Under 17A v Camberwell Round 11

Waverley is one of five teams vying for top four honours and the right to contest finals in the Under 17 Shield competition. Thus, the Round 11 match against Camberwell was one that offered Waverley the opportunity to put a game break between it and one of its closest rivals.

The early dominance of the Waverley team initially paid dividends when Riley Maddock – on the end of an excellent transition play that saw the ball passed the length of the field – shimmied his way through the circle to slot a goal past a despairing goalie. Unfortunately, a combination of Waverley’s failure to convert its high level of possession into goals and a late goal by Camberwell, left the team with no advantage to show for its efforts.

While Riley put Waverley back in the lead with a wonderful opportunist goal during the course of a short corner play, the second half was notable for the number of excellent goal scoring opportunities that were missed and the chance to exert scoreboard pressure on the opposition that was squandered. This left Waverley vulnerable when, in the closing phase of the game, it failed to maintain its adherence to the game plan and allowed the momentum to shift in favour of Camberwell. The consequence of this was two Camberwell goals and an opportunity lost.

Waverley remains in the hunt for a final’s position, but greater focus and discipline will be required if the team is to realise its full potential.