Striker seeks clean start
NEW BLOOD: Refreshed recruit ready for goal action
A REFRESHED Kyle Markham is confident he can help Geelong’s push for a top-six spot now that he is fully fit.
The striker joined the Lions in the recent transfer window, moving to the region from Adelaide. But an ankle injury left him on the sidelines shortly after scoring his first goal for the club in an FFA Cup game.
Markham netted a brace in his starting return to Geelong’s XI last week and admits he is eyeing more goals ahead of tomorrow’s clash with Moreland City.
“Definitely,” Markham said when asked if last week’s performance would be used as a building block for the rest of his season.
“It was ridiculous (to get injured), especially at training. I’m just happy I came back and scored last week so I can just get straight back into it now.”
Markham admitted things had got stale in Adelaide and a move to Geelong presented an opportunity to breathe life back into his career.
“I wasn’t really enjoying Adelaide much anymore and was keen on a new change. Geelong was somewhere where I have never been before, something a bit different,” Markham said.
“I found out (about Geelong’s interest) a month, three weeks before I came.
“Melbourne has a reputation of having the best league in the Australia, so I was keen to give it a crack. I’ve played NPL in Adelaide and NPL in Queensland, so I thought I’d give it a crack.”
Markham admits he doesn’t know anything about Moreland City, allowing him to go into the game without any preconceived idea on how it defends.
“In Adelaide I knew every team and every player. So you can get a little bit in your own head if you know you are against a good defender … you battle yourself,” he said.
“Sometimes it’s good to know what you have to do. But now I don’t know anything, which is good because I am focusing on myself.”
Geelong slumped to eighth on the NPL2 table courtesy of last week’s 3-2 loss to Whittlesea Ranges, but it remains just one point from sixth-placed Brunswick City.
Markham knows how quickly the club’s fortunes can change.
“The games I have played, I don’t see much difference in the teams, really. It’s just been luck, or mistakes, or stuff like that that are getting teams three points,” he said.
“If we cannot concede, it would be nice (and would help us secure more points).”