Whittlesea Ranges coach Vinko Buljubasic has mixed feelings about how the Ranges’ National Premier League 2 season has panned out.
Initially, there’s disappointment. After setting themselves for the NPL 2 west title, the Ranges will ultimately only finish in the middle of the pack.
But looking more closely, Buljubasic said he was proud of the side, especially in the second half of the season.
“We thought we could have challenged for the title,” he said.
“But under the circumstances with the players we lost in the transfer period and injuries, we’re happy.
“We lost five players to transfers which is nearly half the team. Then we had two or three players out, which is eight players out of the side.
“Credit to the boys who have been really competitive.”
After the interrupted middle part of the season, the Ranges have bounced back and sit fifth with one round remaining.
In the Ranges past four matches, they’ve played the top four teams.
They drew with top-placed Northcote City before wins against Moreland Zebras and Moreland City.
On Saturday, they faced fourth-placed Sunshine George Cross.
Both teams scored in the opening half for a 1-1 draw.
Buljubasic said the other positive to the end of the season has been the development of some of the younger players who have stepped up.
Goalkeeper Stefan Rankovic, who just turned 18, and 16-year-old Aydin Mustedanagic have shown they aren’t out of place in the top grade.
“They stood up to the challenge,” Buljubasic
“They’re players from our under-20 set-up and hopefully there’s more to come up.”
The Ranges end their season on Saturday at home against bottom-placed Bendigo City.
Meanwhile in NPL, Hume City’s season came to an end on Sunday afternoon against North Geelong City.
In NPL, Hume City finished its season on a high with a 2-1 win against North Geelong Warriors. Nick Hegarty and Jayden Prasad were the goal-scorers.
Hume ends the season in eighth spot.
