Free-scoring Manurewa have moved into second place on the Lotto NRFL first division table after an incident-packed second-half resulted in a 3-0 win at Ellerslie.
Playing under lights at Michaels Ave, the game was scoreless at half-time, the only incident being a yellow card for Ellerslie’s Tom Durkin.
But the second-half produced eight more yellow cards, a sending off and three goals.
Rewa struck first through Fijian age group international Mohammed Nabeel who put the visitors ahead in the 49th minute.
Referee Yunjie Diao then became the busiest man on the park, booking three Ponies and five Rewa players in a 15-minute spell, most of them for reckless fouls.
Amidst this, Jake McCoy doubled Manurewa’s lead, scoring in the 56th minute with his first of the season.
Ellerslie captain Seb Poelman was sent off in the 84th minute, after collecting his second yellow.
Nicolas Bobadilla rounded out the win for Rewa with his sixth goal of the season in added time.
The win confirms Manurewa’s push into title contention, after a good run of recent form, and they have emerged as the division’s top goalscorers.
They have 24 goals to their credit, scored by eight different players, indicating they can threaten from any part of the park.
Their next fixture is a Chatham Cup second round tie against Birkenhead United on Queen’s Birthday Monday.
Meanwhile, the rest of the round 11 schedule takes place on Saturday, except for Metro’s Friday night game against Mt Albert Ponsonby.
Click here for our preview of Saturday’s fixtures >>>>
Result
Game played Thursday June 2, 2022
Ellerslie 0
Manurewa 3 (Mohammed Nabeel 49′, Jake McCoy 56′, Nicolas Bobadilla 90+2′)
Standings
Thanks
Our coverage of Northern League and Lotto NRFL men’s football is made possible through the support of our partners at Cube, specialists in print, design and signage. We encourage clubs and businesses to consider Cube when looking for professional help in their branding and promotional planning.
More Lotto NRFL news
