Newcastle Olympic take on Charlestown Azzurri in Round 13 of the 2026 Northern NSW NPL competition.
Reserve Grade will be looking to record their 9th win of the season in order to reclaim 1st position on the points Table while First Grade their 4th win of the season in an attempt to move away from the relegation zone.
After winning seven games and drawing one from eight matches, Newcastle Olympic Reserve Grade experienced a horror three weeks in which they sustained a 1-0 defeat by Edgeworth Eagles, a 2-1 defeat by Valentine FC and a 4-3 defeat at the hands of Lambton Jaffas!
All this came to an end last week with a 3-1 home victory over Weston Bears in a match which they had to work hard to win. They sit in 2nd spot two points behind Valentine FC!
Charlestown Azzurri sit in 11th position on the table on 3 wins, 5 defeats and 3 draws. In the second-round fixture Olympic had no problem defeating Azzurri by 3-0 and should be favourites to collect the 3 points at Darling St Oval on Saturday. Kick off is scheduled for 12:00am.
Newcastle Olympic First Grade have won once in their last eight outings and sit 3 points off bottom of the table! Although there are 10 games remaining they are in desperate need of points to move away from the bottom end of the points table!
They have won a total of three games all season and one of those was a 2-1 win over Azzurri at Lisle Carr Oval. Azzurri have won one game more but sit on the same points but with a game in hand.
They are a team which is either hot or cold. On their day they can beat the league leaders away (4-2 over Weston) and on a bad day they can lose at home to the bottom team of the league (1-2 by Valentine). This indifference in form was the cause of their coach James Pascoe to walk away from the club and focus on his family.
Hopefully Azzurri can be in the lesser mood on Saturday and Olympic can secure 3 points. Kick off is scheduled for 2:00am but a lot will depend on the amount of rain between now and Saturday.
Newcastle Olympic Reserve Grade returned to their winning ways against Weston defeating the Bears 3-1. Olympic First Grade however lost again by 2-1 against the same opponent.
Newcastle Olympic Reserve Grade put smiles on everyone’s faces with a gutsy 3-1 win over Weston after three successive losses which cost them first place on the points table. Playing in front of their fans at Darling St Oval for the second successive game the boys in blue took control of the match and dictated play.
Without the handicap of players from first grade “playing down”, the midfield trio of Goble-Lote, Harvey and Tsamouras were controlling proceedings in the middle while Zervas, Fitzgerald and Butler were a constant threat up front.
In the 19th minute a through ball by Blake Clifton in midfield to George Tsamouras and a quick one-two with Fitzgerald resulted in a wide pass to Zervas who laid the ball perfectly for Butler to strike it home and open the score for Olympic, 1-0!
A few minutes later Jye King of Weston was allowed to advance unchallenged until outside the box and from there he unleashed a long range shot which the Olympic goalkeeper wasn’t able to even get a hand for a 1-1 scoreline!
In the remaining 20 minutes until half time, an injury to Rhys Butler which caused a reshuffle of players as well as the natural confidence from the equaliser resulted in Weston getting the upper hand.
At half time Olympic swapped both centre halves who were filling in for Phillips and Paksec who were recovering from injury. The team regained control of the game and began to dictate play. With strength and composure at the back, crispy one touch passing in the middle and threatening strikes by their forward line, they were a delight to watch.
As early as the 46th minute a quickly taken short corner by Walshe and Tsamouras resulted in a beautiful cross into the box and with a glancing header by Fitzgerald the score became 2-1. A little while later a magnificent move and a through ball by Tsamouras to Fitzgerald resulted in another goal but this was disallowed as offside!
With the introduction of Steinerts and Petersen Olympic were in complete control and it was only a matter of time before they scored again to secure the result. This came in the 82nd minute when a pass from Fitzgerald found Steinerts on the edge of the box who had little trouble burying the ball at the back of the net with a smashing left drive.
Olympic not only returned to their winning ways but this was done against a strong opponent who fought and competed throughout the match. Despite the win Olympic remain 2 points behind Valentine on the points table but with 10 games remaining, there is plenty of time for them to return to 1st spot.
Newcastle Olympic First Grade misfortunes continued against Weston, going down by 2-1 despite putting up a fight. The boys in blue began well but found themselves behind as early as the 24th minute when Brock Beveridge opened the score for Weston with a long range shot from outside the box!
This lead was short lived as four minutes later a quick counter-attack produced a fine cross from Kale Bradbery and Ben Hays pounced to level the score 1-1. The arm wrestle continued between the two sides and just before half time a routine attack by Weston resulted in Chris Hatfield wrong footing the Olympic goal-keeper to send his side 2-1 into the half time interval.
