NUAFC 1968-2018

1977
With a $1 entry fee, 50 cents
will go towards the building fund and
50 cents towards the prize money being
two-thirds for first and one-third for
second place.
An interesting afternoon is
assured at Centennial Park on Sunday
afternoon where visitors will be able to
see the progress on the new United
clubrooms.
2 Points at Last For Ngaruawahia
Following an endless string of
defeats, dotted with one or two draws,
Ngaruawahia-Affco United 1st division
soccer team brought home two points
from their Unicol clash at the Waikato
University on Saturday.
Heartened by their good
showing against Claudelands the
previous week (losing 0-2) they
gradually overwhelmed the fifth-place
holder until the final 15 minutes of the
match. United were stumbling over
their numerous shooting opportunities
and unable to add to their 2-0 win.
Both goals came from the snappy boot
of McLennan.
More authority came from
mid-field for United with Malcolm
Burt leading out in turning defensive
situations to advantage through Ray
Guy and Jason Cargo in midfield.
Special mention must go to the
understanding that was apparent
between right half Ray Guy and right
wing Steve Williams whose
combination shows great potential.
This win doubles United’s
points at the bottom of the table.
60
Ngaruawahia-Affco
United
Reluctant to Shoot
The Huntly Press
Wednesday July 20th, 1977
Ngaruawahia-Affco United
seemed extremely reluctant to test the
Tokoroa goalkeeper from other than
close range on Saturday in the Northern
League 4th division soccer
competition. On the only occasion that
they got close enough to be a danger
Charlie Gorman scored from a rightwing
cross.
Remembering their 0-9 loss to
Tokoroa at the beginning of the season,
United were determined to eliminate
the memory and looked very confident
throughout the match. Tokoroa scored
from an inside-right drive that sped
through a packed defence and beyond
the fingertips of the United keeper.
In the second half Gorman got
the equaliser and it looked as though
United might come out with at least
one point, but shortly after Tokoroa
netted their second with a well-placed
drive to the far post. At this stage John
Brown was causing concern in the
Tokoroa defence with his attacking free
kicks that were lofted from 40 yards
out to the top corners of the net in such
a manner that the keeper could not hold
the ball and had to palm them wide.
Tokoroa sewed it up when a
striker beat the advancing United
keeper to a ball on the edge of the area
and toed it over his head for a 3-1 win.
Tim Coyne, defender, was awarded
player of the day with his consistency
in the backs, breaking up numerous
attacking drives. He was well
supported by Bowers, Carrigan and
Murray who are settling in as a solid
defensive wall. Gorman, Sowerby and
Bullivant showed improved
understanding on the right with
Sunnex and Brown working hard also.
If United can hold the current
formation and allow it to settle in, they
should have more success in future.
Ngaruawahia-Affco
United Collects
6th Point of the Season
The Huntly Press
Wednesday July 27th, 1977
Waikato 1st Division
Ngaruawahia-Affco United
picked up their 6th point of the season
with a fine 1st division display against
Tokoroa in Ngaruawahia on Saturday.
Having had a long run of losses in the
Waikato 1st division soccer, United are
making a late run in lifting themselves
off the bottom, even though there is no
relegation at stake.
Ray Guy, looking like a
dehydrated hippopotamus in the mud,
executed a tidy one-two with Brian
McLuskie to open the scoring for
United in the 6th minute. Ray is
looking more relaxed on the field in
these latter matches and his football is
improving accordingly.
Tokoroa equalised with a
superb drive to take the game into the
second half. United had the chances but
not the finish and it was left to linkman
Jason Cargo to win the game 2-1
with a fine lobbing drive from 35
metres out when he saw the Tokoroa
keeper off his line.
Player of the day went to a
hard-working Malcolm Burt whose
work-rate contributed mightily to the
win.
Penalty Winner
As a money-raising venture,
Ngaruawahia-Affco United conducted
a penalty-kicking competition on
Sunday followed up with an informal
soccer match.
Veteran Ian Todd won the
competition with 14 of 15 kicks,
closely followed by Malcolm Sowerby
and Ray Guy. Proceeds from the
afternoon went into the building fund.
The United clubhouse has
progressed to the stage where the first
blockwork has been completed and the
second floor framing well in progress.
The flooring joists are ready to be
covered and the mezzanine floor beams
almost in place. The club will soon be
the proud owners of one of the finest
clubrooms in the Waikato.
Teams splash to draw
Waikato Times
August 1st 1977
Waikato Unicol and
Ngaruawahia-AFFC0 United should
have taken a roll-call after their
Northern fourth division soccer
match on Saturday --- to
check if any players were lost
believed drowned.
The pitch at Centennial Park,
Ngaruawahia, was that bad it was
amazing any soccer at all could be
played in between the water polo
and human scrambling.
It was the only Northern League
game to be played in the Waikato on
Saturday and ended in a 1-1 draw.
Both goals came from penalties,
but from the sideline Unicol's spotkick
seemed more deserved than
United's.
Leaving the justification of the
penalties aside, Unicol had more to
offer the game in terms of positive
play and was a more balanced side
than its opponent.
United relies heavily on the talents of
one man, its captain John Brown.
Whether he plays in defence, midfield
or attack he always seems to strengthen
the area he is playing leaving the
other two areas looking ordinary.
On Saturday he played a sweeping
role at the back, as he had done the
previous week against Kelston, and
this was a wise move under the conditions
where both teams needed
someone steady in defence to keep
mistakes to a minimum.
Alongside Brown, Graeme Bowers
contributed well in keeping Unicol
out but up front United seemed devoid
of any ideas of how to play on the
boggy ground.
United's most promising attempts at
goal were generally restricted to free
kicks which Brown floated into the
area to put pressure on Unicol's
keeper Arthur Grimes, who faced the
obvious hazard of trying to catch the
greasy ball cleanly.
As befits a student side, Unicol
showed more thought in adapting to
the conditions and used its flanks —
where the water was ankle deep
instead of almost knee deep as it was
in the centre.
Keith Orr served well as a link man in
the middle to feed Unicol's nimble