Waiuku make a meal of it against North Force

Waiuku are going through a mini injury blip at present which should relieve next week, however Mitchell Thomasen and Jamie Pegg both started on the flanks. Derek Sinclair dropped back into the midfield as Robbie Leonard did not recover from a knee injury and Simon Millynn started up front next to Cody Ralph. North Force who were at the start of play second of the table looked sharp and strong from the offset. Waiuku took the lead first though. The referee gave Waiuku a throw in when it should of gone the other way and they attacked quickly while North Force were still arguing the throw. Sinclair found the ball at his feet just outside the penalty area and he hit the ball with his left foot into the top left hand corner.

North Force struck back twice before half time with Scott Burgess scoring two identical goals from the right wing ghosting in and giving Phil van den Broek no chance. The second half started and still Waiuku were struggling to get hold of the ball. They drew level when Millynn got free on the left and his cross was finished by Thomasen for his first goal of the season. Waiuku were guilty of giving the ball away again and North Force scored again when Chris Peck met a cross and van den Broek could only guide it into the net. Waiuku were making a mess of this and again gave the ball away time after time. Robert Hatton came on in the 75th minute and the game changed.

Firstly Phil Donovan got down the left flank, squared the ball to Sinclair who pass into the path of Wayne Trout. With the goal begging Trout could only find the arms of the North Force keeper. With nearly the last kick of the game, Millynn floated a ball into the path of Sinclair who found himself one on one with the keeper. His lob went marginally wide and North Force hung on to the win which put them top of the table.

Coach Jim Evans was not happy with the display "We didnt really look like we wanted to be there today and we paid the price. North Force wanted it more, looked sharper and smarter when they were on the ball. We would not of deserved a draw or a win if we had finished the late chances and we will need to pick ourselves up for next weekend. Robert Hatton played 15 minutes but his contribution makes him man of the match.