Let's take a trip back in time to refresh everone and COLOSSUS what this is about...
As a spectator with no allegiance to either Club (although I do have an interest in the O'Sullivan Beach Sports and Community Centre venue..from a community and Council perspective) I wrote the following match review with 27 photos..with one picture showing the Raptors no. 18 walking from the park after his dismissal. Due to my unfamiliarity with most players, I usually talk about the atmosphere of games I report on and didn't mention any names from either side in this report.........(I've highlighted the offending elements in red.)
swannsong wrote:
Southern Knights (2) ISC Raptors (3)
Link to all Southern Knights v Raptors photos
I popped round the corner to watch this Sunday Division 2 encounter and hesitated writing my thoughts about the game.
Last year I witnessed the same fixture toward the end of the season ended with the same score 2-3 to Raptors, thanks to a non-goal that was awarded after passing through a hole in the side netting. Also last season both teams had a sniff at promotion but missed out in end.
As a neutral spectator I thought the attitude and behaviour of one Raptors player (no 18 ) influenced the atmosphere of the game. Accusing the Knights Club linesman of cheating, gesturing and swearing at spectators and the linesman on several occasions, and seemingly intimidating the Referee. He was eventually sent off midway through the second half for a verbal outburst. Unfortunately this "bad egg" in the Raptors nest continued on after his dismissal and a situation was calmed before it erupted.
Apart from that, the game was hard fought with Southern Knights, kicking into a fairly strong Easterly wind, going a goal ahead after about 10 minutes and stretched the lead to 2-0 when a bouncing ball was misjudged by Raptors keeper.
Southern Knights lost a player for a second yellow offence but it stayed 2-0 to half time and the Referee was questioned for quite a while by Raptors Club linesman about some of his decisions.
After half time Raptors began to string together more passes and utilized the extra man to break down Knights defence and scored 2 reasonable quick goals to level the score at 2-2.
Knights had their opportunities to regain the lead and very rarely looked to be a man down, but Raptors pounced on the counter attack and took the lead 2-3.
I thought neither team deserved to come away from the game without a point and a draw would have been a fair result.
Although there was a little aggro between the two sides it was good to see a few of the Raptors pop into the Clubrooms for a drink and a bit of a chat.
I somehow think that Knights and Raptors will be up against each other again next season ?
After some criticism about mentioning too much about COLOSSUS's friend, no18, I edited my report thus...and removed the picture of his mate walking from the park after being sent off..........(Once again I've highlighted the offending elements in red.)
swannsong wrote:Southern Knights (2) ISC Raptors (3)
Link to all Southern Knights v Raptors photos
I popped round the corner to watch this Sunday Division 2 encounter and hesitated writing my thoughts about the game.
Last year I witnessed the same fixture toward the end of the season ended with the same score 2-3 to Raptors, thanks to a non-goal that was awarded after passing through a hole in the side netting. Also last season both teams had a sniff at promotion but missed out in end.
As a neutral spectator I thought the attitude and behaviour of one Raptors player influenced the atmosphere of the game.
Apart from that, the game was hard fought with Southern Knights, kicking into a fairly strong Easterly wind, going a goal ahead after about 10 minutes and stretched the lead to 2-0 when a bouncing ball was misjudged by Raptors keeper.
Southern Knights deservedly lost a player for a second yellow offence but it stayed 2-0 to half time and the Referee was questioned for quite a while by Raptors Club linesman about some of his decisions.
After half time Raptors began to string together more passes and utilized the extra man to break down Knights defence and scored 2 reasonable quick goals to level the score at 2-2.
Knights had their opportunities to regain the lead and very rarely looked to be a man down, but Raptors pounced on the counter attack and took the lead 2-3.
I thought neither team deserved to come away from the game without a point and a draw would have been a fair result.
Although there was a little aggro between the two sides it was good to see a few of the Raptors pop into the Clubrooms for a drink and a bit of a chat.
I somehow think that Knights and Raptors will be up against each other again next season ?
Then COLOSSUS as a spectator wrote this assessment of the game and of my opinions.....(I've highlighted in black some words that I never used in my original or edited reports)
COLOSSUS wrote:Swanny, im actually dissapointed with your asessment of the game as a whole. Would of thought that as a neutral, as you claimed to be, you wouldnt be so one sided.
Is there a need to harp on No.18??? The game that i watched, i saw 18 as a passionate player who displayed some pretty good skills. Not once did have a bad word to say to any of his opposition players on the park and maybe you should ask the guys defending him, since they were next to him all game. Not once did he lay a bad challenge and i think of all the players on both sides was the only one that didnt give a free kick away for foul play but no mention of this by you!!!
He scored a wonderful goal to level at 2-2, but once again, no mention of this by you.
According to you, he abused the SK linesman on several occassions??? Yes, i will agree with you on that, and of the 4 times he was judged to be offside, only the first one was he offside, so i guess his frustration with that linesman was obvious, and the fact he doesnt like people that cheat probably had something to do with his reactions towards the SKs club official.
You also go on to say that his behaviour towards the SK crowd was
disgusting. From where i was standing, he never verbally opened his mouth to them, and only made 2 gestures at them. Once when he scored the equalizer and then the 2nd time when Raptors took the lead which were early to mid 2nd half. What you havent mentioned is the fact that the SK crowd were giving him shiiiite from 10 minutes into the 1st half and continued to giving him shiiiite right up until he was sent off. He took it pretty well i thought, and in my opinion gave them those 2 gestures when indeed they were at their quietest and most vulnerable, that is when he scored the equalizer, and indeed when they went 3-2 up, perfect timing i would of thought and something any player in his position would of done given the amount of flak he copped from them.
On the last point, you say
he continued to abuse people after he was sent off??? If thats not further from the truth, then ill never post on this site again. Again, your views of this are blurred by maybe your camera lens, or maybe that you are pro SK even though you state you are a neutral. When he was sent off, he walked off the park and then was verbally abused by a male who went out of his way to walk out of the Panthers clubrooms and start on him. 18 then reacted as anyone would and gave him a serving right back. The only reason those "cool heads" as you mention didnt start anything is because they knew who started it, and it was one of their own. Of course, you wouldnt know that swanny because you were too busy taking snap shots and hopefully from a camera with a Carl Zeiss lens
(note -I actually witnessed the whole off-field situation from ~15 metres away)
The game itself was end to end action, and i agree a draw would of been a fair result. Some rough challenges from the SK players and some verbal abuse from the Raptors players made for an entertaining day at O'Sullivans beach. The crowd had the last laugh with No18 but his Raptors team had the final laugh of the day. That would of been a fairer way to describe the game swanny
So according to COLOSSUS, a fairer way to describe the game would have been to write 5 paragraphs on the prowess, skill and polite way in which the said red carded Raptor player performed. Rather than the one short paragraph on the same said player's behaviour (which I reduced to one sentence in the edited review).
The report was followed by plenty of banter (some serious some jovial) between Southern Knights and Raptors and I received several PM's from Raptors forumites saying that they believed my report was reasonable and described the game atmosphere fairly.
To coincide with several PM's jumping onto the "swannsong bias" bandwagon set in motion by COLOSSUS (even a few who weren't at the game?).
Apparently behind the scenes there were some unsavoury words uttered by a Knights player which saw another area of the debate erupt (but that's another story).
At least when I reviewed the
Southern Knights v Pontians (link) Cup game ealier in the season, Theo Anastasiou took his dismissal photo on the chin and have a mate running to his defence and telling me I was assassinating his character.
= 
, no character assassination required 
on my part 
, you do a fine job on your own 
