Drouin encounter tough day
The Drouin Dragons Soccer Club played at home against highly ranked Rowville.
The theme of the day was frustration, with Drouin Dragons welcoming Rowville Eagles to the den. Rowville are second on the ladder and have beaten some good teams this season, so Drouin knew they had a tough day ahead.
Reserves
This game had a strange feel about it with Rowville being an older experienced team and Drouin being a young inexperienced team.
The game started with Rowville knocking the ball around the Drouin lads with Rowville hitting the cross bar 3-4 times in the first 15 minutes.
The message from Andy Bowmar and Greg Wyatt was to settle down and follow the ball the game, at half time it was all Rowville, having a 1-0 lead.
In the second half Drouin started to get hold of the game with younger legs making a difference with both teams creating chances.
Drouin new boy Michele Liere scored. The game was sloppy and finished 2-2.
Seniors
This game started faster and with more purpose and aggression than the reserves, with both teams holding shape and moving the ball well.
Rowville were a little sharper and quicker, but Drouin backed each other and held shape and Drouin started to gain more passion, looking the better team. At half time the game was 0-0.
Drouin’s team talk was about working hard for each other and making Rowville work harder to find space pressing them harder and tighter.
Drouin carried on where they left off first to the ball not being pushed around and Rowville was getting very frustrated, but at the 60-minute mark it went wrong for Drouin.
With a 10-minute lack of concentration, Rowville punished Drouin in quick succession, five goals one after one and that was the only time of the whole 90 minutes that Rowville got the better of Drouin.
But the game is 90 minutes not 80, so Drouin will work hard in training this week to ensure 100 per cent focus.
Rowville coach had very high praise coming from the very established club.
“If Drouin play like that all the time they will do very well in this league,” he said.
Player awards: Simon Henry, Frank Pitsiano, Lee Yuill.
Cobras strike
Meanwhile, Warragul United went down to Caulfield Cobras 2-1 in a tight tussle.
Warragul hit back in the second half after the Cobras had kicked out to a 2-0 lead, but couldn’t equalise.