In the second half Weston tried to score the goal that would secure the three points for them but Olympic fought all the way to try and equalise. The excellent performance by the Weston goalkeeper played a big role at keeping Olympic at bay!
Despite a gusty effort this was Olympics’ second successive defeat at home and it leaves them 14 points from the top and a mere 3 points off bottom spot. Next week they host Charlestown Azzurri and they are in desperate need of the two points to avoid a battle at the wrong end of the points table.
Newcastle Olympic take on Weston Bears at Darling St Oval in Round 12 of the 2026 Northern NSW NPL Men’s competition. Reserve Grade kick off at 1:00pm on Sunday 17th May 2026 while First Grade kick off at 3:00pm.
Reserve Grade go into the second half of the season having won 7 games, drawn 1 and lost 3 and sitting in second spot on the table, 2 points behind Valentine FC. Although this is an envious position to be, given they have lost their past three games in succession, they could have been in a lot better position!
Although they have no problem in attack, having scored 26 goals in 11 matches, their otherwise rock-solid defence has leaked in 7 goals in the past three matches for a total of 13 for the season!
The team seamed to be going from strength to strength having won all their games and dropping only two points in a midweek catch up game to Adamstown Rosebud in a match during which the match officials dished out 10 yellow cards and 1 red!
The momentum of the team appeared to change when first grade players were sent to “play down” in reserve grade to gain some playing minutes. This sometimes created a situation where the players on the bench were stronger than those in the starting the line-up!
The three losses were by 1 goal difference and while it’s not the end of the world, particularly at the halfway mark of the season, a return to their winning ways will be a welcomed sight on Sunday.
Weston is in 6th place on the table with 5 wins, 1 draw and 5 losses. They didn’t begin the season well losing 1-0 to Olympic but managed 4 wins in their past 5 games. They were completely dominated by league leaders Valentine FC by 3-0 and will not be coming to Darling St to repeat their loss.
Given that Olympic also are coming from 3 consecutive losses both teams will have something to prove on Sunday afternoon.
Newcastle Olympic First Grade have not had a good first half of the season having won only 3 matches, drawn 4 and lost 4! They are in 7th spot on the table 2 points outside the top five but also 3 points from second last spot!
Apart from a 6-1 triumph at Valentine FC two weeks ago they have had little to be happy about for some time! Inconsistency and better finishing in front of goal are the ingredients required in the second half of the season.
A few consecutive wins could turn an ordinary season to a promising season with the team within reach of making the finals. Alternatively, if they continue being unable to win for a little longer, they could find themselves battling at the wrong end of the points table.
Weston arrive at Darling St Oval in second place on the points table after leading the competition for most of the season! A 2-2 home draw at the hands of Edgeworth and a shock 2-0 loss at the hands of Valentine have knocked them off their perch and they will want to secure the 3 points on Sunday to return to their winning ways.
Will Olympic find a way to score against Weston and record their first win in the second half of the season and fourth overall or will Weston put the disappointing results of the past two weeks behind them by Olympic to the sword?
Newcastle Olympic crash out to Lambton Jaffas in the last game of the first half of the 2026 NPL season of Northern NSW! Reserve Grade lost their third successive game of the season 4-3 while First Grade were defeated 2-0 at Darling St Oval.
Newcastle Olympic Reserve Grade made it a trifecta in losses and dropped from first spot on the table to second after a 4-3 loss in front of a full house at Darling St Oval! Olympic began the match in almost a hypnotic pace conceding in the 3rd minute and the 22nd minute before kicking into gear.
Without regular centre halves Andrew Paksec and William Phillips and goalkeeper Ryan Reid the Olympic defence conceded goals they normally avoid. The first came from poor marking and not being on the goal side of the opponent after a sustained attack by Jaffas and the second from an inability to be first to the ball and clearing a cross!
At 2-0 down the team kicked into gear from their trance like tempo and began to press their opponent. The boys in blue began to play with greater intensity and aggression and by the 36th minute brought the score back to 1-2 through a nice goal by midfielder George Tsamouras.
Half time found them trailing 1-2 and with a shots-on-goal ratio of 7-5 to Olympic.
The second half belonged to Olympic with the team dominating possession and dictating play. The warning signs of what was about to happen came as early as the 49th minute when a well drilled and curling shot by George Tsamouras from the edge of the box went slightly over the bar.
