Goals: 1:0 Danai Gapare (2.); 2:0 Adam Spaleta (9.); 3:0 Matthew Grbesa (18.); 4:0 Alex Castro (37.); 5:0 Danai Gapare (45.); 6:0 Adam Spaleta (63.)

Canberra FC: 18. Ben Klug (gk), 4. Marcin Zygmunt, 6. Alex Castro (12. Ian Graham), 7. Paul Ivanic (14. Josip Jadric), 8. Matt Grbesa, 10. Stephen Lee, 15. Danai Gapare, 17. Aidan Brunskill, 19. Adam Spaleta (3. Jordan Whittiker), 21. Victor Yanes, 22. Jon Ison

Substitutes not used: 11. Sam Gagalowicz, 1. Adam Perakovic (gk)

Belconnen United: 1. Rohan Shepherd (gk), 2. Matt Valeri (18. Jason O’Dwyer), 3. Dustin Wells, 5. Taylor Beaton, 6. Phil Borgeaud (4. Lee Pietrukowski), 7. Callum Beaton, 8. Cameron Reinhart, 10. Danny Macor, 11. David Kemp, 12. Jack Blackley (9. Tai Smith), 19. David Arranz

Substitutes not used: 17. Glenn Smith, 20. Keegan Jackson (gk)

YELLOW CARDS: 2. Matt Valeri (Belconnen United) RED CARDS: 22. Jon Ison (Canberra FC), 9. Tai Smith (Belconnen United)

Match Officials: Richard Naumosvki (referee), Brett Woodford, Greg Taylor, Gary Vandeburgt (4th official)

GATORADE PREMIER LEAGUE

CANBERRA FC ROUT BLUE DEVILS 6-0

Canberra FC completed a second successive treble with a sensational 6-0 rout of title rivals Belconnen United in the 2010 Gatorade Premier League Grand Final at McKellar Park. The League champions were in stunning form and were 5-0 up by the interval thanks to some quite brilliant goals to which the Blue Devils simply had no response.

With 2009 Grand Final winner John Glass still absent through injury Canberra FC settled for the same team that had beaten Belconnen in the major semi-final a fortnight ago with Danai Gapare occupying a wide berth from which he was able to use his coruscating pace to deadly effect. Indeed Gapare was to open the scoring with the match still in its early stages. Barely two minutes was on the clock when Gapare chased a long ball down the left flank and cut back to send a swirling cross into the Belconnen area which totally outfoxed Rohan Shepherd in the Blue Devils goal to drop into the net.

If that was a surprise to Scott Conlon’s team what was to follow must have been out of Belconnen’s worse nightmares. With the flow of play all directed towards Shepherd’s goal the lead was doubled before ten minutes was up. Canberra FC was awarded a free-kick wide on the left hand side from where Adam Spaleta sent a venomous ball into the area that slashed past Shepherd and into the top corner of the net.

And still Canberra FC was not finished. With the digital scoreboard at McKellar Park showing eighteen minutes played the title holders were in dreamland. Matt Grbesa advanced forward and from twenty-five metres chipped Shepherd who had been drawn off his line by the prospect of a cross to the far post. By this stage most of the crowd were rubbing their eyes barely believing what they were witnessing and the sense of disbelief was further heightened with a fourth goal in the 37th minute.

Jon Ison arrowed a laser-like delivery into the penalty box where Alex Castro slipped his marker to loop a quite beautiful header over the stranded Shepherd and into the back of the net to make the score 4-0.

Staring down the barrel of an absolute hiding and seemingly devoid of ideas on how to stop their opponents Belconnen attempted to piece together some phases of possession by quickly transferring play from one flank to the other via the industrious pair of Callum Beaton and his younger brother Taylor Beaton. Unfortunately for the Belconnen faithful time and again play broke down in the final third where Aidan Brunskill and Marcin Zygmunt were doing a superb job in keeping twin Blue Devils threats Danny Macor and Dustin Wells subdued.

Adam Spaleta meanwhile was displaying the kind of guile and boundless energy that was to earn the Canberra FC Captain the ‘Walter Valeri Medal’ as man of the match. It wasn’t just his incredible range of pin-point passing over distance that caught the eye, or his perceptive vision when in possession, but an all-round, all-action showing that made him the stand-out player of the day.

Spaleta turned provider on the cusp of half-time by collecting a ball over the top and firing over a low driven cross to the far post where Gapare arrived, unchecked, to slide the ball into the net and give Canberra FC an unbeatable, and quite ridiculous sounding, 5-0 half-time lead. It was a half of football that the players in red, and the watching support, will never forget.

It was perhaps inevitable that the second half of the encounter would not quite live up to the standards set in the first forty-five minutes but the crowd that remained, with a fair few supporters having left at the break with the result not in doubt, were treated to the goal of the game in the 63rd minute.

Spaleta received a pass thirty-five metres from goal and unleashed what can only be described as an exocet missile of a shot that thundered past Shepherd and into the top corner of the net that was left shaking on its moorings by the sheer ferocity and velocity of a shot that wouldn’t have been out of place at the FIFA World Cup. Incredibly Spaleta hit an even harder strike on the half-volley ten minutes later only to see his effort crash down off the underside of the crossbar and bounce back out and away from goal a la England’s Frank Lampard against Germany in the summer. Referee Richard Naumovski and his assistant Greg Taylor deemed the ball had not crossed the line though and play was waved on.

Naumovski had a bigger decision to make midway through the second stanza though when an altercation between Belconnen substitute Tai Smith and Canberra FC defender Jon Ison turned ugly. Ison clattered into Smith on half-way before Smith’s reaction saw the players turn to push and shove and verbal abuse which left the referee with little option but to issue both players with a red card. Experienced campaigners Paul Ivanic and Danny Macor were required to separate both parties and escort them off the field of play as things threatened to get out of control.

After this flashpoint the game meandered to its inevitable conclusion. Belconnen, to their credit, battled to the very end and Macor went close to grabbing a late consolation with a shot on the turn that failed to test Ben Klug in goal whilst a fierce long-range effort from distance had Klug warily watching the ball narrowly miss the top of the bar.

In truth though these were minor irritations for Marko Vrkic and his team who were crowed Premiers in the most devastating manner imaginable. To win the Grand Final and complete a second successive treble is one thing. To do it in such fashion, obliterating your nearest challengers in the process, was quite simply out of this world.

Match report courtesy of Capital Football.