Bljedi Bardic's Hat-Trick Leads Richmond County to Week 13 Win
Saturday, March 12
FC Sandžak vs Richmond County FC (2-6)
No goal scorer information provided by FC Sandžak
Division 1 leaders Richmond County FC won, 6-2, over FC Sandzak. Bljedi Bardic earned a hat-trick and MVP honors for his team against a resilient Sandzak side. Mark Shnadshteyn and Dominik Urban both also scored goals for their team with the final one being an own-goal by the home side. Amir Islami and Jonard Kadriu both earned assists as well.
Richmond will host Zum Schneider FC 03 II this coming Sunday. FSC will Borgetto FC on Sunday night.
New York Shamrock SC vs Kelmendi FC NY (5-0)
New York Shamrock SC maintained their pressure on CSL Division 1's top three with a comprehensive 5-0 win over Kelmendi FC NY. The Saturday night match was played in freezing conditions at Randalls Island with both teams struggling to adapt over the 90 minutes.
Joey Aronovsky played an MVP caliber game notching three assists and a goal. Head coach Stu Colbert said he was dangerous every time he had the ball.
The scoring started off quick when right back Leon Aboudi rounded the Kelmendi full back and found Christian Uy with a low cross. The shot was finished confidently under the keeper to make it 1-0. Aronovsky started his own performance assisting Kurt Cameron on two goals before the 30 minute mark. The MVP scored one himself after stealing the ball from a defender and quickly slotting it home, making it 4-0.
The final strike came before the break. Faissal Sanfo tapped in his team’s fifth, again assisted by Aronovsky.
“Really great attitude from the lads tonight in terrible conditions,” said Colbert. “They come out fast and put the game away early.”
Considering the upsets last week, the Rocks now sit only one point behind Borgetto FC for third place in Division 1. The defending champions are still fighting to make up for a slow start to the season last fall. They’ll visit Polonia SC on Sunday morning while Kelmendi visits the struggling Manhattan Kickers.
Sunday, March 13
New York Athletic Club vs Hoboken FC 1912 (0-2)
In a battle between two of Division 1’s top teams Hoboken FC 1912 remained focused. It bounced back from last week’s blowout loss and defeated New York Athletic Club, 2-0, on Travers Island.
Both goals came in the second half. New signing Camelo Rosero held up the ball for James Reed who drove to the end line and crossed for Dante Petrocelli. The shot finished underneath the goalkeeper and into the back netting. About 15 minutes later, Eric Terzer found Dimi Mataras on a pass up who played a clever through ball to Rosero. He calmly finished to make it 2-0.
Overall, Hoboken was able to withstand pressure from NYAC and limited the home side to long range shots. The scoreless first half saw 1912 use fast defensive transitions to get numbers on almost every ball in their end. Offensively though the team only had about four chances on goal in the first 45 minutes.
Hoboken will play Week 14 against fellow New Jersey side Beyond FC on Sunday. NYAC will visit Stal Mielec NY at McCarren Park.
Beyond FC vs Stal Mielec NY (1-3)
No goal scorer information provided by either team
Zum Schneider FC 03 II vs Manhattan Kickers (4-0)
Zum Schneider FC 03 II has two straight wins to start the spring season. The second team to the Eastern Premier Soccer League side downed Manhattan Kickers, 4-0. Conor Pellas had the biggest mark of the night with a goal and assist to his name.
“Overall we played really well and cohesive,” said head coach Lucas Doucette. “That’s two wins and two shutouts to start off the spring season. Big game next week against the top of the table Richmond, hoping to continue the momentum and make a splash at the top of the table.”
The Kickers’ story this season remained the same; shorthanded and struggling to contain opposition. By the time Henry Sherwood Caballero scored in the 40th minute, assisted by Alberto Poleo, the visitors were struggling to keep possession. Head coach Bryan Baracaldo noted that three of his players canceled at the last minute while a fourth played injured, essentially as a decoy.
Zum tacked on three more goals in the second half including an own goal when Adam Wright’s cross was redirected in by a Manhattan defender. Sunny Epochi also scored along with Pellas’ outstanding work in the final 45 minutes.
It wasn’t a perfect week for Zum however. Earlier in the day the first team fell to Lansdowne Yonkers FC, 2-1, in the Manning Cup Final. The organization was hoping to win its first silverware since the 2018-2019 John Kilby Cup. Zum II will be back in action on Sunday night when it visits Richmond County FC on Staten Island. The Kickers host Kelmendi FC NY earlier in the evening.
Borgetto FC vs Polonia SC (5-1)
No goal scorer information provided by Polonia SC
Borgetto FC kept pace in the top three with a 1-0 win over Polonia SC on Sunday night. The snowy weather made sure the match wasn’t the prettiest to watch. But following on last fall’s 7-1 win over Polonia, Borgetto has swept the series and is still in the Division 1 title fight.
The game started as a bath and forth. Matthais Adamek opened the scoring for Borgetto, assisted by Alejandro Bastidas, before Polonia tied it back not long after. After that the game fell away for the Polish side. Timothy Gallagher-de Meij and Angelo Bordenca both scored two goals to re-take the lead and seal the result. Bastidas, Meij, and Alexis Santa all earned assists as well.
Despite both teams being short-handed Borgetto was able to make the most out of what they had. The winning side only had 11 players for the first team game with no subs but was still able to walk away with three points. They’ll visit FC Sandzak, another Division 2 promoted side, this Sunday night on Randalls Island. Polonia will host New York Shamrock SC earlier in the day.
