The groans of frustration from the Altona Magic supporters told the tale.
Had their side converted two gilt-edged opportunities late in the second half, the Magic might have made a triumphant return to Victorian soccer’s top flight.
Instead, they walked away with a 1-0 loss to Green Gully Cavaliers in the National Premier League season opener at Paisley Park on Saturday.
Magic coach Goran Lozanovski was disappointed not to be able to collect three points for the big crowd.
“It was a good turn-out, which is always nice to see, but unfortunately we didn’t come out with the cookies today,” he said.
“It was a frustrating game, but I think overall we probably deserved a draw.
“There’s a lot of things we can still work on, but there were a lot of positives.”
Altona only had itself to blame.
For 70 minutes, the sides were inseparable as a midfield battle ensued, but then two big chances came the Magic’s way.
Daniel Kuczynski, one of the Magic’s most potent attacking players on the day, drew a foul inside the box, winning a penalty for his side.
Dusan Bosnjak stepped up for the Magic and struck the penalty shot low to the right of Green Gully goalkeeper Jerrad Tyson, who pulled off a spectacular save.
Bosnjak, on debut with his new club, was apologetic to his teammates after the match.
“Look, to be fair, I think he hit it well, but their keeper made a good stop,” Lozanovski said.
“That’s the way the cookie crumbles when the keeper takes a punt – he picks a side. Sometimes it doesn’t matter how good you hit it, he will give himself half a chance of getting there.”
Soon after, young substitute David Trajanoski missed a shot from point blank range. Trajanoski was praised for his willingness to attack the ball in the box, but mistimed his shot.
The tough part for Altona was that it conceded the decisive goal between those two missed chances.
What had been a watertight Altona defence for most of the game switched off for a split second, allowing Green Gully recruit Alex Salmon to toe-poke the ball past Magic goalkeeper Daniel Collison.
Photo Gallery: Altona Magic vs Green Gully
“They pinched that scrappy goal, which was disappointing,” Lozanovski said.
The Altona fans were buzzing to see the arrival of Dutchman Michiel Hemmen.
Hemmen, a forward with Eredivisie experience, was unveiled as a star recruit during the week. He came on as a sub late and showed glimpses of what he offers.
“He showed some good signs,” Lozanovski said. “He had a 30-hour journey on Monday and Tuesday and was a bit fatigued for the next couple of days, so he probably wasn’t ready to start.
“It was important that we slowly eased him into it and I think he will give us a bit of a different dimension coming into Friday night’s game against the Melbourne Knights.”
The debut of Collison in goals was a success for Altona, while Ross Archibald, Lirim Elmazi and Johnny Stojcevski were sound defensively for the Magic.
Lozanovski is urging the Magic fans to stick with the team in the coming week.
“It’s a big test against Melbourne Knights at Somers Street this week and we’ve got to make sure we get something out of it,” he said.
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