Yantra Whitling, Tommy Ruhl and Aaron Richter-Steers

ALL-OUT attack will be the directive from Byron Bay coach Peter Ware when the unbeaten Rams host major premiers Goonellabah at 3pm.

The Bay sits on top of the ladder after winning all three games so far, with their attacking style already yielding 15 goals.

“We don’t play with a focus on strikers, we like to give everybody in the side a chance to push forward and score,” Ware said.

“We’ll attack them down the flanks, we’ll attack them down the middle, we’ll attack from everywhere.”

The policy is paying dividends, with seven of their 10 field players already finding the net and Tom Ruhl and Aaron Richter Steers racking up four goals each.

Ware will add pacey winger Tim Knight to the line-up that downed minor premiers Richmond Rovers 4-3. The Hornets will be looking to bounce back after a 2-0 loss to Rovers in their last game, with coach Mark Ambler quietly confident they can defuse the Rams’ explosive attack.

“We respect Byron, they have the points on the board so far, but we’ll employ the appropriate tactics to respond to their game,” he said. “We’re familiar with how they’ve played the last few years and we don’t think it’ll be any different this time round.”

read more on the Northern Star website »

Savannah Boller – Under 14/1 – Byron Bay FC – Football Far North Coast

For a player who only took up football two years ago, Savannah has come a long way. Having played rugby in Sydney, when her family moved North she switched codes and put her ball handling skills to good use. In the FFNC 12 girls representative team she was identified by selectors for her talent and went on to be selected as the goalkeeper in the NNSW state team.

Competing at the national championships in Canberra last month she did her club, zone and family proud. Although only 13, Savannah now plays in the FFNC grade 14 1st division mixed comp for Byron Bay FC as well as the FFNC 14 girls rep team competing in the Queensland state youth league.

Congratulations Savannah from the Newcastle Permanent Building Society and Northern NSW Football!

See more Players of the Week on the FFNC website »

Sammy Owens

Although the Byron Rams’ came home the winners with 3 points, the Premier grade football Squad’s trip out west to play the Casino Cobras on the weekend is one they would rather forget.  Several Premier reserves players were unavailable in the first game and they were forced to plug the gaps with top grade players in the first game.  The 3^rd rate Casino pitch full of potholes, deep dips and ruts is far below the standard of any other on the FNC.  That, combined with match balls out of round made it near impossible to control or pass the ball accurately. That point certainly evened the odds for the weaker Cobras team and they took every advantage they could.

Byron were missing Shaun Packham and Victor Pires and just 7 minutes in they payed the price for not clearing the ball out of the back 1/3 effectively.  Veteran Cobras player John Wraight pounced on a loose ball and slammed it into the Rams net from the edge of the penalty box. The Rams just couldn’t get the hang of the uneven pitch and wobbly balls and played well below their best for the rest of the game.  They squandered shot after shot on goal with few on target through lack of control. Even after a Casino player was sent off for dissent after a free kick at the 20 minute mark the Cobras repositioned well and the Rams failed to score.

Going into the 2^nd half it had to be said the game had been a flat and uninspiring performance, in stark contrast to the Rams exciting 9-0 whitewash of Italo Stars at home last weekend. It was another 20 minutes until Tom Ruhl put a ball past the Casino keeper only to have it disallowed for being offside. Soon after, Ruhl slipped a pass away to Sammy Owens on the flank. He dribbled the ball at pace to the backline and shot a cross to Herrick Schuenemann in front of goal. Schuenemann ever the showman scored a cracker goal with a beautiful diving header to even the score. The Cobras players were dropping like flies from the intense hit ups and towards the end ran out of substitutes and had to play with 9 men. Every time the Rams advanced on goal the Cobras dropped back, closed ranks and “parked the proverbial bus” in front of goal. They had a sea of legs and bodies to deflect the Rams shots on goal.

Aaron Richter-Steers

In the last ¼ the Rams poor run of luck had to change.  Owens made yet another attacking run up the left flank until he was stopped in his very fast tracks with some foolish and blatant shirt tugging from a desperate Cobra defender just a few metres from goal. The referee gave the penalty and set play specialist Aaron Richter-Steers coolly out witted the keeper and took the score to 2-1. However it seems the ref was the only person not to see a blatant hand ball soon after by another desperate Casino defender just out from goal and the 2-1 score line remained until the final whistle.  The Rams were thankful for the 3 points and hoping they could return to form for the Monday night catch up game with arch rivals Richmond Rovers on Monday night.

Rick Knight

Nominations are invited for teams in the following age groups – 8, 9, 10, 11.

Registration fee of $40 per team applies.

