The Eden Killer Whales are on the cusp of finishing the regular season unbeaten, after shutting down the competition’s best attacking side in a 6-0 rout at the Eden soccer field on Sunday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Coming into the match, the Bega Devils boasted a league-high 61 goals scored, a whopping 17 clear of the next best attacking side in Eden.
But with the league’s premier defence, the Killer Whales repelled the pace-laden Bega attack time and time again, on their way to their tenth win from as many matches this season.
And while it was a solid defensive effort laid the foundation, Eden’s attack was firing on all cylinders, with three players bagging doubles on the afternoon.
Striker Kamilla Grubesic opened the scoring with a header from a Mel Mitchell corner, before forward partner Amber Seckold and playing-coach Debbie Heron found the back of the net to make it 3-0 at halftime.
The change of ends did little to break their momentum, with the same three players adding to their goalscoring tallies in the second stanza.
Heron says it was an important result against the second-placed Bega side.
“We’ve been a little bit inconsistent, and we’ve found ourselves in tougher games against the lower-placed sides, which has been interesting,” she said.
“But when the going gets tough, we tend to put our heads down and work harder, and it was great to get a big win against a very good Bega team.”
Heron held special praise for her side’s defensive unit, singling out Kim Peters and Tayla Danvers-Grant for their work in stopping the Devils’ speedy raids.
Heron also commended the effort of goalkeeper Tanya Waites, who she expects to stay in the role for the remainder of the season.
“We’ve had a bit of trouble working out our formation, given that our best goalkeeper in Kamilla Grubesic is also our best attacking player,” she said.
“We’ve got a lot of flexibility, and all the girls are capable of playing in different positions, but we’re using a 4-5-1 formation at the moment and we’re looking to keep that so that everyone gets a bit more structured heading into the finals.
“Tanya played very well on Sunday and she’ll take some confidence out of that, and Bhud Clark didn’t make a mistake all game at sweeper.”
The only negative to come from the game was an injury to Clark, who suffered a suspected broken cheekbone in the final minute of play.
“She went up for a header and won it, but she clashed heads with the Bega player and may have broken it,” Heron said.
“She’s having X-rays on Friday so we’ll have to wait and see, but she’s tough and hopefully she’ll be back.”
The Killer Whales are in action again on Sunday, travelling to Merimbula to take on the fifth-placed Grasshoppers at Berrambool Sports Complex.
Kick-off is at 2.30pm.
