Bullied by Thunder

By Gavin Staindl
THE bullies of the Premier League were back to their menacing best when Dandenong Thunder recorded a 6-0 thumping of junior side, VTC, at George Andrews Reserve.
Coming off a 3-0 win over Springvale White Eagles, Dandenong returned to the top of the Premier League ladder with the thrashing.
The Thunder showed little mercy towards VTC, intercepting the first pass of the game before teaching the young development squad a thing or two about possession soccer.
While their opponents struggled to string consecutive passes together, the Thunder, in wet conditions, was relentless in pressing forward.
Within 15 minutes, the Thunder was on the scoreboard and any pre-game suggestions of an upset quickly vanished.
After seven games, VTC had earned a reputation as a giant-killer after knocking over Springvale and South Melbourne, but Dandenong showed why they are one of Victoria’s best soccer teams.
It was an attitude thing, according to Thunder coach Stuart Munro.
“We went about it all fairly professionally,” he added.
“It was all about attitude, and we had the right attitude.
“We played to our full potential and the players were relentless until the final whistle.”
But on Saturday, Dandenong hosted a rejuvenated Bentleigh Greens, which celebrated its first draw under new coach John Anastasiadis.
The Greens, who sacked Andy O’Dell a fortnight ago, came out firing in the opening 20 minutes as players looked to impress the new Bentleigh boss.
Dandenong worked its way back into the contest, but when it went a goal down late in the match, Munro turned to his three strikers to lead the comeback.
And it paid dividends.
In the 86th minute, Liam Kearny found himself on the end of a series of deflections and ricochets and neatly placed a tap in for the equaliser.
While Bentleigh was delighted at picking up the one point, Dandenong was left disappointed – an apt indication of what the two teams expect out of each game.
The Springvale White Eagles continue to churn out even matches, notching up their fifth draw of the season against Northcote City at John Cain Memorial on Saturday.
The Eagles, who lead the Premier League in deadlocks, also recorded their second scoreless draw of the season as they slowly work their way out of the relegation zone.