Getting a score such as 6-0 in any soccer match is a feat and a half. Getting two games with a high goal score of six is unbelievable.

Oakleigh Cannons are soaring high with goals, becoming the NPL’s highest scoring club. Their ladder position should be higher than South Melbourne’s with their goal difference, but they sit quietly at second after some pivotal mistakes.

Although they have never conceded a loss, they have two draws to their name in seven matches.

Last week they did it again, and scored a whopping 6-0 against Dandenon Thunder.

The same team had them in a vice just two weeks ago that ended in a 0-0 draw.

It’s something that weighs heavily on Cannon’s coach Miron Bleiberg.

“The team is in high spirits but it’s a double edged sword, because it happened to us before,” he tells Neos Kosmos.

“We beat Green Gully 6-1 and then we had a shocking match where we hardly finished 0-0 against Dandenong.

“I warned the boys, don’t make the same mistakes.”

Under the guidance of Bleiberg, the club has seen a renaissance. They finished below their ability at eighth last season. Bleiberg joined the Cannons in May
last year, and has struggled to get his way ingrained in an old team.

Now with the power to pick and choose his players, his philosophy is starting to show.

“I joined Oakleigh mid last year, the last year didn’t have good results because I didn’t have a good team,” he says.

“But it’s given me time to learn about the competition and the mentality, the players, the crowds.

“But I’ve only been here for two and a half years, if you compare me to South Melbourne’s Chris Taylor whose been here for 700 years, he knows the better
players,” he says with a laugh.

His forward line is his crowning glory, with his strikers making a huge impact in a match. The fact that opportunities are plentiful means everyone is doing
their job properly.

His team is a rare one in terms of its success. There are no A-League players that many of the more successful teams have been able to secure. The team is all local, and six players are from the Oakleigh U20s team, which didn’t finished too well last season.

It’s a testament to Bleiberg’s coaching prowess, being able to create brilliance with the right type of talent.

Last year, captain Evan Christodoulou wasn’t even considered for the bench until Bleiberg came along and noticed his potential.

“He’s got an engine that you never have to fill up with petrol,” Bleiberg says of Christodoulou.

Currently he uses four players each game for the full 90 minutes. Goalkeeper John Hondos, Christodoulou, and two poached Bentleigh players, Aaron
Wilford and Domenic D’Angelo.

“Every week it’s a bit of a struggle for me as a coach to select,” he says about the team.

“It’s a better problem to have more than less.”

Now as the club moves forward with a very strong footing, it might not be so premature to expect the Cannons in the grand final.

“I think the table is not lying at the moment,” he says.

“Results wise it looks like South Melbourne are the best team, football wise I think us and Bentleigh aren’t far behind.”

If their match on Friday went as planned, the Cannons will be cementing their ladder position even more. As South Melbourne and Bentleigh Greens duke it out on Sunday, someone will have to lose points, a win win for Oakleigh.

Will we see another 6-0 match from the Cannons? It’s likely, says Bleiberg.

“Because I’m playing tennis and I’m coaching soccer, it has to match,” he says.

“That’s the reason for the six, because I’m playing tennis a lot.”

With such good humour, the Cannons boys will be enjoying the season whichever way it goes.