Newcastle Olympic triumphed 5-0 and 5-2 in Round 19 of the 2026 NPL competition of Northen NSW Football. Reserve Grade had no problem collecting the three points and moved into 2nd spot on the table. First Grade also collected three points and this should ensure they avoid relegation over the remaining three games.
Playing at the LMRFF on Tuesday night, Olympic took on a Belmont team which was happy to give them space and time on the ball! This fact didn’t take long to provide Olympic with dividends with Jess Fitzgerald receiving a cross in the 3rd minute and guiding the ball past the Belmont keeper for a 1-0 lead.
Olympic stroked the ball between their back four and their two defensive midfield players effortlessly and by the 7th minute the marking was so poor that Jess Fitzgerald decided to line up a shot from outside the eighteen-yard box! The ball was struck with such venom that the Belmont keeper couldn’t even get a hand to it before picking it up from the back of his net!
With a 2-0 lead Olympic were in total control of possession and dictated the tempo of the game. Belmont sustained wave upon wave of Olympic attacks and were able to keep the scoreline at 2-0 either through their woodwork or defensive heroics by their goalkeeper! By the 30th minute the game was over as a contest when midfielder George Tsamouras entered the eighteen-yard box, beet a number of players and sent in a low cross to Jess Fitzgerald who controlled the ball and put it past the helpless Belmont goalkeeper to record 3-0!
A fourth goal by the same player was added before halftime and with a 4-0 lead at the break, it was all just a formality. Oliver Steinerts made his return from injury midway through the second half and added Olympics’ 5th goal of the night which resulted in them frog-leaping Cooks Hill on the points table into 2nd spot. League leaders Valentine are 5 points clear but Olympic have a game in hand against Charlestown and host them at Darling St Oval in the second last game of the season!
Newcastle Olympic first grade faced Belmont a day later at Darling St Oval and with a line up both on the field as well as the bench, of essentially players who had come up through the Olympic ranks. After their heroic display against Broadmeadow Magic Olympic looked sharp, were first to the ball, and were winning most of the 50-50 challenges!
Despite the domination in play, some poor marking inside the box led to Belmont taking the lead in the 8th minute through Andrew McGee! By the 16th minute a shot by Bradbery from a corner deflected off a Belmont defender to bring the game level to 1-1. By the 24th minute a poorly cleared corner kick by Olympic resulted in a Belmont defender heading the ball into his own net for an Olympic 2-1 lead!
Olympic continued to control the game but it wasn’t until the 40th minute when Ben Hays sent in a cheeky lob to increase the score to 3-1 that victory began to smile towards Olympic. In stoppage time Olympic were able to increase the score to 4-1 when a cross from the right was not cleared by the keeper and a Belmont defender put it into his own net after trying to avoid the pressure from Kyle Bradbery.
In the second half Belmont were able to pull a goal back to 4-2 through Cy Goodwin in the 56th minute but another own goal in the 75th minute ensured Olympic came away with a 5-2 win and all smiles. Although this doesn’t secure Olympics’ position mathematically, three more points in their remaining games against Edgeworth, Valentine and Lambton Jaffas will ensure they will there again next season!
Source: Tom Tsamouras
George Tsamouras Football Journey 