Southern United returned to the Coastal Premier League Men’s winners circle with a comfortable 5-2 win over Taree Wildcats on Tuesday night.
The Ospreys were outclassed by Coffs City in round three, but they hit form against the luckless Wildcats who were again brave, but ultimately lacked the firepower needed to challenge their local rivals.
Wildcats coach Shannon Hall couldn’t fault the effort of his side and he felt they challenged Southern for as long as they could.
“Southern’s a good side. They’re well-drilled, their fitness is definitely tenfold above ours, but at the end of the day I’m happy with the result,” he said.
“We were in it longer than the score suggested. We pushed them for as long as we could.”
Adding to the Wildcats woes, Hall and Kyle Brady had to succumb to injuries at half-time which made the mountain impossible to climb.
“At the moment our biggest issue is depth. We were two short from our starting first grade side but on the bench the average age is 17 years old,” the coach said.
Ricky Campbell provided the shining light for the Taree side with a brace, but it wasn’t enough.
Hall felt the Ospreys would cause some headaches for the competition throughout the season although depth could bring about their undoing in the latter part of the campaign.
“I think the way the rules are, their issue will come down to depth because we can call on our younger teams and over-35s if we need,” he said.
“They’re a good side without a doubt, but I think they might come undone towards the end of the year just through sheer lack of numbers and with a few injuries.”
Taree have now conceded 18 goals in three games, but motivation remains of no concern to the coach at the moment.
“The motivation is not the issue, we just need to get on the paddock and let me teach them how I want us to play,” he said.
“We tried to play the way I wanted to play, but without the training and tactics they just didn’t understand it.”
Coastal Football Leagues 