By JARROD POTTER
Football Federation Victoria – National Premier Leagues
PUTTING aside their six-nil defeat last Friday night, Dandenong put its name back among the NPL top brass with a 3-1 win over defending champion Northcote City.
The go-ahead score came late in the first half as Matt Millar banked his third goal of the season as he cannoned a shot from outside the box past the Northcote keeper Chris Theodoridis in the 32nd minute.
A consolation goal came from Northcote substitute James Kalifatidis in the 78th minute to finish out the match with a two-goal deficit.
Dandenong’s small forward line beguiled and ran straight past Northcote to slot the match-winners. Kieran Dover was set up beautifully in the 51st minute by a Marcus Schroen rocket that was blocked by Theodoridis before captain Alan Mulcahy found Dover unmarked across the box.
Schroen added a notch to his goal ledger in the 73rd minute as Kris Koiussis found the Melbourne Heart youth player to slot the final nail in the Northcote coffin.
Thunder coach Dean Hennessy said the nine-goal turnaround in fortune highlighted some new strategies and systems Dandenong wants to put in place, especially when they travel.
“That was definitely for me the best performance of the season,” Hennessey said.
“The scoreboard never lies – to go from a six-nil to 3-1 against the champions is a massive turnaround in the space of a week.
“I said to the boys you don’t become a bad team in two weeks but fundamentally you have to learn that when we go away against top sides we may have to defend a little different than when we play at home.”
Slightly tinkering with the line-up on-field trying to prevent easy passes coming out of the opposing defence made a world of difference for Dandenong.
“Football is probably a simple game, but by playing one player further forward it made a big difference going forward and defending higher up and stopping them having a dominance of possession at the back,” Hennessey said.
“Going forward in the first half we looked dangerous – we should’ve been three or four up as we had not only half chances but two one-on-one shots, but to their credit, the boys who missed the two one-on-ones scored later.”
To continue the good news, Dandenong expect striker Jake Nakic to return – from a hamstring strain – against Werribee, which has been rescheduled to Sunday evening at 6pm to coincide with the re-opening of the pavilion at George Andrews Reserve.
It adds to the Thunder’s successful week after brushing aside State League team Doveton SC 3-1 to advance into the sixth round of the Dockerty Cup.
Dandenong City travelled to Bendigo on Saturday night and returned home with a 2-4 loss while Springvale White Eagles face FC Bulleen Lions on Monday night.
