NORTH HAPPY TO HUNT EAGLES
NORTH Geelong has avoided a matchup against a fellow NPL team for its Round 5 FFA Cup clash, drawing Keilor Park in what shapes as a winnable game for the boys from Elcho Park.
The Warriors are in cracking form off the back of their 5-2 win against Werribee City last week and will meet the Eagles later this month.
Coach Zeljko Gagula was watching the draw late on Monday and admitted he was relieved with the way the cards fell for his team.
“It was the last couple of minutes and we hadn’t been drawn out, and then all of a sudden I heard North Geelong, but there was only three balls left,” Gagula said.
“Of those three balls, one was Preston Lions, one was Oakleigh Cannons and the other one was Keilor Park, who we drew. So I was happier with that from what the options were.
“But it is a game we are still going to have to go out there and win and they are a State League 1 side. Some of the other NPL sides got easy games and some got tough games, so I suppose it is true what they say about the luck of the draw.
“But we would be confident.
“We can’t be afraid of a side like them, but on the day you never know what can happen. If we get into the next round — which we are hopeful of — we may get a favourable draw again and get into the quarter-final.
“We want to get into the quarterfinal and for us that would be like a grand final, because if you win that you go into the last 32 with the ALeague clubs, which would be something really positive for the club.”
The Warriors suddenly find themselves in fifth spot on the NPL2 table following their weekend result and now take on Moreland City this Saturday.
Another win could see North Geelong move into third if other results fall its way, but Gagula said his players knew they still had plenty to work on.
“Speaking to the players on Monday night when we did our review, they were disappointed with some of their performances,” he said.
“Some of them said they hadn’t made so many mistakes in such a long time and generally our defence is our cornerstone.
“I know we won the game comfortably but quite a few players made a lot of errors that they generally wouldn’t so from that point of view there will definitely be improvement.”