AFC Fury is an interesting club to travel to. Head out over the Kaimais, through Bethlehem and a short way later take a right and you'll find yourself in Te Puna, where Fury are based. Head past the rugby fields and tennis courts and a football field will appear. And it is here that the Stanley Group Matamata Swifts Federation 1 side found themselves this Saturday.

Like Matamata, Fury are a small club with a handful of junior sides to complement their senior teams. Unlike Matamata, however, Fury seem to struggle to get supporters down to the ground. Indeed, the Swift's travelling faithful outnumbered the local supporters by around 5 to 1. This was emphasised even more by the regular loud cheers from the nearby rugby club, who were having to charge visitors to use the car park!

That said, Fury have managed to field a very strong side in the competition this year. To say that there is an international feel to the team would be an understatement, as it appeared only 4 of the 15 man squad actually spoke English. But it is a recipe that is obviously working as Fury have, after a mid-season stumble, put themselves back on top of a congested Federation 1 table.

And it was this that the Swifts faced, looking to knock over league leaders for the second time in a row after toppling Ngongotaha from the top spot last week. Unfortunately, early indications were that it was going to be a struggle. The Swifts did manage to create the first clear cut chance of the match early on. Joe Freeman forced in error in the Fury backline, only to see his desperate shot slip just wide of the right-hand upright.

Apart from this early opportunity, however, this was a half, and indeed a game, dominated by a Fury side holding possession and a Matamata side not helping themselves with some sloppy passing when they found themselves with a chance to utilise their counter-attacking style of football.

Fury took the lead midway through the first half. A poor clearance gifted the home side a chance from the top of the box. The shot looked covered, but a deflection off a Swift boot helped the ball slide into the corner of the goal. Chances mounted for Fury as the half progressed but some desperate defending kept the scoreline at 1-0 at the half time break.

The second half progressed in similar fashion to the first. Matamata did improve, and saw some more of the ball, but rarely looked like posing a serious threat to the Fury goal. Fury continued to look likely at the other end, though it took a set play for them to find their second. A header was won from a corner kick, and the Swift's keeper could only manage to push the ball into the top of the net.

With the match seemingly progressing into a simple victory for the home side, the Swifts needed something special to spark them back into life. And they nearly got it from the bench. A well worked play down the left resulted in a switch from Peter McCoskrie which found substitute Adrian Naicker breaking down the right. His low drive beat the keeper and cannoned into the inside of the post but, unbelievably, bounced out and straight back into the arms of the keeper lying prone on the ground.

Fury killed the game off soon after, even if it did require some Swift generosity once again. It was a fairly harmless looking shot from outside the box which took another wicked deflection to send the keeper the wrong way. And a 3-0 scoreline was how the match finished.

It was a disappointing effort from the Swifts, especially coming off the high of their result last week. And yet, with no desire to hang around for too long at the site of such a performance, they could still only watch as their hosts quickly disappeared before them after the post-match speeches. Certainly, an interesting trip all round.

In the other results this weekend, the Peter Vossen Builders Federation 2 side couldn't keep pace with high flying Hukanui-Rototuna, managing just 4 yellow cards in response to the 6 goals scored (all in the first half) by the home side.

The Challenge Swifts Ladies side travelled to Hamilton Wanderers and, facing new opposition for the first time in 4 weeks, played out an exciting and entertaining match. Striker Sarah Coppard was just a toe away from giving the Swifts an early lead, but goals in both halves gave the hosts a 2-0 victory in a tightly contested affair. The side continues to show improvement, with top performances across the park. Kerrie Cox and Chloe Verstraten got special mentions, but it was Morgan Norris who took player of the day honours with a stand out match in a solid backline.

Next week sees all teams at home. Both the Federation 2 side (12.30pm) and Federation 1 side (2.45pm) meet Cambridge in the big local derby on Saturday, while the Ladies will face Huntly at 11am on Sunday.