It was far from an ideal Easter Saturday result for the Goulburn Valley Suns, with the beleaguered side going down 4-1 at home to Bulleen Lions.
The fourth straight loss leaves the Suns pinned to the bottom of the NPL2 ladder after five rounds.
Some tactical tinkering at the weekend from the Suns’ brain trust saw a reshuffle of their attacking options, with John Mulimi shifted to the Suns’ right flank, while visa import Shogo Osawa slotted back in as a striker.
A shaky start at home had the Suns in hot water early, with the Lions finding the opener in the 10th minute through Max Batchelor.
The lead lasted less than a minute, however, with the men in orange responding quickly through Irish midfielder Jamie Hamilton, who notched his second goal of the season.
Hopes of heading into the half on level pegging were shattered in the 40th minute, as Batchelor found his second to give the Lions the advantage at the half.
A goal just three minutes into the second period hurt severely, with the Suns hopeful of drawing level quickly after the break.
Suns’ mentor Craig Carley said the side was at times its own worst enemy on Saturday.
“It’s obviously a disappointing result again, we need to bounce back,” he said.
“Sloppy goals to concede from our own mistakes for the first two goals, and even the others were avoidable.”
Unfortunately for the Suns, it doesn’t get any easier personnel-wise, with Carley confirming Irish import Eric Whelan’s season could be over before it even began; a pre-season ankle injury proving more serious than originally thought.
“In disappointing news for us, it looks like Eric Whelan’s season could be over without kicking a competitive ball,” Carley said.
“He’s had some bad news from the specialist and may require surgery, I’m absolutely gutted for him, he’s a champion of a person and has done everything possible to try and get back on the pitch.
“He’s a pleasure to have around the club, and we certainly miss him on the pitch, we’ll wait for a second opinion but it’s not looking good unfortunately.”
With an enticing Australia Cup clash with North Sunshine Eagles on the horizon, Carley said despite injury concerns, the next block of games gave his side an opportunity to turn the tide on its season.
“It’s tough going at the moment but I can’t fault the effort of the players in training and in games — our luck will change,” he said.
“We know what we have to do, and there’s no bigger test than this week against league leaders Moreland City, then the FA Cup game midweek.”