Gippsland United Football Club was in action last weekend.
In the Under 12s pre-NPL Round 1 clash, the team faced strong opposition in their first match of the season, coming up against a very polished Bentleigh outfit.
The first half was all-out attack from the Bentleigh midfielders and forwards, which had the Gippsland defence of Oliver Lee, Liam Arbon, Beckham Bremner and Lewis Manzo working hard to repel many forward entries, and keeper Quinn Asmussen making numerous strong saves to hold the opposition at bay.
Striker Dino Grbic lifted morale in the first half with a stunning goal that beat the keeper, helping to bring belief and a renewed focus to the boys.
After regrouping at halftime with some instruction from coach Tony Manzo, the boys settled in the second half and were able to negate the midfield dominance of Bentleigh through the good work Sidney Box, Hudson Reiss, Lucas O’Dowd and Blake Breheny, holding possession for longer and starting to create runs and linking together to keep their shape.
This eventually resulted in a second goal to Grbic, who converted from a Hudson Reiss corner, giving him a brace and once again lifting the teams spirits.
Isaac Sharp and Harry Lee came into the game with their run and attack bringing support to the hard-working midfield and defence.
Romeo Vitale stepped into the role of keeper in the second half and was kept busy making repeated saves and defending well against quality opponents.
A far more confident and energetic second half meant the boys finished with positivity and took away a great learning experience against high-quality opposition despite losing 10-2.
In the Under 13s pre-NPL match, the team travelled to play against Dandenong City for Round 1 of their season.
This was the first real hit-out for the boys, who have only been together for six months as a squad.
The first half was a lively affair, with Dandenong City scoring early, which was then followed by another. But the Gippsland boys fought back and soon scored through Clay Diston-McCann.
An unfortunate deflection in front of goal saw City go into halftime 3-1 up.
Starting the second half, the boys appeared to be a bit flat-footed and second to the ball, which saw City score another three quick goals.
Diston-McCann stepped up to score a second-half hat-trick (bringing his tally to four goals for the day), inspiring the team to push hard to find the winners. Unfortunately, time beat them, with the final score being Dandenong City 6 – GUFC 4.
The team has a bye in Round 2 and will be back on the park in Round 3 versus Glen Eira.
The NPL Under 14’s, Under 15’s and Under 18’s commence their home and away season on Sunday (April 30).
