The underdog tag. It can be a double-edged sword in football, but Albion Park are happy to embrace the concept.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
After surviving last week's epic penalty shootout thriller against Tarrawanna, the White Eagles will now prepare to meet Bulli in another must-win clash on Sunday afternoon at Wetherall Park.
Despite their defeat to Wollongong United in the first week of finals, Buli will start the game as favourite. This pleases Albion Park coach Goran Trajceski.
"They'll be seething after that loss, Bulli. So we're not going to take them lightly. We'll go in as the underdogs and we'll just see what happens. But the boys will be up for it," Trajceski said.
"We love it, mate [the underdog tag]. Nobody gave us a chance six weeks ago - and the boys knew that. But they've just really hustled up and haven't lost since then.
"It's been very satisfying. We feed off their energy. These guys come to training at 6.30 until about 8.10. If I don't turn off the lights, they'd train until midnight. They just love it, mate."
Nobody gave us a chance six weeks ago - and the boys knew that. But they've just really hustled up and haven't lost since then.
- Goran Trajceski
While enthusiasm is high, Trajceski admits that his players had felt the pinch after the Tarrawanna game - which lasted over two hours.
"They were very sore. We had a very light session on Tuesday night and a few of the boys felt like they got hit by buses, especially the older fellas," the coach said.
"They're [Tarrawanna] a young side and they don't stop, they just gang tackle. You've got to be on your game to beat these guys. Obviously it was a lottery in penalty shootout, but thankfully it came our way."
Meanwhile, Bulli will be keen to bounce back from their 3-2 loss to United last Sunday.
Coach Julio Miranda said they had reviewed the defeat and learned from it but were now focused on the next task.
"Every game is different," he said. "We looked at our own game from last week and have identified a couple of areas. But Albion Park are totally different to what Wollongong United have to offer. We'll make some adjustments and hopefully get the cookies."
Bulli and the White Eagles are very familiar with each other, having played out a 1-1 draw in the last round of the regular season.
"They've got some decent players, so it's not going to be easy," Miranda said.
"But I don't expect anything less than a good performance from our boys, so we'll make it as difficult as possible for them."
However, Bulli's task has been made more difficult with Aaron Baker to miss the game after receiving a red card last week. On the other hand, Bulli have been boosted by the recent inclusion of Dylan Lewis from an injury.
"'Dyl' has been really good," Miranda said.
"He's been making cameo appearances off the bench before last week. He's added something extra in our front third, a different dynamic in the way we've been playing. Hopefully he'll keep carrying that on for Sunday."
In Sunday's other IPL final, Woonona will take on United at Macedonia Park. The winner will go straight to the grand final, while the losing side will either meet Bulli or Park next weekend.