Thunder rolls to dream start

By Stuart Teather
THERE is a buzz at George Andrews Reserve and it is getting louder every week.
Dandenong Thunder won again on Sunday, this time beating Hume City 2-1, pushing the side’s season tally to four wins, one draw, zero losses.
Most teams which get promoted to the Premier League just aim to hold their spot in the division in their first season; the Thunder, by contrast, are locked in a battle for the top spot on the ladder.
It is a dream start to the season for the Thunder, but, as usual, coach Stuart Munro is not getting ahead of himself.
“There’s still a long way to go, it’s only been five games and it has been a good start and it’s a pleasing start for the supporters, but it really is just the start of a long way,” he said.
He did say it was an impressive display from his club against Hume City, with the Thunder creating ample scoring opportunities throughout the match.
We created more clear-cut chances to score than we have in any game so far, but Hume City had a lot of possession, they created quite a number of very clear-cut chances, so to get 2-1, we’re happy to get the points.”
Sam Bailey caught the Hume City goalkeeper out of position in the 25th minute and slipped a shot past him to give the Thunder an early lead, and then a Ryan Davidson penalty ten minutes after half-time sealed the game.
Hume City scored a late consolation goal when Tansel Baser finally broke through the Thunder’s steadfast defence, but it was too little too late.
Remarkably, Baser’s 87th minute strike was the first time this season anyone has beaten Thunder keeper Stuart Webster.
Munro paid tribute to his side’s defence again after the match.
“Defensively we were very strong and the goalkeeper was very strong, but the rest of the players were probably a little bit off-par from where they’ve been, so it’s pleasing to get a result against a quality opposition when that starts to happen.”
The win was not without sacrifice, however, with captain Veton Korcari going down with a hamstring injury midway through the first half.
This Sunday the Thunder head to Sunshine where they will take on the other club to be promoted to the Premier League this year, Sunshine Georgies.