The second home double in a row for the Border Raiders FC men’s and women’s sides brought more success than the previous week.
While the men’s side couldn’t pick up the three points, the Border Raiders women scored a valuable 3-2 win over FC Eaglehawk, giving the locals a little breathing room over the relegation battle in the Bendigo Amateur Soccer League 2.
Throughout the first half of a gloomy day at Jack Eddy Oval, it seemed a matter of when rather than if the Border Raiders would break through for the opener, as the home side had the lion’s share of possession and field position over the first 45.
Still, as the referee was preparing to check his watch for the end of the half, the Border Raiders had yet to put the finishing touches on a move.
That changed in the 44th minute, when a Louise O’Callaghan through-ball evaded the defence and earned Peaches Starritt time and space in the box to coolly slot the opening goal, the 14-year-old’s first in the senior grade.
The home side went into the break buzzing and with a 1-0 lead to its name, but the advantage didn’t last long after the resumption of play.
Less than a minute into the second half, Eaglehawk’s Emme Probert struck to level the scores.
The game remained in the balance for another 20 minutes before a quick double strike from the Border Raiders restored the home advantage.
First O’Callaghan, and then Olivia Jolicoeur, found the back of the net within three minutes, giving the locals a valuable 3-1 edge.
Probert halved the deficit with her second, but the Border Raiders saw out the game to walk away 3-2 winners.
The win turned around the result from the previous meeting, when it was the Hawks that got up 3-2.
The Border Raiders’ second win of the year pushes them up to fifth place on the league table with a record of 2-1-6.
While the bottom four remain tightly packed between three and seven points, there is a big gulf between the Border Raiders and fourth-placed Tatura on 18.
After a general bye, the Echuca-Moama side returns to action against Shepparton South, a side the Border Raiders beat earlier in the year, at McEwen Reserve.
Men’s
The Border Raiders had a dream start to their League 2 men’s fixture with Strathfieldsaye Colts United FC, in the lead within two minutes.
Awarded a free kick at the edge of the box, Eoin Kelly curled one into the top right corner to give his side the early ascendancy.
Defensively, the Border Raiders held firm for until the 25-minute mark, when the Colts levelled proceedings through Thomas Christie.
Christie would pop up again five minutes later to put Strathfieldsaye ahead, and teammate Zachary Mills made it 3-1 on 37 minutes.
That score remained until the half-time whistle, giving the Border Raiders plenty of work to do in the second 45.
However, it was Strathfieldsaye who carried its momentum through the break, Christie completing his hat-trick to open the second half tally before Tyler Martin made it 5-1.
Paul Picart got one back for Echuca-Moama almost immediately, but neither side could advance the 5-2 scoreline further in the final 25 minutes.
A late red card to the Colts’ Reece Yarwood gave the Border Raiders the man advantage for the last five minutes plus stoppages, but the host wasn’t able to break through.
Echuca-Moama is in fifth position on the League 2 ladder with a 3-6 record.
After the general bye, the Border Raiders are in for a trip to ladder-leader Spring Gully on July 19.