Round 2 of the 2026 Illawarra Premier League provided more thrills and spills, with some impressive comebacks and high-scoring encounters.
Here is how all the action played out last weekend.
MATCH OF THE ROUND – South Coast United 2 Berkeley 3 @ Ian McLennan Park
Berekely produced a superb comeback to beat South Coast United and secure their first win of the season on Saturday evening.
United had a dream start to the match, opening the scoring within three minutes. Josh Keremelevski sprinted down the right wing and fired an effort goalwards, which Berkeley goalkeeper Damian Bedwell spilt into Stipe Simundic’s path for a simple close-range finish.
The home side continued their fast start and snatched a second goal in the 10th minute, through a sharp-finishing Anthony Vrlic, who reacted fastest in the box to a loose ball.
Berkeley almost responded in the 13th minute when striker Christopher Hollingshead flicked a right-sided cross narrowly wide.
The Goats continued to push for a route back into the game and put plenty of pressure on their opponents.
United remained a threat, particularly when using the pace of their attackers in behind the Berkeley defence. Vrlic looked to latch onto a ball in behind in the 26th minute, but Bedwell produced an important stop to keep the visitors in the game.
Berkely’s persistence paid off in the 32nd minute when fullback Luke Paull lashed a ball into the box from the right, which Hollingshead diverted in to halve the deficit.
The side kept up this pressure until the halftime whistle, with only some desperate United defending and top goalkeeping from Christopher Skara keeping the home side’s lead intact.
It took the visitors less than a minute to equalise after the break as Koran Gokturk picked up the ball on the right of the box and fired an accurate finish in off the right post.
The game became end-to-end after the equaliser as both teams pushed on in pursuit of a go-ahead goal.
Bedwell was called into action for the hosts again in the 56th minute, blocking Vrlic’s one-on-one effort.
Chances fell both ways, but the scores were still level heading into the final 15 minutes.
Berkeley’s moment came in the 79th minute through Justin Dukleski, who played the role of super sub to nod in what proved to be the winning goal.
Berkeley coach Darren Jones said he was pleased with his team’s fightback after a sloppy start to the game.
“The response after that [conceding two goals] was really good,” Jones said.
“We had a pretty disrupted preseason. We hadn’t played in three weeks before [Wollongong] United last week. So didn’t we didn’t really have the legs.
“There is a lot of quality in the boys, and we can score goals. We’ll get better and better.
“It will do the boys the world of confidence getting that result.”
Cringila Lions 5 Port Kembla 0 @ Crehan Park
Cringila responded to their narrow loss to Coniston in Round 1 with a resounding 5-0 victory over Port Kembla on Friday night.
Defender James Ralston got the scoring started for the hosts, finishing off a set piece three minutes in, before Keegan Matias buried a curling effort from the edge of the box to double the advantage.
Ralston grabbed his second midway through the first half, and Harrison Anagnostopoulos tapped in to give the Lions a four-goal lead at halftime in a ruthless 45 minutes from the side.
Ethan Kambisios rounded out the scoring in the 55th minute as he steered in a bullet header from a corner.
Bulli 1 Albion Park White Eagles 1 @ Balls Paddock
Bulli picked up their first point of the season in a 1-1 draw with Albion Park White Eagles on Saturday.
Bulli took the lead in the 17th minute when Zac McLaren clipped a deft pass in behind the right channel for Lewis Grimshaw, who blasted a fierce effort into the roof of the net.
The home side looked to add to their lead after a bright start, with superb goalkeeping from Cristofer Fuentes keeping the White Eagles in the game.
Albion Park battled to an equaliser 39 minutes in, as some neat interplay down the left resulted in Jayden Makowski driving a low strike past Daniel Collison from outside the box.
The teams were forced to settle for a point after no goals were scored in the second half.
Helensburgh Thistle 1 Wollongong Olympic 1 @ Rex Jackson Park
Helensburgh held Wollongong Olympic to a 1-1 draw on Saturday, a result that kept both teams unbeaten.
Michael McStay got the Thistle off to a lively start with a goal after just six minutes, but Olympic’s Jason Madonis restored parity in the game in the 37th minute.
The second half provided no further goals, meaning the points were shared.
Wollongong United 1 Tarrawanna 0 @ Macedonia Park
Wollongong United continued their perfect start to 2026, edging past Tarrawanna 1-0 at home on Saturday afternoon.
Sam Matthews grabbed the winning goal for the home side just after the half-hour mark.
The result keeps United at the top of the table as one of only two teams with 100 per cent records in the competition.
Coniston 4 Shellharbour 2 @ JJ Kelly Park
Coniston battled back from two goals down to secure an impressive 4-2 win over Shellharbour, making it maximum points for the side after two rounds.
An own goal from Jonah Kalamanidis, followed by Yugo Miyazaki’s strike, had the visitors two goals to the good within 10 minutes.
In the 14th minute, Tyler Fuller pulled a goal back, and before the half-hour mark, Coniston levelled the scores through striker Cameron Morgan.
The match remained locked at 2-2 until the 75th minute when Morgan popped up with his second goal of the afternoon. Seven minutes later, Toby Norval steered home a fourth goal for the hosts to secure the points.
