It was supposed to be the weekend when Williamstown staked its claim on second spot in division 3 north-west of the Football Federation Victoria men’s state league.
But it all went horribly awry.
The catch-up round did not prove the goldmine it was cracked up to be for the Blues and they sank to a disappointing 1-0 loss to Whittlesea United on home turf at Gray Reserve on Saturday.
Not only did the Blues tumble out of the title race, officially crowning Hoppers Crossing the premiers as a result of their loss, they failed in their bid to move into the second automatic promotion spot.
With two rounds to go, the Blues fell to fourth, two points behind second-placed Altona City and Whittlesea, who leap-frogged them on the ladder.
Their destiny is no longer in their own hands with other results needing to fall their way if they are to get back into the promotion race.
Blues team manager Henrik Nielsen offered no excuses, conceding his team was beaten by a better United side on the day.
“It was disappointing but that’s how it goes sometimes,” Nielsen said. “They definitely came to play and credit to them.
“They dominated us in the middle and we just couldn’t get control.”
Whittlesea knocked the wind out of the Blues sails early on with a goal through Tansel Baser from the penalty spot.
Instead of sitting back and defending the lead, United pressed on in search of an insurance goal and had the Blues on the back foot for large parts of the game.
And not until United went down to 10 men through a red card to Burak Kocak did they start to think about shutting up shop and preserving the precious lead.
“They had a man sent off so they played the last half hour with 10 men,” Nielsen said. “We created chances but didn’t put them away.”
The Blues’ odds of promotion have lengthened considerably but they have not given up hope and will be ready to pounce if Altona City or Whittlesea cough up any points in the final two rounds.
“Hopefully nerves will get to them,” Nielsen said. “If we keep winning and they slip up we still have a chance of promotion.”
But the Blues have the toughest test in the league on Saturday, facing Hoppers Crossing on the road at Grange Reserve.
Hoppers will play in front of their home fans for the first time since securing the title.
“It’s going to be a tough game playing Hoppers away, no doubt about it,” Nielsen said.
“They’re not going to lie down and take it easy on us. They’ll be out to prove a point that they are the best team in the comp this year.
“It’s a good opportunity for our boys to show we’re still there.
“If we can take a win home next week, it sets us up for an exciting home game in the last round of the season in two weeks.”
