Match report: WCU 6-3 The Casuals 2020
The game:
An early strike, a second half resurgence and a wonder goal wasn’t enough for The Casuals 2020 as Wellington Chin United secured the three points in their 6-3 victory on Sunday afternoon.
The win was both expected and deserved for the Chins given their placing on the ladder, and despite an early scare following Arian Asghari’s second minute goal would rise to dominate the match. That domination would slip slightly throughout the second half as The Casuals got more adventurous but ultimately nowhere near enough for the result to be in doubt.
The goals:
Arian Asghari (Casuals, 2nd minute) An early corner for the Casuals was almost dealt with but Asghari stopped the clearance dead in its tracks. The stiker went one way, fooled a defender, then slammed the ball into the bottom right corner.
Hlwan Ceu (WCU, 12th minute) The Casuals were forced to deal with a period of sustained pressure from The Chins, facing scares such as Cem Nawl’s woodwork shaking strike. But WCU patience would pay off. After multiple minutes of probing, Hlwan Ceu saw a breakthrough at the top right corner of the box and his run would see a shot slide past keeper Joe Foale.
Henry (WCU, 27th minute) A smart one two saw Henry off and away down the left wing and with no one near the flying speedster, The Casuals resorted to bringing him down in the box. It was the clearest penalty you’ll see, and Henry decided to avenge his take down by stepping up himself. Both ball and goalie went left but the keeper wasn’t able to get a hand to it.
Lianku (WCU, 30th minute) A stunning and speedy WCU counter-attack saw the defence scrambling and down the left hand side a cross would come across the face of goal to Lianku. His diving header was spectacular and deserved all accolades, but would sadly be overshadowed by a certain future goal.
Hlwan Ching (WCU, 34th minute) A cheap Casual giveaway saw space open up just outside the box, and Henry’s pass allowed Ching to take advantage of the lack of nearby defence. With no pressure on him whatsoever Ching shot and Ching scored.
Henry (WCU, 41st minute) Foale had the ball at his feet and like any goalie in his position he played the ball out. The only problem was that it was to Henry, the WCU attacker. An audible “Aw, fuck” was heard throughout Boyd Wilson as Henry enjoyed his easiest ever finish.
Jason (Casuals, 64th minute) The corner once again provided for The Casuals. The aerial ball wasn’t touched by anyone first time, but following it’s bounce into the center of the box Jason hit it mid air past WCU keeper Chan Za to double his side’s score.
Zane Parmenter (Casuals, 68th minute) The goal to end all goals. The Casuals were probing the WCU defence for any exploitable breaches yet their opponents were standing firm and any potential paths to goal were under firm blockade. So after Zane Parmenter received the ball a solid 35 yards from goal, the expectation was there for another probing attempt. But instead Parmenter decided to bypass all that and launched an absolute rocket which fell beautifully into the far top corner in what has to be a contender for goal of the season.
Hlwan Ching (WCU, 73rd minute) Any hope of a Casual comeback would be undone just five minutes after Parementer’s wonder strike as Ching would head into the area from the left where he would cooly slot it past Foale with the defence helpless.
The pivotal moment: WCU keeper Chan Za made a habit throughout the match of coming well out of the area, and he was very nearly punished for it. In the 55th minute while outside of the box Asghari would nick the ball from the Chin keeper, and with an empty net the defence pressed the panic button. Asghari laid the ball off to Jason, but the pressure from the defence must have just been enough, as the Casual attacker would miss the target in what was the best failed Casual chance.
The stars:
WCU - Henry The flying winger like usual was on fire. The WCU star was constantly causing chaos for the Casuals and got a deserved brace to go alongside the many chances he created.
Casuals - Arian Asghari While the plaudits will go to Parmenter for his super strike, Asghari was the most consistent threat for the Casuals with his blistering pace and intelligent passing making WCU nervous on more than one occasion.
The comment:
Zane Parmenter, Casual midfielder - “I noticed the keeper was coming off his line and they gave me so much time and space that I decided to give it a crack and it just happened to go top bins. Very pleased with myself. Once in a lifetime experience, definitely enjoyed it.”
The bad boys: N/A
The meaning: This result confirms the general state both sides are on. The Casuals lie ninth sandwiched between fellow three point buddies Inter Galactic and the IBU Vauxhalls. WCU meanwhile remain in the title hunt as they sit third with 15 points. It’ll be tough for them to snatch it though, as second place Tang share the same amount of points but with a game in hand while leaders Man Titty sit on 18.
The future: WCU are on for the first game at Alex Moore next Sunday against the Mandalorians at 10am, while The Casuals catch a break.
The rest:
Mandalorians 3-0 Inter Galactic
Tim’s Boys 10-2 IBU Vauxhalls
Man Titty 6-5 CMP FC