Leeton coach Clint Halden senses the Greens are closing in on their first win of the Group 20 season after an encouraging performance last Sunday.
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The Greens went close to upsetting undefeated ladder leaders Griffith Black and Whites after fighting back from 30-14 down before losing 32-26.
Poor ball control and a lethargic start all but ruined the Greens’ hopes of victory in the first half, but Halden was proud of the way his players fought until the final whistle.
He said Leeton showed plenty of character.
“It’s one of our goals to play 80 minutes, regardless of what the score is,” Halden said.
“We don’t want teams to run away with it if they’ve got a lead.
“It’s for our own character that we’ve got to play 80 minutes. If you can do that, towards the end you may get a win.
“If it’s a closer game, it might pay off.”
Halden hopes that ingrained determination reaps dividends when the Greens host Tullibigeal-Lakes United on Sunday.
The Sharks are riding high after back-to-back wins, including a gritty 14-12 triumph over West Wyalong a fortnight ago.
Halden expects TLU’s usual danger men to once again threaten Leeton.
“They (TLU) will play a bit of footy and have good structures to go along with it,” Halden said.
“I’m assuming Jaden Kelly is going to be playing, and they’ve also got the Pike brothers as well.
“They’re a very mobile side and they’ll just do their usual thing with Jaden. He always tests us in the ruck and coming back against the grain.
“They’re going to be dangerous.”
But Halden doesn’t want the Greens to be passive and allow the Sharks to play at their preferred tempo.
While handling has been a big issue for Leeton in the first five rounds, Halden said it would do his team no good to play conservative football out of fear of making mistakes.
“We still want to play footy,” he said.
“I think when we didn’t complete (against Black and Whites) it was really basic stuff like ball security in tackles, loose carries – things like that.
“You can’t stop playing footy, but our sets and structures are pretty simple.
“We’ve got a few we keep working and practising on at training.
“That’s all we need to do because there’s plenty of options in that shape.
“We’ve just got to try to stick to it.”
