It’s the calm before the storm for Altona in the Hockey Victoria men’s premier league.
Two weekends off were helpful for the Seagulls, but their season will be at the crossroads this week.
The sixth-placed Gulls will play two games in four days against the two opponents fighting it out for that coveted fourth spot in the finals, and it leaves no margin for error.
First up, the Seagulls will square off with fifth-placed Footscray at J.K. Grant Reserve on Saturday, followed by a Tuesday night clash with fourth-placed Greensborough at the State Netball Hockey Centre.
“Four days can make or break finals for us,” Seagulls coach Ben Newell told Star Weekly.
“They’re two big games; we win and we’re in the four; if we lose, we lose a bit of touch with the teams we’re competing with for the finals spots. I’m glad we’re playing Footscray, I’m glad we’re playing Greensborough.
“If we win, we get our destiny back in our own hands.”
So important is Saturday’s game in the context of the season, the western suburbs rivalry with Footscray will be put on the shelf until next time they meet.
There is too much at stake for these sides to get caught up in local bragging rights, according to Newell.
“From our point of view, we’re not even talking about local rivalry.
“It’s more to do with how much work we’ve done during the year to play finals.
“They’re just one of a number of teams standing in our way at the moment, so we need to treat this game like a six-point game.”
Altona has been hard to read this season, as reflected in its mid-table ladder position and record of six wins, five losses and a draw.
A young team, Altona is prone to having off-days, but Newell is hoping the next six weeks will bring about more consistency from his side.
“We’re beating good teams, but we’re just not getting consistent form week in week out, which is probably reflective with the ladder position,” he said.
“We need that consistency for the next six weeks.”
Altona should be at full strength come the weekend.
The Seagulls will welcome back young stars Harry Dolenc, Andrew Scanlon, Matthew Huf (all Victoria) and Josh Norton (Northern Territory) from under-21 state representative duty, while Matthew Guest should arrive home in time after representing Canada at the Pan Am Games.
