Charman boys steal the show

THE Charman boys stole the show for the Bandits on Saturday, spearheading Burringbar to a comprehensive 2-0 triumph at home to derby rivals Uki in the FFNC first-division minor semi-final.

Callum Chapman delivered the decisive corners that provided a first-half goal to Luke Callaghan and second-half header to Joel Davison, but it was the Charman trio who tore strips off the Pythons.

While Nathan and Dean dished up their usual five-star performances, brother Glenn played with the passion and enthusiasm of two men.

“The Charman boys were outstanding, particularly Glenn, who was just a 120 per cent powerhouse all day,” team manager Keith Armstrong said. “Luke (Callaghan) and our skipper Michael (Williams) really distributed well, too, and held us together in the midfield while one of our new guys, Daniel Sage, did a lot of work up front.”

Having not lost to the Pythons in 2010, the fourth-placed Bandits ran out on to a Burringbar Sports Complex oozing with confidence in front of home fans.

However, it was fifth-placed underdogs Uki who should have opened the scoring, squandering three genuine chances up front in the opening 15 minutes.

With their finals' futures on the line, both sides battled ferociously to gain the upper hand but it was the hosts who always looked most likely.

They broke the deadlock five minutes before the break and extended it midway through the second half to put the result beyond doubt, and put an abrupt end to Uki's season.

“It was a great local derby,” Armstrong said. “The boys were all fired up and both sides played really well.

“We just put it together a bit better to finish our goals.”

Burringbar will tackle South Lismore next week, Souths having lost to Lennox Head 8-1 in the major semi-final.