I took a couple of mates from the BOP up to the game
yesterday. It was a great night and the crowd was awesome.
Was the first game I’d seen live this season and was looking
forward to it.(Flying to Wellington is outrageously expensive from Tauranga and
having to add in accommodation makes it a killer. Gareth -do have any mates in
Air NZ who can fix this?)
What I saw was a team in another stage of evolution and
development – upwards.
I saw a 90 minute effort unlike any game this season. Without
exception everyone was committed to getting a result.
The Perth game showed signs of this, of what the whole squad
was capable of. The evidence of this was the fightback under tough physical conditions
and one man down. In these two games there was different type of confidence.
Last night in open play the guys when on the ball always had
two options there to support. The golden triangle.
Some of the skills from the midfield were outrageously good
in tight conditions. The passing was generally good but on occasions the defence
nodded off. Stuff to fix.
The midfield clicked well too and the rottie attitude of Cam
Devlin was memorable together with Matti and Ulises work rate.
The young guys with limited game time also fitted in with
confidence and did try to do stuff. Sure some of it didn’t pay off, but they aren’t
robots.Plenty of room for improvement.
Rome wasn’t builtin a day.
The team we as up against a very good side and getting a
result like that has to be very satisfying as we move to the business end of
the comp. Its a huge psychological boost for everyone and shows we are on track
to achieve a decent spot in the final 6 or higher.
Im not an apologist for Uffie. This was a great evening’s
entertainment that we should all celebrate.