Bentleigh Greens managed to do something only one team in the whole of the NPL season has done. Beat South Melbourne.
The Greens shook off their Oakleigh Cannons defeat last Sunday and brought their A-game to Kingston Heath Reserve, forcing South Melbourne into submission.
South coach Chris Taylor made only one change from the starting eleven that defeated Pascoe Vale 0-3 last Friday but saw the Greens take three points early in the second half with a superb team goal, finishing 2-1.
The Greens now have third placed Heidelberg United to consider before they can really start deciding who will play in the FFA Cup match against Blacktown City in Sydney.
Greens coach John Anastasiadis is back from Greece and will be a major help to the team, who haven’t had much consistency since his departure last month.
The battle for third will be the blockbuster match of the weekend, and with Heidelberg United seeing another win last Sunday against Melbourne Knights, the game will be a tough one to predict.
It’s no secret Anastasiadis will be managing his players to maximise the best outcome for Sydney, but to keep his team in the running for top three in the NPL, the match can’t be used lightly.
Oakleigh Cannons are still in the running to surpass South Melbourne, and are the biggest threat to the teams around them.
The Cannons will want to ensure they maintain their momentum as they take on Pascoe Vale on Sunday in what will be quite an easy match for them. They won’t be so lucky this weekend with South Melbourne, who are expected to get back to winning ways against eleventh placed Werribee City.
Coach Taylor thinks the title is very much in their grasp.
“It’s still in our hands to win the league, we need to bounce back with a win on the weekend and try and stay ahead of Oakleigh.”