The dreaded 2-0 scoreline came back to bite Macleay Valley Rangers where it hurts when they conceded three second-half goals to lose 3-2 to Northern Storm on Saturday.
Coach Jason Coleman admitted it all went wrong in the second half after Rangers appeared to have the match under control when they went to the sheds with a 2-0 advantage.
Defensive errors didn’t help Rangers cause and the second-last placed Storm took full toll and Coleman acknowledged it was a match that gave Rangers a good kick.
“Absolutely it’s a kick in the a**,” he said.
“I’ve said all along I’m going up there to win the competition and you’ve got to execute and take those opportunities to win the game, it’s as simple as that.”
A failure to execute in the first half kept the Storm in the contest and once they scored the first goal they grew in confidence.
Rangers also helped their opponents cause with some flimsy defending.
“We kept on losing the ball out of the middle and we gave away ill-discipline in a couple of areas and once they got to two-all we sent numbers forward and got caught out again,” Coleman said.
“That’s where we’re at.”
The defeat ended a sequence where Rangers had picked up points in six of their previous eight matches.
Their only two defeats in that time were to top two sides Coffs City United and Coffs Coast.
“You’ve got to play for 90 minutes, not 50 minutes and that’s where we’re at,” Coleman said.
“We’re starting really well and then we’ll have a period of the game where we’ll lose focus a bit and teams will make you pay if they’re good enough.
“It definitely gives you a kick up the a*** and the players felt that.”
The Kempsey side’s chance of bouncing back will get a significant test this Saturday when they host undefeated ladder-leaders Coffs City United.
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