By Charlene Gatt
ALTONA Magic has knocked the Oakleigh Cannons off their perch at the top of the Foxtel Cup ladder after beating Essendon Royals 3-2 on Saturday night.
Essendon’s Francesco Catalano displayed early promise, posting the first goal 20 minutes into the game, but Altona wasn’t prepared to give up with Michael Curcija booting through a much-needed equaliser nine minutes later.
Determined to hit the lead, Curcija put yet another goal away at the start of the second half, followed by another to team-mate Saso Becvinovski with a minute to go.
With his team sitting two goals short, the Royals’ Michael Catalano partially bridged the gap in the dying minute for a 3-2 scoreline.
Meanwhile, the Green Gully Cavaliers have dropped from second to fourth on the ladder after the weekend saw a tremendous shake-up in the top four.
The Cavaliers hit C.B. Smith Reserve in admirable fashion during the first half but were closely tailed by rivals the Fawkner Blues, and a tedious 45 minutes saw the sides retire at 0-0.
Play picked up where it left off in the second term, until a stroke of magic by the Blues’ Ricky Chillico in the 71st minute gave the home team a 1-0 advantage from which the Cavaliers could not work their way back.
Things didn’t look much better at B.T. Connor Reserve, where the Western Suburbs continued with their winless streak with yet another draw.
Western Suburbs trailed the Preston Lions 1-0 as full time approached, before a spectacular last-minute Igor Khrapko goal saved the side from what seemed to be a certain loss.
In other games, Heidelberg United pipped the Springvale White Eagles in a stunning 2-1 come-from-behind victory, Kingston City drew 1-1 with Richmond after an electrifying second half, the Oakleigh Cannons suffered their second consecutive defeat, the score 1-0 against the Melbourne Knights, and South Melbourne sealed the deal in the first half with a 2-1 win over the AIS.
The Whittlesea Zebras and Sunshine Georgies were scheduled to play last night (Monday) after Star went to press.
