority of the contest, he scored a collector’s item goal, which, funnily enough, came after Topalovic’s dribble in the box that eventually saw the ball land his centre-back partner.
CB: Gregory Lombardo (Northcote City)
A clean sheet away from home against Heidelberg City is no easy feat, but the result was in no small part down to Lombardo’s efforts at the back, with the centre-half putting in a focused effort against the might of the Bergers’ attack.
CM: Stephen Hatzikostas (South Melbourne)
Back from knee surgery, the midfielder has had no time to ease his way back into the XI, forced to slot in during an intense title race. He put in a hard-working shift against Green Gully on Tuesday, doing everything he could to help fight for the win.
CM: Brendan Elmazovski (Dandenong Thunder)
It was Elmazovski’s long distance strike that found the back of the net and looked like it could give Dandenong a long overdue win. Unfortunately, there was to be no fairytale against Paco, but Elmazovski is duly noted for his endeavours in the middle of the park in trying to lead his team through a relegation battle.
CM: Aaron Ward (Northcote City)
Nominated by the club for his endeavours throughout Northcote’s win, Ward was ever-present in the midfield, winning and distributing the ball with aplomb.
CAM: Joseph Youssef (Pascoe Vale)
It’s been quite the week for the Pascoe Vale. He backed up his goal against North Geelong with the winner against Dandenong Thunder, leading by example in a run of form that sees the club currently sit in fifth spot on the ladder.
RF: Leigh Minopoulos (South Melbourne)
An excellent showing by Minopoulos, who worked hard all game to get the ball in the right spot for his teammates. Delivered a peach of an assist for Stirton’s first goal, and then played the ball to Lujic for the winner.
CF: David Stirton (South Melbourne)
A welcome return to form for Stirts in his stint on Tuesday with a brace, following a tough season to date. Scored his first with a good finish, while the second saw clever individual work on the follow up from his corner. Played on the left but we’ve had to shift him onto the wing.
LF: Ryan De Vries (Bentleigh Greens)
The Knights’ defence struggled to contain the Kiwi, who ran riot on the wing, dribbling past his opponents and getting in behind the defence on a number of occasions. All that was lacking was a shot on goal or a finish from teammates.
