NPL: Hume City suffers a Devil of a loss at home

Hume City suffered a shock 1-0 home loss to Ballarat Red Devils in the National Premier League on Sunday.

City coughed up the only goal of the game at Broadmeadows Valley Park to Paul Harvey in the 18th minute.

It was a surprise result, considering the travelling Red Devils are mired in a relegation battle and are eight places below City on the table.

Hume will have to get over the upset in quick time, with A-League club Melbourne City arriving at Valley Park for a friendly tonight.

City’s next league game will be at home to Heidelberg United at 3pm on Sunday.

In NPL1, Whittlesea Ranges triumphed 4-3 in a goal-fest over Richmond Eagles at Epping Stadium on Friday night.

The Ranges sealed a memorable victory when Stjepan Trbuhovich scored the winner three minutes from the end.

Ranges held sway early with goals from Girolamo Costanza and Kliment Dimitrieski in the first 15 minutes.

But the Eagles, sixth on the ladder and the more fancied of the two sides, refused to roll over.

They got a goal before the break to halve the deficit and even when Daniel Sotiropoulos fired Ranges 3-1 ahead, the visitors were able to mount a spirited comeback. Two goals in three minutes early in the second half locked it up at 3-3.

In state league 2, Sporting Whittlesea stuck to the form guide with a 2-0 win over relegation-threatened Heidelberg Stars on the road at Cartledge Reserve.

Fourth-last Hume United could still get sucked into the drop zone after a 1-0 defeat to second-placed Corio and now has a crucial game against Yarraville Glory at McIvor Reserve on Saturday.

In state league 3, Whittlesea United finished the game with 10 men but came away with a 4-3 win over Geelong Rangers in a topsy turvy affair at Myers Reserve.

Sinan Mirik and Tansel Baser each scored doubles for United.

Lalor United kept its slim promotion hopes alive with a 2-1 win over Western Eagles at Uren Reserve.

In state league 4, Upfield is on the verge of the title after a courageous 2-1 win over second-placed Darebin United away at Mayer Park, giving it a five-point lead at the top of the table.