WARRIORS SCORE FFA CUP WIN

NORTH Geelong recorded a thrilling come from behind 2-1 win over Langwarrin on Saturday, courtesy of two stunning second-half goals, to advance through to the next round of the FFA Cup.

Buoyed by the vocal and fervent support from the large band of travelling supporters, Luciano Trani’s troops completely dominated proceedings from the outset of the Round 4 Cup clash but had to wait until the final minute of regular time to clinch the win over fellow NPL2 club.

In the 89th minute, attacker Darius Madison was the recipient of a delightful pass from the middle of the pitch by debutante teenager Jamie Noggler, who came on as a late substitute. The American im- port turned his defender and ran into a direct one-on-one situation with the keeper. Calmly slotting the ball into the back of the net, the onfield jubilation quickly spilt onto the terraces.

Despite a few tense minutes as the home side peppered North custodian Marko Stevanja’s goals in stoppage time, the desperate Warriors hung on to secure a berth in the next stage of the nation- wide knockout tournament.

Warriors coach Luciano Trani was understandably ecstatic after witnessing his team’s gutsy Cup triumph.

“We completely dominated the first half, we had four, maybe five clear-cut chances,” Trani said.

“But they went into the break 1-0 up after their player (Luke Burgess) scored in the 29th minute. But I said to the boys at half-time, we are the ones trying to play, trying to do the right thing. Be patient and keep at it, we’ll get rewarded.

“I was pleased we were persistent, and to be fair to the boys, they were indeed patient and kept going and in the end that patience and persistence paid off.”

Julian Cassano got the Warriors back on level terms in the 75th minute, after nutmegging the oncoming keeper following a delightful Madison through pass, before Madison’s match-winning clincher just 14 minutes later.

“To come to Langwarrin, which is a hard place to play at the best of times, and to come away with such a hard-fought win after being down 1-0, it shows a lot of courage and determination,” Trani said.

The Warriors will now have to wait until Tuesday to discover their Round 5 FFA Cup opponent.