Willowburn White fighting back
FOOTBALL: Willowburn White has gained the mental edge over Rockville heading the start of the TFL Premier men’s finals this weekend.
The Magpies came away with a 4-2 victory at Captain Cook Reserve in the final round of the regular season, moving them into third spot on the ladder.
It means they will again play Rockville this weekend, who dropped to fourth.
Despite finishing with a two-goal buffer, Willowburn White was made to work hard for the three competition points, finding themselves down 2-0 with 22 minutes after goals to Braiden Hinch and Jefferson Nunes De Oliveira.
Coach Mark Robinson praised the way his side was able to recover from the early deficit.
“They responded well to a very slow start form themselves personally,” Robinson said.
“We worked our way into the game with hard work and going back into the basics of how we’ve been training and playing all year.
“We didn’t panic. We knew that if we stuck to our gameplan we’d be okay.
“We’re an honest bunch of blokes and we know that we’re not guaranteed anything in this league. You have to work hard, whether you’re down 2-0 or up 4-2, you need to consistently perform at a high level because it can turn around really quickly.”
Brock Tuesley’s 39th minute strike helped them to stay within striking distance at half-time, before a double to Chris Veivers and another to Nathan Daly helped cap a memorable second half for the Magpies.
USQ FC solidified the minor premiership in style, with a 7-0 demolition of Gatton.
Despite having top spot sewn up in the Premier women, willowburn had to fight to down a spirited Highfields side.
The Magpies led for a majority of the contest, before Marlina-Rae Pern’s 84th minute strike set up a grandstand finish.
The minor premiers will now take on Rockville as they look to progress to the grand final, with the Rovers coming into the finals with plenty of momentum.
Rockville easily accounted for USQ FC to the tune of 9-2.