O35 Div 3 Semi Final Rouse Hill Rams vs Box Hill Rangers

O35 Div 3 Semi Final Rouse Hill Rams vs Box Hill Rangers

Football photography from the O35 Semi Final between Rouse Hill Rams and Box Hill Rangers in a rain-interrupted 4–2 finals contest.

Box Hill wasted little time settling into the game. They spent much of the opening five minutes around the Rams penalty area and were rewarded when a superb strike from the left found the right-hand side of the goal to give them an early 1–0 lead.

Rams responded quickly on the counter. A break through the Box Hill defence created an almost one-on-one opportunity, but the goalkeeper stood up well to make the save.

Barely two minutes later came an almost carbon copy of the same move. The same Rams attacker broke through again, but this time managed to step around the advancing goalkeeper and find the back of the net to bring the Semi Final level at 1–1.

The game settled somewhat after the frantic opening, although there was nothing particularly gentle about some of the challenges. A few crunching tackles made sure the physical edge of finals football was never far away.

Around ten minutes later, a defensive pass from Box Hill didn’t quite find its intended target. A Rams forward anticipated it, intercepted the ball and made the opportunity count, calmly finishing to turn the game around and give Rams a 2–1 advantage.

Box Hill responded by applying plenty of pressure for the remainder of the half. They enjoyed more of the possession in the Rams defensive third and continued searching for an equaliser, but Rams held firm to carry their 2–1 advantage into the break.

With the delayed start already putting the schedule behind, half-time was kept short before the teams were sent back out.

Box Hill immediately picked up where they had left off. An early second-half break opened the Rams defence and a well-weighted finish brought the scores back level at 2–2.

The momentum was beginning to build. Box Hill thought they had taken the lead only for an offside call to deny them, and another apparent goal was ruled out for handball. Rams continued to withstand the pressure, but Box Hill were increasingly finding ways into dangerous areas.

Eventually the breakthrough came. A quality cross found its way across goal and was met with a composed finish into the open net, finally giving Box Hill the 3–2 lead their sustained pressure had been threatening.

Rams had little time left to find a response, and in what turned out to be the final play of the match, Box Hill broke through once more and added another to seal a 4–2 Semi Final victory.

All the while, the weather seemed unable to decide what it wanted to do. Rain threatened throughout the game before giving way to random showers that repeatedly had spectators scrambling for umbrellas. Around the sidelines, people huddled underneath whatever cover they could find while I attempted the slightly questionable combination of balancing an umbrella and a camera on a monopod whenever another shower rolled through.

It made for a fitting backdrop to an entertaining Semi Final — six goals, momentum swinging between the two sides, some heavy challenges and a Box Hill side that kept applying pressure until they eventually found the breakthrough.

With finals football underway across Sydney, I’m taking bookings for teams wanting their remaining matches captured. If you’d like your Semi Final, Final or Grand Final covered, bookings are available via the website.