Laser Plumbing Gore Wanderers and McIntyre Dick Thistle closed the gap at the top of the Southland Express Donald Gray League to three points.
Gore Wanderers beat Southern Steel Windows Old Boys and Thistle beat Kowhai Roofing Waihopai, to keep pressure on league leaders Level One Queens Park, who had the bye. A Rithvy Goundar double was enough to get Gore across the line in a tough encounter against Old Boys in Gore that looked to be heading towards a stalemate with six minutes to go until Goundar stepped up to grab his second after Sam Christie had restored parity for the Waverley Park men on the 60-minute mark.
Old Boys will be disappointed not to back up their win against Thistle last week, whereas Gore will be delighted to have got all three points to remain in the running, sitting just above Thistle on goal difference.
It was a different story in the Friday night game at the ILT Turf, where a Jose Rodriguez hat-trick in the first 30 minutes opened the floodgates for Thistle who comfortably dispatched Waihopai AFC 6-0 to remain in touch in the league contest.
Lars Meehan, Lewys McLaren and Zhifang Wang were also on target to heap further misery on the Surrey Park men.
Thistle heads to Queens Park in another Friday night fixture this week, hoping to take all three points to join Park at the top of the table.
Old Boys entertain Waihopai at Waverley Park on Saturday, with Gore having the bye this week.
Cruickshank Pryde Lawyers Old Boys beat Grants Braes 5-0 in their Fletcher Cup league tie at the weekend which sees them joint second after nine games with the Waverly Park men entertaining Green Island in Invercargill this weekend.
In the Southern Football Development League, Old Boys came out on top in the Invercargill Derby against Queens Park, and in the Kate Shepherd Cup, Queens Park’s run ended in a 2-0 defeat away to Dunedin City Royals.
In the Kolk Cup, Kingsgate Hotel Te Anau Wyndham Town’s 10-0 defeat of Malloch McClean Waihopai Woman kept them in touch, by a point, with league leaders iHire Thistle FC who had the bye, but also a game in hand. Gore beat Southend 8-0 in the other recorded fixture, four points off the league leaders.
In the SPL, Queens Park had a break due to the Chatham Cup, but resume league duty with a top of the table clash away to Mosgiel this Saturday.
- By Chris Montgomery
