Spring Hills made it five wins in a row with a hard-fought win against Golden Plains in FFV state league 4 west.
It wasn’t the Stallions best performance, but they did enough to grab a 2-1 win.
Stallions team manager Joe Febbraio said they would take the win, especially knowing they didn’t play their best.
“It was a pretty tough one,” he said. “The performance wasn’t in line with the way we had been playing the last four rounds.
“Golden Plains is better than their position on the ladder. Even though we beat them 5-1 last time, they were 1-0 up before they had a player sent off.”
The Stallions started the better of the two teams and were 2-0 early on before Golden Plains got one back before half-time.
Golden Plains continued to attack, but couldn’t find an equaliser as the Stallion defence held strong.
Febbraio said the Stallions lacked that cutting edge.
“We didn’t take our chances in the first half,” he said. “We were able to withstand the pressure and the keeper pulled off some really good saves.
“We’ve won five on the spin … there isn’t much to complain about.”
Rocky Calfapietra and Halil Hussein were the Stallions’ scorers.
The win keeps the Stallions in third spot, but they have played a game less than the sides around them on the ladder.
Western Eagles are clear on top, but the Stallions are looking at that second spot.
“It’s in our own hands and we give ourselves an opportunity to make the play-off finals,” Febbraio said. “We are fighting for that second spot.
“The style we’ve got this year is very different. We’ve been working on it since December and it’s now second nature. We just sometimes have to adjust to how the opposition is playing.”
In good news for the Stallions, their reserves are fighting for top spot and putting pressure on the senior players.
Febbraio said there was a really good feeling around the club
In state league 5 west, ladder-leaders Westside Strikers had a 2-1 win against Lara United.
Melton Phoenix’s good form continued with a 3-2 win against Kensington City. Phoenix is now up to eighth on the ladder.
The Stallions’ women’s side had a 3-1 loss to Point Cook in state league 3 west.
