Casey Comets captain Jeni Black was unable to prevent her team from a 2-0 defeat to Heidelberg United at Olympic Village, Heidelberg Heights, on Sunday.By Marc McGowan
ANOTHER mentally weak performance from the Casey Comets on Sunday has left their Women’s Premier League finals aspirations hanging by a thread.
The Comets conceded two soft goals – one early on and a second in the final minutes – in going down 2-0 to fellow finals contender Heidelberg United at Olympic Village, Heidelberg Heights.
Casey coach Deborah Nichols was left disappointed again as her players failed to match the intensity they displayed against ladder leader Box Hill the previous round.
“I knew as soon as they came in on Sunday they were not mentally ready and that comes down to each player not preparing, which we spoke about during the week, making it even more frustrating,” she said.
The Bergers dominated the early going against the lethargic Comets – missing striker Linda Restrepo (hamstring) and defender Vanessa Hellar (work commitments) – with much of the action taking place in the visitors’ half.
Heidelberg United failed to seriously threaten Casey goalkeeper Emma Bracken until a Jamara Maza cross found Belinda Panella unchecked in the box for the easiest of tap-ins in the 15th minute.
Rachel Lamb and Melissa Atherton worked hard to peg the margin back for the Comets, with the latter having the team’s best scoring chance in the first half when her shot just cleared the crossbar.
The Bergers took a deserved 1-0 advantage into the half-time break, but there was renewed vigour in the Casey camp on the resumption of play following a bake from Nichols.
Atherton took the spot kick after Comets striker Lisa Cloke was awarded a free kick and her mid-range shot sailed just wide of the left post.
Then a magnificent Cloke cross from a corner almost produced the equaliser, only for Heidelberg United to clear the ball from the last line of defence.
As time ticked away, a long Panella shot had Bracken diving for the save and Melanie Camilleri ended Casey’s hopes by swooping on the loose ball and burying it into the unguarded net.
Young defender Anna Carmichael, who will begin a college soccer scholarship in the United States in August, was the only player to escape Nichols’ wrath.
“I don’t give them a serve often these days, but the frustrating part after the game was the likes of Lisa (Cloke),” Nichols said.
“I asked why she played such an outstanding second half and she said I had made her angry.
“I just said, ‘do I have to kick you in the arse before every game for you to play to your ability?”
The loss leaves the Comets in a precarious position, with Football Federation Victoria set to relegate up to four teams from the top flight in an attempt to lift the standard of the competition.
The Comets sit eighth of 12 clubs, six points adrift of this weekend’s fifth-placed opponent Eltham North – a side that thrashed Casey 7-0 in April.
“They shouldn’t need any motivation against a side that produced a record score against them in the 30 years of this club playing,” Nichols said.
“If they need me to motivate them for that, we’re both pushing it up the hill.”
The Comets’ reserves lost 2-1 in the earlier fixture.
Sunday’s clash against Eltham North kicks off with the reserves at Comets Stadium at 11am before the seniors aim for redemption at 1pm.