In the 52nd minute an interception by Nikolai Zervas on the edge of the box to a suicidal pass across the face of goal by Lambton Jaffas resulted in a great shot and a 2-2 scoreline! The smiles returned and the momentum in the team indicated that this game was certainly not over yet.
In the 55th minute a defence splitting ball by George Tsamouras into Jess Fitzgerald inside the box resulted in Nikolai Zervas finding himself facing an empty goal but he shot over the post!
In the 59th minute a well worked move on the right by Lucas Walshe and George Tsamouras and a cross by the later found Nikolai Zervas in the far post who had no problem firing the ball into the net for a 3-2 lead! Although the goal was allowed to stand, the linesman signalled a foul on a Jaffas defender by Lucas Walshe in the lead up and the goal was disallowed. The decision was probably correct but given the number of heavy tackles that were waved as “play on” during the game, this was against the grain of play!
In exactly 1 minute latter the outstanding Jaffas goalkeeper, Ethan Lewis, was tested again by Olympic when a nice through ball by George Tsamouras to Lucas Walshe resulted in a stinging curling shot which was tipped around the post for a corner. A well flighted deep corner by George Tsamouras to the far post which was headed down by Blake Clifford and into the path of Lucas Walshe resulted in an unstoppable shot and 3-2 was now on the scoreboard. In 40 minutes Olympic turned a 2-0 deficit to a 3-2 lead!
Olympic continued to dominate play and looked very comfortable on the ball and with their lead. During a routine attack by Jaffas and a cross from the left, not marking the opponent goal side, resulted in a lone Jaffas attacker connecting with the ball and despite being surrounded by five Olympic players, bringing the game to 3-3!
In the remaining 18 minutes Olympic peppered the Jaffas goal for the winner but without success. In the 90th minute the decision of the Olympic goalkeeper to come off his line to intercept an opponent who was being shadowed by an Olympic defender resulted in the later to fire from distance, catch the keeper out and instead of a 3-3 draw, enabled Lambton Jaffas to walk away with a 4-3 win!
The calamitous errors in defence and poor finishing up front are the main characteristics of this game. The “engine room” – midfield contributed to a 23 to 11 shots on goal ratio for Olympic but of these 23 shots, only 9 were on target!
The end of the first half of the season finds Olympic in 2nd spot on the table, 2 points behind league leaders Valentine FC. This is disappointing given that they have led the competition for most of the season! Despite this, they are certainly in contention for the Premiership and with a little more consistency should return to their winning ways.
Newcastle Olympic First Grade were hoping for a winning result after their 5-1 triumph at Valentine the previous week but it wasn’t to be against a very disciplined Lambton Jaffas.
Both teams began the match evenly with both trying to find ways to open the scoreline but it wasn’t until the 27th minute when Drew Patterson from Jaffas side stepped his opponent inside the Olympic box and sent in an unstoppable curling shot into the Olympic net.
At half time Jaffas were 1-0 up and were narrowly ahead 8-7 on the shots on goal ratio.
In the second half the arm wrestle continued until the 57th minute when a move by Archie Finn and Jospeh Langlois resulted in Sam Donnellan finding himself with only the keeper to beat and having no problem raising the score to 2-0.
Olympic continued to go forward but after 15 shots on goal, of which only 3 were on target, and 6 corners, they were unable to break the Jaffas defence.
This defeat leaves Olympic 2 points off 5th spot on the points table and 3 points from second last spot at the halfway mark of the season. Their next opponent is Weston Bears who sustained a 2-0 humiliating home defeat, as league leaders, at the hands of Valentine FC.
Newcastle Olympic recorded their 3rd win of the season defeating Valentine 6-1 while Reserve Grade recorded their 2nd successive loss of the season, going down by 2-1.
Newcastle Olympic Reserve Grade went into this game as league leaders with a 4-point gap from second placed Valentine FC. The game certainly lived up to expectations and despite having double the number of shots on goal, the boys in blue sustained their second successive defeat of the season!
Without star midfielder River Peterson who was unavailable for this match and George Tsamouras covering the left back position, two thirds of the “engine room” was again not there! Although the game started well with both teams attacking and cancelling each other out, a poor judgement by Olympic goalie who came off his line to collect a routine ball but didn’t get there, enabled a Valentine attacker to steal the ball and fire into an empty net for a 1-0 lead in the 14th minute!
The problem with Olympic was their inability to win the ball in midfield, dominate possession and impose their game on the opposition! When they did get the ball the constant use of the long ball by Brody Taylor was ineffective! When Olympic failed to close down Valentine in midfield and a through ball was placed on one of their attackers, the decision to track him down on the wrong side by an Olympic defender enabled the later to fire a shot and put Valentine 2-0 up by the 18th minute!
