Rhys Cody and his Melton teammates went down to Surf Coast at the weekend. Photo: Damian Visentini
Injury-hit Melton couldn’t match it with Surf Coast in state league 4 soccer on Saturday, succumbing 2-1 – the club’s third loss in a row.
Melton coach Theo Karapanagiotidis praised his side for fighting out the match with a number of his best players watching from the sidelines.
“We’re absolutely decimated by injuries,” he said. “Five of my best six players were out.
“I really have a lot of admiration for the guys who played.
“It was quite hot and the refereeing wasn’t the greatest, but we fought to the very end.
“What makes it tough is that with a full squad I think we could have finished second or third.
“We can’t do anything about that now. We just have to get on with business.
“To the guys’ credit, they’re coming to training and they’re working hard, which is great to see.”
The loss keeps Melton in fifth spot on the ladder with a 10-9-2 record.
Phoenix will play the final match of the season at home this weekend, against 11th-placed Altona North.
Karapanagiotidis said he wanted to finish the season on a high.
“We want to win every game,” he said.
“The last couple of months have been hard. But if we can win the last game of the season, being at home it will be such a great end to the year.
“At the end of the day, you look at the year and you have your pros and cons, but three points in front of our home fans would be fantastic.”
In other state league 4 results from the weekend, Brimbank beat Laverton Park 4-2, Bell Park got the better of Point Cook 3-0, and Hoppers Crossing smashed Melbourne City 7-1.
