Hoppers Crossing is not in dead rubber territory just yet in Football Federation Victoria men’s state league 2, but it’s awfully close.
Eight points behind second place with only nine points available, the Reds would need a miracle to break into top-two promotion territory from here.
Reds coach Steve Iosifidis admitted that he gave up the ghost weeks ago.
“When you start using the word mathematically in a sentence, it’s pretty much done and dusted,” he said.
“You’re relying too heavily on other results – and when you’re relying on other results, it’s pretty much a done deal.”
But Hoppers Crossing has not put the cue in the rack since the mathematicians got their calculators out.
The Reds have picked up four of a possible six points in back-to-back games against ladder-leader Geelong and second-placed Essendon Royals, showing the newly promoted side they can match it with the best teams in the competition.
“The team has actually stepped it up a notch,” Iosifidis said.
“Maybe the pressure is off now and they’re just enjoying the last couple of games.”
Hoppers Crossing’s good recent form against quality opposition makes its flat patch in the middle of the season even more mystifying.
The Reds had only one win from June 25 to July 23 – and that was a catch-up game.
“We lost against the last team and the second last team in that period,” Iosifidis said. “Take nothing away from Sunbury or Heidelberg Stars, because those days I don’t think we deserved to win anyway and they played really well.
“When you’re losing games like that, you shoot yourselves in the foot when it comes to that promotion race.”
If, or when, Hoppers Crossing’s promotion hunt is officially dead, Iosifidis will continue to urge his team to extract as many points out of the season as possible.
In state league 4, Point Cook kept its promotion chances alive with a 2-1 win over Bell Park, while Truganina has lost consecutive games for the first time since May thanks to a 2-0 defeat to Surf Coast.
In NPL2, Werribee City had a 1-0 home loss to Dandenong Thunder at Galvin Park.
