In a side that still has missing pieces left to complete the puzzle, Heidelberg United fell to its second defeat away from home against Green Gully last night at Green Gully Reserve.
Only one change was made to the side that eased past Altona Magic in the previous match, it was Luka Ninkovic who got the nod ahead of James Demetriou, with the latter sitting on the bench.
Tricky conditions under the floodlights met the teams, with the Bergers looking to take advantage of a relatively sturdy breeze. In the early exchanges, they certainly were made to work hard for it.
Just before the half hour mark, Adrian Zahra’s great cross found Ninkovic, who headed home his first goal of the campaign, with the new look team putting up a solid effort in the first half.
It was a contrast to the second half, as Heidelberg United was left bewildered as to how it conceded two goals, the first to Fletcher & the second a touch of ill fortune – an own goal by Ajdin Fetahagic.
The biggest opportunity came to Lucas Derrick who curled a right footed shot toward the top corner, but was unfortunate as it was well saved.
George Katsakis and his rejuvenated Warriors side will take some time to gain a more consistent run of form and results. Some of the pre-season acquisitions are showing impressive signs despite the team falling short with its second narrow loss of the season.
Heidelberg United will be hoping to bounce back immediately with an away trip to Dandenong City next Friday night. The squad should be boosted with the likely return of stalwarts Josh Wilkins and Harry Noon to give the side some added power and strength.
Match Details:
Green Gully 2 (Fletcher 70’, OG Fetahagic 83’) – Heidelberg United 1 (Derrick 29’)
Team Line Up:
GK – 1 – Chris Theodoridis
3 – Les Doumbalis
5 – Ajdin Fetahagic
7 – Reuben Way (capt)
8 – Dusan Bosnjak (18 – Anthony Theodoropoulos 65’)
9 – Adrian Zahra
10 – Jack Petrie (21 – Aamir Abdallah 76’)
11 – Lucas Derrick
13 – Lachlan Barr
19 – Sean Ellis
20 – Luka Ninkovic (22 – James Demetriou 61’)
Substitutes Not Used:
GK – 63 – Nick Eres
4 – Christopher Dib
