Change sparked by pain of defeat

A lesson for Leichhardt

A loss to its most fierce and hated rival triggered a disappoint form slump and losing run but Leichhardt coach Karl Bennett insists his team has turned a corner and is ready to take down Edge Hill United.

The FQPL Far North heavyweights will face off at Tiger Park on Saturday night in the Football Queensland Champions League.

The tournament will allow for a regional champion to face off against NPL opposition at the end of the season, which Edge Hill Utd did last year when it pushed Redlands in the inaugural final.

Leichhardt, which celebrated a 2-1 win against Edge Hill Utd in the FQPL Premier Men’s grand final just weeks beforehand, watched from afar as Redlands triumphed, and it wants to be the club which earns the opportunity to succeed in the format this year.

But first it must beat Edge Hill Utd for the first time since the grand final.

Edge Hill Utd has won both contests between the clubs this year but it was the 2-1 league loss which has sparked a slump which led to the biggest change at Leichhardt.

It wasn’t so much the margin, Bennett said, but the manner in which the defeat came.

“It put us back in our place,” Bennett said. “It probably showed a couple of people that we weren’t as far ahead as what we or they might’ve thought.

“We were 1-0 up at halftime, they had a player red carded so had 10 men for the whole second half, and they managed to come back and beat us.

“Looking back, they were the better team and deserved it.

“But the fact was, we got into a position where we should’ve won, but they showed up, they handled it better, and then they won the game.”

The loss was the first of three on the trot for Leichhardt as it subsequently fell to Innisfail Utd and Mareeba Utd.

But it sparked a turnaround at the club, with an adjustment to how they played, their attitude, and the very big addition of young star Seamus Fowler, who grabbed a four-goal haul against Stratford to end their losing streak.

“We’ve gone back to basics a bit since then,” Bennett said.

“We dropped off a bit, lost a bit of confidence, but we’re back to it now.

“Even last week, we only beat Redlynch 2-1, but I was happy with the way we played.”

There’s no rest for Edge Hill Utd, which is juggling league, Australia Cup and Champions League commitments, and while the casualty ward has ballooned, coach Crios O’Hare is backing his men to get their jobs done and, as they have done so often, rise above.

“It’s a difficult time of year … there’s no respite,” he said.

“It’s challenging with player availability and injuries, but that’s all part of the challenge.

“Both games against Lions have been battles, and we expect this to be no different.

“In cup games, experience is important. We have a big group of guys with experience but Charlie Beverley, our captain, has been big at the back, but everyone has a job to do.”

The club’s women’s teams face off at 5pm, the men at 7pm.