Cardijn First XI Through to the Finals
The Cardijn Open boys entered their last group fixture against Immanuel College knowing that a draw would be enough to secure a top 2 finish and a place in the crossover finals facing one of the top two teams from the North Eastern conference. The Cardijn squad was missing key players Matt Edmonds and Deacon Penn through injury however the squad was stacked with Ethan Nassau, Connor Mather and Zac Peacock from Marcellin keen to contribute to the squad which was wonderful to see.
Immanuel needed a win to progress to the knockout stages, so it was a fiery battle from the first whistle. Cardijn started the stronger of the two with the impressive Charlie Ormsby snatching the opening goal by putting his body on the line in a strong aerial challenge with the opposition keeper, fortunately Ormsby did just enough to get the ball over the line. Scenes of jubilation on the sidelines as coach Josh Partridge, Mr Goode, Mr Puccio and of course Mr Bandiera celebrated in style.
However, it was only a matter of minutes before Immanuel got one back, on the back of a Cardijn defensive error dampening the mood immensely. The back four consisting of the effervescent Ryan Bell and ‘player of the season favourite’ Bailey Horsell at fullback as well as the strong leadership duo of Kobe Rosser and Jay Gatley were otherwise steadfast throughout.
Coach Partridge implemented some tactical changes which included bringing on the Taka brothers who added another level of energy to the game. It didn’t take long for the impactful Tane Taka to get the better of his full-back and whip in a cross which Ormsby connected with, forcing a good save out of the impressive Immanuel keeper. Kian Taka was however Johnny-on-the-spot to tap the ball home from the rebound, before showing a touch of Sam Kerr with a number of extravagant backflips to celebrate.
The lead was restored as the Cardijn boys took the 2-1 lead into the break – deservedly so.
Immanuel came out determined in the second half and it didn’t take long for them to level the scores once again, this time from a well-struck free kick after a Wes Weetra professional foul which left Harry Bolton in goal helpless. Mason Cahill and Connor Mather otherwise helped to make up a robust and reliable midfield three with Dylan Klaassen-Thomas and Ethan Harrington rotating through also.
2-2.
It was an absolute nail-biter with chances at both ends including strayed efforts from T.Taka, Nassau and Ormsby as Cardijn continued their relentless siege on the Immanuel defence. The boys battled hard until the end of the game in typical Cardijn style, putting their body on the line for the team.
It was a tense, nervy finish but the boys were able to hold on and book their spot in the semi-finals.
A truly inspired performance against the top side Immanuel. We now look forward to the semi-final next week against St. Ignatius at Jack Smith Park (West Torrens Birkala).