With the luxury of a 2-0 cushion and the absence of an Olympic midfield which could win the ball and thread their way through with crispy passing, Valentine cruised their way to half time without any trouble. Any ball above the ground and long was being handled with ease. The 5-3 shots-on-goal ratio to Valantine is a statistic which told the story and a statistic which we have not been accustomed to seeing by this Olympic team this season!
At the start of the second half Blake Clifton replaced Oliver Steinerts and took his place in attack, sending Rhys Butler to play as an attacking midfielder. The use of the long ball continued and the frustration in the players began to build-up as the desire was certainly evident but the method of play was wrong!
In the 54th minute Brody Taylor was guilty of a reckless tackle which the referee correctly punished with a straight red, the second red in the past month by the same player, and Olympic were reduced to 10 players for the remaining 35 minutes!
Clifton was brought back in defence and Tsamouras was sent into his customary midfield role. The impact from this change was immediate. The midfield began to control possession and the short passing game began to replace the use of the long ball. Olympic players began pressing their opponents and forcing errors and retreat!
Olympic players appeared first to the ball and the warning signs of a come-back were evident when George Tsamouras saw a deflected shot go on the wrong side of the post followed by another shot by Jesse Fitzgerald just over the cross bar. From the ensuing goal kick, Tsamouras won the header in midfield, the ball bounced once and into the path of Fitzgerald who ran into the box and as he was about to shoot, was cut down for a penalty!
Jess Fitzgerald made no mistake from the penalty and Olympic brought the game back to 2-1 in the 66th minute. Valentine tried to break Olympics’ momentum with time wasting “injuries” but to no avail.
Liam Craig came on for William Phillips in the 67th minute, taking over as a left full back. Olympic continued to press Valentine all over the field forcing them to retreat inside their half to defend their lead and looking for the quick counter-attack as their only option.
This was the best period of the game for Olympic and if they had started the match playing with this formation and tempo, perhaps the result may have been different. It was also a great game to watch with one team throwing everything at the opponent to force an equaliser and an opponent soaking up pressure and looking for the counter attack to score their third goal to kill off the game.
In the 74th minute a mid-air collision between Liam Craig and a Valentine opponent left the Olympic player with a head injury which meant he had to be replaced after only being on the field for 7 minutes. This brought Kai Zervas into the game and further internal positional swapping.
The arm wrestle between the two teams continued until the final whistle with the best chance falling to Jesse Fitzgerald in the 86th minute. Despite the efforts of both sets of players the score remained 2-1 in favour of Valentine FC. The final 13-7 shots on goals ratio in favour of Olympic and 10-1 corner count is indicative of how much better the team played in the 2nd half despite playing with one player short for 35 minutes!
Olympic remain in 1st place on the table despite two successive defeats but now only with a slender 1 point difference from second placed Valentine FC. They face Lambton Jaffas at Darling St Oval in the game that marks the half way mark of the 2026 season.
Newcastle Olympic first grade treated it’s fans to a 6-1 demolition of Valentine FC who never looked capable of getting anything from the game!
After being eliminated by Valentine FC in the Cup earlier this season, Newcastle Olympic had an extra reason to want to obtain the 3 points from the Croudace Bay Complex.
Jared Muller opened the score in the 18th minute on his 100th game for the club but Valentine were quick to bring the match level in the 32nd minute through Myles Gaffrey. Wil Southcombe scored a beautiful goal in the 41st minute to take Olympic with a 2-1 lead into the half time interval. A 7-6 shots on goals ratio in favour of Olympic at half time didn’t provide any indication about what was to follow in the final 45 minutes of the game.
Kale Bradbery scored a hat trick in the opening three minutes of the second half to extend Olympics’ lead to 5-1 and put the game beyond the reach of the home side! Yuhei Sato scored Olympics’ 6th goal two minutes before the end to complete the teams biggest win of the season.
A 17-1 shots on goal ratio to Olympic showed the dominance of the side which gave them only their 3rd win of the season and 6th place on the points table.
Newcastle Olympic was unable to collect the 3 points against Edgeworth Eagles in the Round 9 fixture of the 2026 Northern NSW NPL competition! Reserve Grade sustained their first defeat of the season, going down 1-0, and First Grade played out a 3-3 draw.
