Terrigal v Southern & Ettalong
Terrigal features in the MPL match of the round for the second consecutive week, after going down to rivals Killarney last weekend, the O’lads will face other fierce rivals in Southern & Ettalong at Duffys Oval this Sunday.
It was not their day last Sunday as a fatigued Terrigal side travelled to Edsacc Oval for a rematch of the 2022 MPL Grand Final. The O’lads conceded two goals inside the opening 15 minutes and would go on to lose to the Terriers 2-0.
A big part of their slow and sluggish game would come down to their Australia Cup battle mid-week where they forced NPL side NWS Spirit FC into extra time only to lose 2-0 after an intense 120 minutes of action.
Last Sunday marked their second loss of the year as Pete Edward’s side currently records a record of two wins and two draws as they sit outside the top four.
Their only other loss came via the hands of Wyoming who against all odds defeated the reigning premiers 3-2 back in round 2.
Last year Terrigal faced off with Southern three times, twice throughout the year and once in the finals. The two times these sides met during the winter competition, the Lions got the best of the boys in orange on both occasions, including an empathic 6-2 win in round 17.
However, Terrigal got the win when it mattered most, defeating Southern 2-1 in the first round of finals to eliminate the Lions as Terrigal went on to reclaim their title as the MPL premiers which they hope they will be able to repeat come Sunday.
Much like their opposition this week, Southern are also coming off a 2-0 defeat as they also played midweek which played an impact on their round 4 result.
The Lions claimed what they hope to be the first of many trophies this season last Tuesday when they met Division 1 side Budgewoi in the grand final of the 2023 Premier Autocare Association Cup.
Despite going down 1-0 the Lions rallied together to come back and win 3-2 in an extremely entertaining contest.
But Dale Eggleton’s side could not carry that momentum into their home clash against Berkeley Vale last weekend as the Wombats prevailed over the Lions 2-0.
That loss marked their first defeat of 2023 as Dale’s side will be eager to get back on the pitch and amend that result this weekend against their rivals Terrigal.
Despite the loss, Dale states his team has bounced back at training this week in preparation for their match with Terrigal. “The team has reacted well. We have identified a few areas that we need to improve on, we will work on these this week at training.”
“Our focus this week is to have a larger squad to select from as we have had a number of injuries and sickness over the past few weeks. Good news Sam Webb is starting to get match fitness back and is progressing well.”
Unfortunately, Veteran defender Matt Page will remain on the sideline for Southern this weekend as he continues to nurse an injury sustained early in their match against Budgewoi.
However, after being unable to find the back of the net in round 4, Southern will be looking at their experienced youngsters Jacob Lepre and Matt Caisley to get their goalscoring form back as the midfield duo both record three goals to their name already in the 2023 season.
“The squad has had a great preseason and it’s back to concentrating on our own performance and being in control of our game plan and structures,” voiced Dale.
Southern won’t need much motivation to get back to winning ways this weekend as they face the side that ended their 2022 season.
“Terrigal are a great opponent, and the games are normally high tempo and extremely competitive. We are looking forward to the game and have a few players that will be freshened up after missing last week and ready to get back to winning ways.”
All Round 5 Fixtures –