Features:

• Round robin competition with each team playing at least 3 matches on the day
• Penalty shootout competition with prizes
• Goalkeeper challenge competition with prizes
• Full canteen facilities and sausage sizzle

 
To register email juniors@byronbayfc.com.au.

Closing date for registrations 20th May.

• Registration fees refunded in the event of wet weather
• Competition rules as per FFNC junior carnival guidelines.

Tom Ruhl shoots off a header to score 1 of his 4 goals

It was a 90 minute death by a thousand cuts for Lismore’s Italo Stars when they took on the Park Hotel sponsored Byron Bay Rams at Byron on Saturday. The Rams decimated Stars 9-0 putting on a brilliant display of beautiful, fast paced Premier League football. After 4 weeks of washed out premiership games, Rams coach Peter Ware was busting to get his new look side out to show what they can do. “We beat Stars 4-1 in the first round of the pre season Anzac Cup competition” he said. “However we will be wary of complacency, as it nearly cost us the game against Lennox Head six weeks ago”.

It was clear from the start that the Rams were a class above Italo Stars however it took some time for both sides to get into a rhythm and test the defences The Rams were rushing their attacks and passing, squandering several opportunities and it wasn’t until the 27 minute mark until a goal mouth melee saw 4 Rams forwards take shots from close range only to be blocked by the Stars defenders, however a desperate Stars tackle created an opportunity Rams Aaron Richter-Steers from the resulting free kick. He weighted it beautifully over the wall and straight past Stars keeper Ben Perry to open the score. That goal opened the floodgates, and soon after Tim Knight started a series of skilled pin point passing from half way to Tom Ruhl then Victor Pires then speedster Sammy Owens down the left flank, he beat Perry to double the score. Just before half time Owens sliced the Stars defences again and went for goal, he slipped a late pass to Ruhl to score his first of 4 goals. Stars were in disarray and their Coach Neil Wraight was scratching to find some answers.

Layton Barton about to score

In the second half Ware sent the lads out with instructions to slow the play down. Layton Barton, Pires and Yantra Whitling had full control of the midfield feeding the flankers, Knight and Owens ball after ball up the outside channels. It was just 7 minutes till Ian Lennie shot a clinical header into the net off Ruhl’s corner kick. Jonno Pierce was having an awesome game and paired up well with Owens. The Rams have just re-signed Kai Connell as keeper and while there was little threat from the Stars strikers his incredible skill gave great confidence to the defenders Sam Robson, Lennie and Richter-Steers. At 56 minutes Layton Barton powered his way down the right flank single handed and scored the 5^th goal. Just 2 minutes later Barton smashed through the midfield again and supplied the final pass to Ruhl in what would be the first of 3 similar goals for the pair. With the Rams well ahead Ware brought on new signing George Martin, Tane Meek and Yoshi Madder in the last 25 minutes to provide fresh legs.

Tane Meek in a race for possession

With 7 minutes to go, Meek streaked down the left flank all the way to the back line with little resistance and cut back a cross to Madder running on to the back post and he scored his first Top grade goal. Another Barton / Ruhl combination completed the rout in the last 30 seconds with the 9^th goal. The Park Hotel sponsored Rams will take on Casino next Saturday away and will need to reserve some strength for a catch up game against arch rivals Richmond Rovers just 48 hours later on Monday night.

Rick Knight

saturday 21 april

Sam Owens and Jordan Nind (image: dogwhistle)

With 3 wins in a row from 3 games and 11 goals to their credit the Park Hotel sponsored Byron Bay Rams were full of confidence going into their Anzac Cup semi final hit up with arch rivals Lismore Thistles last Sunday. Thistles “Blues” coach Paul Parmenter ran on the same side that smashed Ballina 5-0 last week and he was looking for the same from his fast attacking squad. The 200 or so vocal spectators were treated to fast and furious action from the start and in the first 15 minutes there were 15 attacks or shots on goal at either end. The pace from both sides was blistering and both midfields were working overtime distributing the ball to the flanks or up through the middle. Rams coach Peter Ware gave Layton Barton the difficult task of closing down Blues veteran playmaker Darren Beadow.

It seemed like the Rams defensive wall of Ian Lennie and Shaun Packham was impenetrable and gave great confidence to the Rams attackers. The Blues strikers Beadow, Jake Nind and Nathan McCann kept bombarding the Rams defence at every opportunity and Rams keeper Pierce Essery had to pull off some great saves for what would have been certain goals, while Byron’s Tommy Ruhl, Sammy Owens, Tim Knight and Sam Robson blasted the other end. The battle of the midfield was really intense with Rams Victor Pires, Aaron Richter-Steers, Lachlan Dewar and Jonathan Pearce matching tackle for tackle with Thistles’ Max Hospers, Dustin Rudgley, Matt Weir and Darren Beadow.  However at the ½ time whistle it was still anyone’s game and 0-0.