Olympic Reserve Grade began the match with a bench that was stronger than the starting 11 due to First Grade players “playing down” for yet another week! The 8-5 shots on goal ratio at half time is indicative of the way the game was played. Edgeworth set up to ensure they kept Olympic away from their goal mouth. In the 31st minute they won a penalty which they were successful in converting into a goal. From that moment they played with even more determination to simply keep Olympic out.
With 2/3 of Olympics’ midfield on the bench, the engine room of the team was absent and the front players were provided with only a mere 8 goal scoring opportunities to equalise. Despite the efforts of the First Grade players playing down, the domination in possession and the crispy passing we are used to seeing from this team was absent. Defensively, Olympic were not threatened but without dominating in the midfield, Edgeworth were not troubled with their game plan of keeping Olympic out.
In the second half, with the introduction of the Reserve Grade players who normally play, possession improved and the shots on goal ratio improved to 12-6, Olympics’ way. Olympic squeezed their opponent and created chances to equalise but Edgeworth were able to hold out. A single flash of brilliance from one of the front players could have brought about an Olympic goal which could have turned the game around but it was not meant to be.
This was Olympics’ first defeat of the season but coupled with the defeat of second placed Valentine at the hands of Charlestown Azzurri, they still maintain a 4 point lead in first place. Next week will be the game of the season so far when they meet Valentine away!
Olympic First Grade came to within a whisker of recording their 3rd win of the season but conceded an equalizer in stoppage time for yet another draw!
Both teams began the game at a very fast pace with Olympic drawing first blood after Jared Muller was fouled inside the box and the referee awarded a penalty kick. Kale Bradbery took the spot kick and despite an initial save from the Edgeworth goalkeeper the Olympic forward was able to score from the rebound.
The Eagles equalised in the 16th minute when Aaron Niyonkuru received the ball in a crowded Olympic box and had no problem tapping into an empty Olympic net! By the 22nd minute a piledriver from distance by Stefan Cordwell made the score 2-1 in favour of Edgeworth! At half time the shots on goal ratio was 8-7 in Edgeworth’s favour and this showed how close the game was being contested.
Olympic began the second half with greater intensity and hunger and they were rewarded with a long range effort by Lachlan West in the 61st minute who left the Edgeworth goalkeeper standing like a statue! By the 73rd minute Nathan Toby added Olympics’ third goal of the night and at 3-2, the Olympic faithful began to believe that they were in for a win over a great rival.
The arm wrestle between the two teams continued until the 90th minute but in stoppage time, the Olympic goalkeeper attempted to punch a crossed ball and simply pushed it into the path of an on coming Edgeworth forward who had no problem burying it into the net for a 3-3 draw!
The result puts Olympic on equal 7th place, 5 points outside the top 5 and 4 points from bottom spot!
Newcastle Olympic returned from Round 8 of the 2026 NPL competition in Belmont with a draw and a win. Reserve Grade won their 7th game of the season to return with a 4-2 win while First Grade secured a 2-2 draw.
Newcastle Olympic Reserve Grade recorded it’s 7th win from 8 games and has extended itself 4 points clear in first place on the table from it’s nearest rival! The difference in strength between the two teams was enormous and Olympic should have won by a higher scoreline.
Olympic were handicapped with three first grade players “playing down” in this match and this meant a line-up which was slightly different to the norm of previous games. Olympic began threatening but a harmless ball in the 3rd minute of play was not cleared by Jye Rodway, who appeared to stumble over the ball and resulted in a Belmont forward collecting the ball and burying it into the visitor’s net!
Olympic dominated play and created chance after chance. In the 24th minute Lucas Walshe received the ball outside the box and leaned back and sent a curling shot to the top left hand corner to bring the game back to 1-1! By the 37th minute Jess Fitzgerald made it 2-1 with an unchallenged header from inside the six yard box! By the 44th minute the same player made it 3-1 with a simple tap in from a Kane Treble cross.
At half time the domination of play by Olympic was such that it was hard to believe the teams were of the same division! The shot-on-goal ratio of 17-2 to Olympic gives an idea of just how dominant they were in the first 45 minutes of play.
Olympic continued to dominate play in the second half but also not finish off the moves created to add to the scoreline! A lobbed ball from deep by Belmont resulted in a winger receiving the pass and outpacing an Olympic defender, reduced the score to 2-3! Olympic continued to control the game but the 4th goal that would kill off the game just wouldn’t come.
In the last 10 minutes Olympic dropped, Belmont picked up and in the second last minute of play, the team which had dominated play so much were wrestling in the corner flag with the ball to chew up the clock! Jason Goble-Lote tapped in the 4th goal of Olympic in the last minute of play to secure the 3 points and the 7th win of the season.
