YOOGALI Soccer Club claimed the bragging rights in the latest blockbuster derby after disposing of Yoogali Football Club 4-1 in a fiery match at Hanwood Oval on Saturday night.
While YFC came out of the blocks firing in the first half, YSC were the first to score with George Hancock opening his squad’s account 20 minutes into the match.
YSC coach Ryan Spencer said he was pleased with the dominant performance his squad put in for much of the clash.
“They (YFC) started off the better, as we expected – we knew they would come out flying,” Spencer said.
“We contained them though and we were able to get that goal and then push on for a second.
“We created a lot of chances all match, it wasn’t our best performance but we did enough to win the game.”
Stevie Crombie took the men in blue and yellow to a two-goal lead at the 35-minute mark and YSC were feeling confident going into the break, but Spencer was still wary of his squad slipping back into old habits.
“One of the things that has really hurt us this year is throwing away half-time leads,” Spencer said.
“Last time we played against YFC we were up 3-0 and then they came back and I didn’t want that to happen again.
“We tried something different this time, which I’ve never done before in my life – we never had a break. I kept the guys moving in the sheds at half-time and I think that kept them focused and moving in the second half.”
YSC’s unique tactics worked and they took charge of the second term early, maintaining possession and allowing Hancock to again find the back of the net.
Despite having a 3-0 lead, YSC didn’t let up and PA Bruce grabbed the squad’s fourth goal of the night at the 65th minute, sealing YSC’s victory.
“I’m really happy with them,” Spencer said. “It wasn’t our best performance but we set out to get the three points and that’s what we did.
“YFC have some quality players in their side and it’s been a while since we’ve beaten them. We learnt from our mistakes last time and went on and killed them.”
Spencer said it was disappointing not to walk away with a clean sheet, with YFC scoring a penalty goal towards the end of the match, but couldn’t fault his side’s effort.
“We did take our foot off the gas when we were 4-0 up and YFC got a soft penalty but everyone stood up and there wasn’t a bad player in the team,” he said.
“Michael DePaoli was brilliant in goals again and saved a lot at some crucial moments and Chris Angus was also stand-out, and played with a suspected broken toe, but the best player on the pitch was George Hancock by far.”