Leichhardt roaring in run to the finals
LEICHHARDT has re-established itself as the premier threat to Edge Hill United, but there is a sense this Lions outfit is yet to hit its stride in a warning sign for the FNQ Premier League.
But the message couldn’t be more different for Stratford, which needs to find a solution - and fast - to its worrying form slump.
The Lions roared at Nick Brko Field on Saturday, overturning an early deficit to smash a slipping Stratford 6-2, while cementing themselves again as one of the true powers of this league.
In isolation, the four-goal drubbing away from home is
as positive a sign as Leichhardt coach Karl Bennett could want with one full round left.
Alex Russell, Cody Eszes and Declan McAllister were among those to find the back of the net, Seamus Fowler was his usual dangerous self at the front while Josh Mulla, Fox Slotemaker and Ben Della Ricca were superb in the back half of the field.
Russell, who finished with a brace, said it was an encouraging performance which showed what they are capable of when they click as one unit.
And he reserved extra praise for Della Ricca, who has evolved into one of the league’s underrated players.
“Ben, his workrate in the past few games, his tackling
and covering and the things that are a bit ugly in the game, he’s done really well,” Russell said. “The attacking players get the plaudits, scoring goals, but he’s solid.
“You know him, Josh and Fox in the middle, they’re just strong, and that helps us because it’s a good base to work off, and it gives the rest of the lads more of a licence to go forward.”
Leichhardt missed a few of their chances in the first half of the contest but were at their decisive best in the second stanza, burying their chances as everything clicked.
“We keep having lads working away and things, we’re changing three players a game at times,” he said.
“To play like that when we had lads who haven’t played for a few weeks, and came in and did superb, and then the lads who play more regularly are getting more rhythm going with our play.
“We know where lads are running, and our attacking play was really good.
“The most pleasing thing is we scored a few goals, and that’s good for the lads’ confidence.”
Stratford, meanwhile, is searching for a way back after a horror month in which it has earned just four of a possible 12 points after its solid start to the campaign.
Communication was clearly identified as a problem in the immediate post-match chat on the field, and coach Rob Wales refused to use missing players or a changing lineup as an excuse.
“I think it has to mean a bit more to the players,” he said.
“I won’t say we’re missing players, that sounds like a cop-out. We had the players there to do the job, we just didn’t give effort.
“The desperation in the box was lacking, at both ends, and in the middle we gave them too much space.”
Wales said the communication issue is one they must address even if the younger players are naturally quiet, but it’s only one part of the puzzle they need to solve before they take on Edge Hill United on Saturday.