Narrabri FC bounces back with a big win

The 2023 Namoi Premier League first grade minor premiership will be on the line at Hogan Oval this Saturday when Narrabri FC hosts Inverell FC in round 14.

The Narrabri men locked in a top-two spot last weekend as they scored a 4-1 victory against Moree Services FC on home soil, which also saw them remain one point behind the ladder leaders.

Inverell got the job done at its home ground as the 2022 minor and major premiers scored a dominant 5-0 win against Wee Waa United.

Those round 13 results saw Inverell (28 points) and Narrabri FC (27) go beyond two wins clear of Wee Waa (19) with just two rounds remaining, while Moree (3) is locked in to finish last.

With Narrabri and Inverell now guaranteed to meet in the major semi-final, both sides will be playing to secure hosting rights for that game across the final two rounds of the regular season starting this weekend in their top-of-the-table clash.

Inverell would wrap up top spot with a win at Hogan Oval on Saturday, but a draw would see the side remain on top by just one point heading into the final round.

Narrabri would climb into first with a victory and would take a two-point lead into the final round.

In a major boost for the Narrabri side’s chances, the competition’s two leading goal-scorers Connor Hill (12) and Cooper Brayshaw (8) will return this Saturday, having missed the past three matches while on holidays.

Narrabri FC lost two of its three games without those two key players.

The versatile Jakeb Nipperess also returns from holidays, but Narrabri FC could be without striker Victor Matuku after he came from the field during the win against Moree with a groin injury.

An earlier boost saw centre-back Nathan Trindall return from a five-game suspension on Saturday to shore up Narrabri FC’s defence. The side conceded 14 goals in his absence after only letting in eight across the first seven games of the year.

Narrabri FC’s first grade coach Neil Brayshaw said Trindall’s inclusion played a key role in the side returning to winnings ways after back-to-back losses.

“It was a big plus having Nathan back there in the centre,” Brayshaw said.

“He was up winning headers all game and his talk was great.

“He played 90 minutes after having 15 good minutes in reserve grade.”

Brayshaw thought his side produced an improved performance to break a two-game losing streak.

“We played pretty good, I thought,” Brayshaw said.

“Really good build-up play and we created plenty of shots. We just lacked execution late in the game. We could have scored a few more goals, but our build-up was much better than in our last few games.

“We played the ball to feet well and players were running into space.

“We defended quite well too and our transition was good as well.

“As I’ve said before this year, Moree have improved out of sight. Come the finals, they could upset anyone if they have the numbers there available.”

The return of Trindall into the backline helped Narrabri FC in more ways than one, as it allowed Jake Brayshaw to return to the wing. His presence higher up the park was certainly felt as he set up the first goal and then scored the last during a match in which he was the standout player and was named his side’s players’ player.

Narrabri FC went into half-time ahead 1-0 after Brayshaw charged down the left edge and squared the ball into the box to Jorian Fleming, who made no mistake from close range in the 34th minute.

The hosts thought they had gone ahead earlier, but a Colby Williams strike in the 20th minute was ruled out due to an offside in the build-up.

Bailey Campbell doubled the home side’s lead about 15 minutes after the break, but Moree hit back nine minutes later when Lucas Schembri found the back of the next following an assist from Adam Ha.

However, Narrabri FC restored its two-goal lead three minutes later when Rowan Keeler scored, and then Brayshaw made it 4-1 late in the game when he charged in behind the Moree defence onto a through ball and then picked out the bottom right corner with a one-on-one strike.

Wee Waa United’s major semi-final hopes were crushed on Saturday in the other round 13 contest.

A depleted side travelled to Inverell with just 11 players, meaning there was no one on the bench and all players were required to play a full 90 minutes.

The visitors trailed 2-0 at the break but were well and truly in the game.

However, the task at hand became a lot trickier when they went down to 10 men early in the second stanza. Dean Hamblin, who was captain on the day in the absence of captain-coach Ben Cooper, left the field with an injury, and his side played the remainder of the match a player short.

Inverell was able to get the job done as it scored three more goals in the second half to secure the three points with a 5-0 win.

The 2022 season golden boot award winner Andrew Saru netted twice in that game, and Julian Rhoades scored his first Namoi Premier League goal of the year. Wee Waa also netted two own goals.

Narrabri FC claimed the reserve grade minor premiership in round 13 with a 2-0 victory at Hogan Oval against Moree on Saturday.

The round kicked off on Thursday night at the same venue as Narrabri Eleven FC drew 2-all with Wee Waa.

The semi-final matches in reserve grade are also locked in, with Narrabri FC (37) and Moree (25) too far out in front of Wee Waa (8) and the Elevens (5).

Wee Waa is away in Moree in both grades this Saturday, while Narrabri FC hosts Inverell in first grade and meets the Elevens in reserve grade at Hogan Oval.