A strong first-half performance has helped Melton Mustangs cement their spot in Hockey Victoria’s Premier League 2 top four.
The fourth-placed Mustangs beat fifth-placed MHSOB 2-1.
Mustangs co-coach Ron Shadbolt said the match could have been over in the first half if his side had converted in front of goal.
“It was a pretty even match, but it shouldn’t have been,” Shadbolt said. “We had 33 circle entries, which is a massive amount, and they only had six. We dominated with the ball for 40 of the 70 minutes. We weren’t efficient in front of goal and missed four or five easy chances.”
The win opens up a five-point gap between the Mustangs and the chasing pack.
And just three points separates the Mustangs and second-placed WestVic Hockey.
Shadbolt said it would be difficult to maintain the margin between the Mustangs and the teams outside the top four, but he had faith the side would make finals.
He said the club’s senior side had so far performed better than expected.
“If the girls play to their potential we should make finals and finish third or fourth,” he said.
“We had expectations that both our first and reserves teams could make finals. We thought our reserves side had potential to win the flag. Both teams are still in the hunt and we should have at least one team make it.”
At the weekend, the reserves – sitting in fourth – had a 3-0 win over second-placed MHSOB.
Shadbolt said he and women’s program co-coach David Gorton had worked hard with the players in the off season.
“We worked on a lot of technical things with the women’s teams,” he said.
“We developed a completely new game plan and it’s becoming successful for them.
“It’s all about skills – we’ve worked tirelessly on them.”
The Mustangs next game is against bottom side Gippsland Bulls on Sunday in Drouin.
