Rebels a hard nut to crack

REBELS coach Mark Heath had credited a mighty defensive effort just before halftime as the catalyst for this team’s important 5- 1 triumph over Brothers.

The win keeps Rebels in touch with North Queensland Football Premier League pacesetters Warriors, who defeated Ingham 4- 0, and comes after Rebels endured a twoweek winless run which featured a 3- 3 draw against Burdekin and a 4- 2 loss to MA Olympic.

Rebels got their first goal midway through the opening half thanks to a spot kick from Francis Witt, and gained a 2- 0 advantage when Kristian Vecchio thumped home a shot from outside the 18- yard box.

Brothers soon pegged a goal back and then launched repeated attacks against Rebels, who Heath said were pushed to the limit defensively.

“They ( Brothers) were really starting to gain the ascendancy and we had our work cut out,” he said.

“It was a very important part of the game, most definitely.

“At halftime we spoke about being calm, remaining composed in front of goal and taking our chances.”

The talk clearly worked, with Rebels scoring at regular intervals after the break.

Liam Phelps scored a brace in the space of roughly 20 minutes to make it 4- 1, and Witt scored his second of the night near full- time to ice the comprehensive win.

“It was an important result because the last couple of weeks have been pretty tough – we took a few hits to our armour – so it’s good to get a bit of confidence back,” Heath said.

The round’s other two games were much closer contests, with Olympic downing Burdekin in Ayr 2- 1 and Wulguru edging out Saints to score a 1- 0 win at home.