Olympic had 32 shots on goal to Belmont’s 7 for the duration of the match. Such was the domination but because the substitutions weren’t made based on the needs of the match but on the minutes required by the first grade players, Reserve Grade almost paid the price!
Despite this, they are 4 points ahead from second placed Valentine FC and an incredible 8 points in front of 3rd placed Edgeworth Eagles who we play at Darling St Oval in Round 9 of the competition.
Newcastle Olympic First Grade played better against Belmont than they have in recent weeks but it wasn’t enough to secure the 3 points, coming away with a 2-2 draw. Olympic were balanced all over the park but what let them down was poor finishing.
Jared Muller opened the score in 2nd minute when he tapped in from a Kale Bradbery cross. This settled the nerves and Olympic had good movement of the ball and more opportunities to score from point blank positions. In the 37th minute Jared Muller put Olympic 2-0 ahead after a free kick from Kierry James wasn’t cleared by the Belmont defense and the later fired a shot into an empty net. That was the scoreline at half time and a 9-8 shot on goal ratio in favor of Belmont sums up how balanced the game was in terms of possession and construction of play.
In the 51st minute a sustained attack by Belmont resulted in a ball bouncing off an Olympic defender and landing into the path of Marco Gueli who had no problem reducing the deficit to 1-2. The remainder of the game was an arm wrestle by both teams creating and missing chances to win the game.
In the 89th minute a terrible goal kick by Olympic goalkeeper Adam Pearce gave the ball to a Belmont attacker who was brought down from behind by Steven Theacos to prevent him from scoring. Theacos was shown the red card for his professional foul and a minute later a sustained attack inside the Olympic box brought about Belmont’s 2-2 equalizer.
The draw keeps Olympic in 8th spot, 5 points outside the top 5 and 4 points from bottom spot! Despite going 5 games without a win, the team showed good qualities in this match and hopefully they can secure 3 points against Edgeworth at Darling St Oval on Saturday.
Newcastle Olympic Reserve Grade cemented their position at the top of the points table with a crushing victory over eternal rivals, Broadmeadow Magic, with the emphatic scoreline of 5-1. Unfortunately, First Grade were unable to emulate the youngsters of Reserve Grade and were defeated by 2-0.
Newcastle Olympic went into this match on 5 wins and 1 draw from 6 games while Broadmeadow Magic on 1 win 2 draws and 3 losses. Regardless of form and where they stand on the points table the derby between these two clubs ensures they compete on the field and Saturday’s match was no exception.
The match began with speed and intensity, but it was Olympic who forced Magic into committing a foul inside the box and the referee awarded a penalty. With only the goalkeeper to beat Jesse Fitgerald was brought crashing down by the Magic goal stopper and despite being the last man, he was not even shown a yellow card. Despite this, Fitzgerald had no problem converting the spot kick and sending Olympic into a 1-0 lead.
By the 31st minute Olympic made it 2-0 after Fitzgerald received the ball inside the box from a free throw and after crossing the ball to River Petersen who unmarked, had no problem placing a shot into the Magic net.
A quickly taken free kick in the 36th minute by an Olympic defender gave away the ball to Magic just outside the box and from the ensuing quick counter-attack, the score was brought back to 2-1. By the 40th minute a great solo run by Kane Treble from the left sent Olympic with a 3-1 lead into the half time interval!
Three minutes into the 2nd half a cross from the left was chested down by Jess Fitzgerald and a thunderous shot by Oliver Steinerts made the score 4-1 and beyond Magic’s reach! A clever steal in midfield by Oli Steinerts and a through ball to Lucas Walsh in the 60th minute made the score 5-1.
In the last half hour two opportunities by George Tsamouras and one a piece by Lucas Walshe and Jesse Fitzgerald almost brought about Olympics’ sixth goal but it was not meant to be. The win by Olympic in conjunction with the 3-3 draw between Valentine and Kahibah has given the boys in blue a 4 point gap in first place of the points table.
Newcastle Olympic First Grade, despite playing better than in previous matches were unable to capitalize and were defeated by 2-0 by their eternal rivals.
With a strengthened midfield which exhibited speed and intensity, Olympic took the game to Magic and tested the visitor’s goalkeeper on numerous occasions in the first 20 minutes of the game. Then an unmarked Keanu Moore inside the Olympic box resulted in the visitors going 1-0 up.
