Spirited win pushes Phoenix clear on top of division two ladder, Caledonians stun Polonia in division one

A Corey Plug hat-trick has fired Phoenix to their seventh win of the Great Southern Soccer Association men’s division 2 competition, defeating the second-placed Polonia on Saturday afternoon. Plug has been in terrific form scoring 15 goals this season, including a stunning four-goal haul against Royals in round three and a hat-trick in round seven against Rovers. In the top-of-the-table contest both sides struggled to break the deadlock in the early stages, with scores level at the 20-minute mark. But the reliable Plug emerged in the 23rd minute to fire home the opening goal of the match with Phoenix going into half-time 1-0 up. It only took three more minutes after the break for the in-form striker to hit the back of the net again, scoring in the 48th minute. Polonia’s Ross Savage was cautioned for an errant challenge in the 73rd minute but James Naylor popped up in the 82nd minute, dispatching a shot past Phoenix’s goalkeeper. However any chance of an equaliser was quelled shortly after, as the best-afield Plug scored his third for the match in the 90th minute to seal the crucial 3-1 victory. The win pushes Phoenix three points ahead of Polonia on top of the league table. Meanwhile Royals enjoyed a terrific two-goal second half to defeat Rovers 3-1, notching their second win of the season as Jonathan Masing and John Billy Liu hit the scoresheet. In the other men’s division 2 fixture, Bayswater’s Jack Ditchburn netted a hat-trick in their comfortable 3-0 win over Caledonians. In the men’s division 1 competition, Caledonians stunned Polonia to pull off an unlikely 2-1 upset on Saturday night to hand the top side just their second defeat of the season. After a 3-1 loss to Rovers in round one, Polonia have been in scintillating form, winning eight consecutive matches to be on top of the ladder. Polonia’s Liam Murdock netted a goal but Caledonians’ Levi Clay and reliable goal scorer Calvin Bosch hit back to help their side secure a 2-1 win. Elsewhere, Rovers’ Michael Draper continued his excellent goal-scoring form by putting two past Royals in their dominant victory. Royals’ Jonathan Masing scored a late second-half consolation goal but it made little difference to the 6-1 result. The win puts Rovers within a point of league leaders Polonia with both sides set to do battle in a top of the table clash in the next round of fixtures. In the final division 1 fixture, Denmark’s Nicholas Bahr-Pike and Sam Jackson both scored early in the first half to help their side emerge 2-1 winners over Bayswater. In women’s division 2 games played on Friday night, Denmark C prevailed over Denmark D in a 4-2 win and Rovers finished 4-0 winners against Grammar.