Melbourne Knights FC Official Website Melbourne Knights celebrated their 70th birthday with a 3-2 win over North Geelong Warriors in NPL Victoria Round 8 action at Knights Stadium on Monday afternoon.
Corey Sewell, Ciaran Bramwell and Gevaro Nepomuceno were all on target as Knights maintained their unbeaten record at Somers Street this season.
It took just four minutes for Ben Cahn’s side to get their name on the new Knights Stadium scoreboard with Corey Sewell opening the scoring with a close-range finish at the near post after being played in by Luka Kolic.
Bramwell doubled the Knights lead in the 40th minute with a first-time finish into the bottom corner on the end of a slick team move for what was his fourth goal in three games.
Nepomuceno made it 3-0 in the 54th minute when he turned his marker before curling an effort into the top corner after Knights forced a turnover high up the pitch.
Despite Knights control of the match the Warriors managed to close the gap on the scoresheet, pulling a goal back in the 67th minute when a Luke Zivcic cross took a freak deflection off Joey Franjic before Zivcic bundled the ball home in the 94th minute for the visitors second of the afternoon.
Monday’s 3-2 win leaves Knights in fifth position on the NPL Victoria table at the conclusion of Round 8.
Speaking post-match, Melbourne Knights Head Coach Ben Cahn said his side were pleased to get another three points under their belt on an important night for the club.
“It’s a valuable three points for us, the league table is starting to take shape and it’s important we keep in the mix,” Cahn said.
“We had a lot of control of the game, the three goals were great and we should have had more.
“Obviously, it’s disappointing to have conceded the two at the end, it wasn’t a reflection of the game and the boys know we have to be better.
“We’ve got a lot of improvement to go, we’re still early on this journey and we’ll work hard this week to make sure we’re ready for Moreland on the weekend.
“It was a great occasion, we were all proud to represent the club on it’s 70th birthday in front of a great crowd.
“It was brilliant seeing the vibe post-game and we’re working as hard as we can to make sure there are more of those nights to come.”
Next up for Knights is a trip to CB Smith Reserve to face Moreland City on Saturday afternoon.
Newly promoted City sit tenth on the NPL Victoria ladder and come into Saturday’s match off the back of a 6-2 defeat at the hands of Green Gully.
MATCH DETAILS
NPL Victoria 2023 – Round 8: Melbourne Knights FC v North Geelong Warriors
Knights Stadium, North Sunshine
Monday, 10 April
Melbourne Knights – 3 (Corey SEWELL 4’, Ciaran BRAMWELL 40’, Gevaro NEPOMUCENO 54’)
North Geelong Warriors – 2 (OWN GOAL 67’, Luke ZIVCIC 94’)