Olympic pushed for an equalizer and was able to score in the 25th minute through Kale Bradbery but the referee decided he was offside! The 1-0 scoreline remained until the half time break.
In the 2nd half the game was played at an incredible speed with Olympic desperately trying to level the game and Magic trying to score another and putting it beyond reach. The introduction of Ezra Palombini into the game for the visitors proved decisive as he was able to pounce from a cross and make the score 2-0.
Despite Olympics’ effort the score remained until the end and after 7 rounds, we are 4 points from bottom on the points table!
Newcastle Olympic came away with two draws in the wash out Round 3 fixture of the 2026 Northern NSW NPL competition. Playing only their second home game of the season Reserve Grade dropped their first points after being forced to a 1-1 draw while First Grade were able to force a 2-2 draw at the end of the match!
Olympic Reserve Grade began their game with much promise after taking the lead in the 4th minute of play when Steven Theacos put a well flighted ball to Kane Treble on the left flank. The Adamstown goalkeeper came charging out of his goal, Treble sidestepped him and tapped the ball into an empty net! This was a perfect start to the game and the Olympic faithful who filled the Darling St Oval grandstand began to rub their hands for the sixth consecutive victory of the season.
What no one knew was that by the end of the match the referee was going to hand out 7 yellow cards and 1 red to Olympic and another 3 yellow cards and 1 red to Adamstown Rosebud for a total of 10 yellows and 2 reds! Being a referee is not an easy job and sometimes they too can have a bad game! The fouls ratio by the end of the match was 17 to 14 Adamstown’s way, yet the cards 8 to 4 Olympics’ way!!!
Olympic was very compact in defence and reduced Adamstown to only 5 shots on goal throughout the match with only 2 on target while Olympic took 18 shots on goal and only 3 on target! Olympic controlled the game and were never threatened but Adamstown had a physical presence that prevented Olympic from dictating play like they did in the 5 previous games.
Despite this, Olympic were cruising along and after a corner by Adamstown was cleared with a header by George Tsamouras, the ball fell into the path of left back Lewis Houston who chested a bounced ball to get it under control and while leading a speedy counter-attack, the referee blew his whistle to stop play. The decision was that Houston didn’t control the ball with his chest but with his elbow and Adamstown were awarded a penalty! Despite the protests the gift was then converted into a goal and 1-1 was the scoreline that the teams walked off for the half time interval.
In the second half Olympic continued to have the lion’s share of shots on the Adamstown goal but the physical presence of the Rosebuds kept the scoreline at 1-1. As the game wore on, both teams began to show evidence of fatigue given it was a midweek game and after a day’s work for most of the players. Olympic tried to freshen their play by brining in Lucas Walshe, Oliver Steinerts and First Grade player Brody Taylor, in the 60th minute.
Taylor’s first touch on the ball resulted in a yellow card and given the referee’s appetite for cards on the night, he received another yellow and was shown the path to the dressing rooms with a red, 20 minutes later! The Olympic coaching staff also received 2 yellow cards for protesting and 4 minutes later, Adamstown received a red card to make the player number equal again until the end of the match.
Despite the draw, Olympic are 1st on the points table, and after a rest over the Easter weekend, face Broadmeadow Magic on Saturday 11th April at Darling St Oval.
Newcastle Olympic First Grade went into this game facing a team at the bottom of the points table without a win and having scored only 3 goals in 5 games! By the end of 90 minutes of play the shots on goal were only 2-1 to Olympic, Olympic scored 4 goals, and the result was 2-2!
Olympic began the game well but were too slow in winning the ball in midfield and without the ball, could not provide service to the front line or give their defence time to catch their breath! Despite this, they took the lead in the 32nd minute when Ben Hay lobbed the ball from the centre circle to Kale Brabery who in turn lobbed a poorly positioned Adamstown goalkeeper. Rosebuds appealed for an offside, the linesman’s flag didn’t go up and Olympic were 1-0 in the lead.
Two minutes later an incorrect pass in midfield by Sean Pratt resulted in Adamstown launching a quick counter-attack, the ball is fired at the Olympic goal, Adam Pearce saves but the ball hits an Olympic defender and deflects into the net for a 1-1 scoreline!
At half time, the score is 1-1 and according to the statistics board supplied by Northern NSW, the crowd were treated to only 1 shot on goal a piece by both teams in 45 minutes of football!
In the 2nd half the introduction of Lachlan West and Wil Harvey on the hour mark gave the midfield spark and speed but not before another set back! A routine cross from the right by Adamstown resulted in the ball being chested into the Olympic goal by a defender for a 1-2 scoreline!
