Bulli are back in the winner's circle, but coach Julio Miranda says there is plenty of room for improvement after his side beat Tarrawanna 2-0 on Saturday.
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A Guy Knight brace fired the hosts to victory at Balls Paddock and helped them retain fifth spot on the Illawarra Premier League ladder. Conversely, the result was a significant blow for the Blueys in their bid for finals with nine rounds remaining.
Knight got on the scoreboard after five minutes as Bulli took a 1-0 lead into half time. After the break, his penalty in the 75th minute rounded out the win.
"It was a massive three points under very trying conditions. The ground wasn't great, it ended up being played up playing in a mud bath to be honest," Miranda said.
"But I felt that we controlled the game, we did score early and probably had a couple of other chances. At 1-0, I was still comfortable, especially into the second half. They had a good five to 10 minute period in the second half where they had a couple of half-chances which, as you know, they can comfortably go in. And I would have been disappointed if we didn't get the three points.
"But there's still plenty of work to be done. The conditions didn't help, but we're going to have to be a little bit better considering we're playing (Wollongong) United next week."
Miranda said the return of Knight from injury proved crucial for Bulli on Saturday.
"'Knighty' is definitely a leader in the group he does a lot stuff off the field for the team and the club. I thought he had a decent game, given that he had two or three weeks off. It was a big boost and the positive to add to that was he's scoring goals." he said.
"It was obviously good to get the three points. We sit fifth at the moment, so getting the three points on Saturday was a confidence booster and getting a couple of players back from injury was a big positive for us."
Round 13 kicked off on Friday night with Wollongong Olympic securing a 4-2 victory over Cringila at Crehan Park. In Saturday's other games, Albion Park thrashed Bellambi 5-0 at Elizabeth Reserve; Wollongong United thumped Corrimal 5-0 at Macedonia Park; while Port Kembla and Woonona played out a 1-1 stalemate at Wetherall Park.
The action will wrap up on Sunday afternoon when Coniston takes on South Coast United at JJ Kelly Park.
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Joshua Bartlett
A sporting fanatic who is keen to promote all codes in the Illawarra and abroad. Mercury's chief football reporter.
A sporting fanatic who is keen to promote all codes in the Illawarra and abroad. Mercury's chief football reporter.
