Tough loss for the Thunder

Dandenong Thunder''s Ali Sulemani in action on Saturday night. 235923 Picture: ROB CAREW

By Tyler Lewis

The Dandenong Thunder has suffered an agonising defeat at the hands of Heidelberg United in the NPL on the weekend.

The Thunder took the lead in the 35th minute as a result of Hamish Watson finding the back of the net.

That lead was taken into the half time break, before it was levelled in the 48th and then stolen in the 75th.

The Thunder eventually fell short, 2-1 despite playing some strong football. The Thunder will travel to take on Oakleigh Cannons on Sunday afternoon at Jack Edwards Reserve.

Dandenong City, meanwhile, went down 1-0 to Melbourne Knights FC.

It was all equal at 0-0 until the 80th minute when Knights’ Alun Webb found the match winner.

The City now host Bentleigh Greens this Friday, under the lights at the Frank Holohan complex.

Kick off starts at 8:30 in another big test for the Dandenong side.

In NPL 3, Doveton has failed its litmus test against fellow front runner Preston Lions.

On Saturday afternoon, the Doves side went down 2-0.

The loss comes as the second for the season for the men in green and white.

With the side not troubling the scorers, Joshua Frame was unable to add to his goal tally that currently sits at five.

Doveton will look to bounce back in the coming week against the out of form Nunawading unit.

In NPL U21, Dandenong Thunder caused a rumble Saturday evening, in a terrific win over Heidelberg United, with an own goal for the ball getting things rolling for the Thunder inside just five minutes of the match.

But it didn’t take long for the Dandenong group to find the back of the net from their own boot, scoring just three minutes later.

Lawrence Milanzi put the icing on the cake in the 75th minute, moving the scoreline to 3-0.

Dandenong City battled hard in its clash, but ultimately went down 3-2 to the Melbourne Knights.

The City also take on Bentleigh Greens this weekend, but it looms as a true test with the Greens currently sitting third on the table, while the Thunder plays Oakleigh Cannons on Friday night.