Adamstown sensed the possibility of an upset and retreated to hold the score while Olympic took control of the game and pressed their opponent all over the field. By the 83rd minute across from the left by Kierry James resulted in the Rosebud defence clearing the ball into the path of Marcus Duncan who unleashed a powerful volley to level the score 2-2.
Despite covering every blade of grass until the 90th minute Olympic were unable to find another goal and the 2-2 scoreline remained. After two successive draws against Cooks Hill and Adamstown, Olympic are in 7th place.
Newcastle Olympic returned from their Round 6 outing at Cooks Hill undefeated! Reserve Grade put on their best performance of the season to win 3-0 while First Grade secured a valuable 1-1 draw.
Olympic Reserve Grade put on a performance against a Cooks Hill side, which had beaten them last season three times, that made them look like a mid-table First Grade team than a Reserve Grade! Cooks Hill were not bad, they were simply made to look not good! The Cookers threw everything at Olympic! They tried to play through the middle, they attempted to come through the flanks and they even tried to come over the top, using the long ball. Olympic were simply too strong in every department and prevented their opposition of even coming within a sniff of a goal!
The early signs of a great afternoon for Olympic came in the 16th minute when a nice through ball from Rhys Butler resulted in Jess Fitzgerald hitting the woodwork! A minute later a careless challenge by the Cooks Hill keeper on Fitzgerald on the edge of the box resulted in the referee correctly awarding a penalty kick! Fitzgerlad was out of luck again when his shot was saved by Patrick Innes, the Cooks Hill goalkeeper. By the 28th minute a great interception by Rhys Butler and pass to Jess Fitzgerlad resulted in the later putting through Blake Clifton who had no problem registering Cooks Hill – Newcastle Olympic 0-1!
In the second half, a bench with the quality of Tsamouras, Steinerts, Walshe, Middleton and Zervas were slowly introduced to make Olympics’ domination absolute. Such was the pressure that a cross by Kane Treble from the left resulted in an own goal by the home team! Cooks Hill tried everything to find a way through but Olympic kept the door to their goal shut. In the 87th minute an interception in the middle of the field by Tsamouras and a quick pass to Fitzgerald resulted in a through ball to Walshe who side stepped the Cooks Hill goalkeeper to record a 3-0 scoreline.
This result was the fifth win in as many matches and obviously first spot on the points table. What is more important is that this team is now settling into a rhythm and with maximum points so far, they look like they will be favourites to win the Premiership yet again!
On Wednesday night at 6:00pm they take on undefeated Adamstown Rosebud at Darling St Oval, as part of Round 3 which was washed out three weeks ago. Another win will have them 4 points clear at the top from their nearest rival and a great position to welcome the eternal foe, Broadmeadow Magic, at Darling St Oval on Saturday week!
Newcastle Olympic First Grade secured a 1-1 draw in a match they should have dominated and secured all 3 points. Olympic were strong and composed at the back, dangerous up front but lacked the ability to win the ball in the midfield and dictate play! As a result, their opponent was free to test themselves against Olympics’ defence while our attacking players didn’t receive the service from which they could hurt Cooks Hill!
With few clear goal scoring opportunities the ball was being leisurely knocked around in the middle of the park with neither team being able to take control and dictate terms. During a routine attack on the left flank by Cooks Hill in the 23rd minute an Olympic defender misjudged the bounce of the ball and this allowed Daniel Yaxley to pick his spot and curl a shot into the top corner of the Olympic goal!
Olympics’ reply came in the 30th minute when during a quick counterattack a number of one touch passes put Kale Bradbery in a great position to pull the trigger, only to see his shot come off the woodwork! Five minutes later Kanata Furutani tested the Cooks Hill goalie with a thunderous shot, only to see the ball tipped over the crossbar for a corner. By the 40th minute Olympic struck the woodwork again with a header from a well struck corner kick.
Despite this, it was Cooks Hill who almost went into the half time break with a 2-0 lead when one of their forwards missed an absolute sitter with only the keeper to beat!
The second half was a mirror of the first. A pass to Jared Muller who had just come on by Kale Brabery resulted in him drawing out the Cooks Hill goalie and slipping the ball through his legs to level the score 1-1 in the 61st minute!
The rest of the half continued without any incident of note and with spectators treated only to some individual flashes of good play.
This draw leaves Olympic in 7th place and hopefully with a win against bottom of the table Adamstown Rosebud on Wednesday night, they may be able to improve their position on the table.
George Tsamouras Football Journey 