Pierce Essery (image: dogwhistle)

Both coaches made some changes for the second half however the deadlock remained until the 62 minute mark when Barton sent a lofted pass to Owens on the left flank. He ran the ball 30 metres past 2 defenders and slammed it into the net past Blues keeper Nick Baker 1-0. Just 3 minutes later Thistles’ Matt Weir tried to even the score after the referee awarded a penalty from a defensive error in the Rams penalty box. With nerves of steel Essery got a hand to Weirs penalty and in the melee that followed he was forced to deflect other Thistles shot 3 seconds later. It seemed to be the turning point in the game and Byron took control of the ball.  10 minutes later Knight broke away down the right flank for the Rams and sent a cross to Owens, he flicked a short pass to Barton in a goalmouth rumble with Blues’ Max Hospers; Barton’s shot eventually found the net.

At the 79 minute mark, Sammy Owens found space again on the Rams’ left flank. With blinding pace he took on the Blue’s defence all on his own and slammed his shot past Baker the keeper, who was just off his line. The Rams supporters went wild and the usually vocal Thistles crowd went strangely quiet for the remainder of the game. Thistles tried in vain to find a way through the rock solid Rams’ defence in the last 10 minutes and the final score remained at 3-0.

Tim Knight and Zac Wilson (image: dogwhistle)

The crowd was thoroughly entertained and even many of the Thistles Supporters will be at the Grand final on Anzac Day to watch the Park Hotel sponsored Byron Bay Rams fight it out with the winner of the other semi final between Lismore Workers Club and Alstonville on April 4th.

Rick Knight

Check out all the photos from the game »

Tommy Ruhl (image: dogwhistle)

A Byron Bay Rams Premier division football squad unbeaten run to the Anzac Cup semi finals was looking shaky on Sunday. The Rams went into the match against the newly promoted Lennox Head Sharks as firm favourites on recent form however the Sharks had other ideas. The players found it hard to control the ball on the very soft and wind blown Skennars Head pitch. With just two minutes gone Sharks striker Paul Kirkland forced his way through a complacent and unprepared Rams defence and scored their first goal. The shocked Rams side rallied, and then started to take control and didn’t seem to let the 1 goal deficit worry them.

The wind and very soft ground was playing havoc with the passing accuracy but it didn’t stop the attacks on goal and the Rams had by far the lion’s share of possession and although their build ups were good they were rushing their final shots and passes. However at the 20 minute mark Rams coach Peter Ware made a tactical substitute, bringing on new signing Lachlan Dewar into the midfield.  Immediately after, Tommy Ruhl was able to break free down the right flank evading three defenders and firing a scorcher into the Sharks net to even the score. Within 2 minutes Ruhl had scored his second goal after Dewar showed deft skill busting past three players in the Lennox defence. He flicked it on to Ruhl standing in front and he made it look easy just tapping it past the Sharks keeper to take the lead 2-1. The Rams started to settle into a rhythm and Sharks defenders Jonathan Green, Alex Ohm and Micky Rayburn were starting to have to work really hard to stave off the constant attacks from the Rams playmakers Jonno Pierce, Sam Robson, Sammy Owen and Yantra Whitling.

Daniel Benseley (image: dogwhistle)

In the second half the Rams really showed their dominance with the ball passing and creating chances at will. Their midfielders Victor Pires, Aaron Richter-Steers, Layton Barton and Dewar overpowered the Lennox attacks.  Early on in the half Rams flanker Herick Schuenemann took a beautiful ball down left wing and crossed to mercurial striker Ruhl manoeuvring in front of goal he put it in the net for his hat trick. The sharks didn’t give up hope and although they were outclassed, saw the Rams were relaxing.  A technical foul with a pass back by the Rams keeper resulted in a free kick and Sharks big striker Paul Kirkland slammed it into the net to reduce the deficit 3-2.

Sam Robson (image: dogwhistle)

The sharks were looking for a bit more luck and found it with just 5 minutes to play with the Rams keeper beaten and an almighty strike on the goal. Unfortunately for the Sharks it ricocheted off the crossbar and the Rams had an uneasy few minutes till the final whistle and a final score of 3-2.  After the game both coaches made the comment that Byron deserved to win however Football is a fickle game and although Byron was much more dominant, it could have easily been a draw at the end.  Rams coach Peter Ware was adamant with his team “we must never again underestimate any team in this competition or we will pay a heavy price”.

Next Sunday the Park Hotel sponsored Rams will take on the strong Lismore Thistles squad in a do or die match to determine one of the Anzac Cup grand finalists.

Rick Knight