COACH WILL TELL PLAYERS... Every game a "grand final” for United

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 32975, 22 July 1972, Page 42

COACH WILL TELL PLAYERS... Every game a "grand final” for United

(By

D. P. MANSBRIDGE)

“We have four ‘grand finals’ to go. That is how we must treat every league match from now on if we are to win the title. And that is the attitude we have to adopt today and forget completely the relative positions on the table. Nothing else will be good enough.”

These were the words the Christchurch United coach, Mr T. Conley, used to sum up the club’s present position and that he will “drum into” his players before today’s match with Auckland City at English Park.

United is striving for the Rothmans National Soccer League first prize of $4OOO, while Auckland City is struggling to avoid relegation and the play-off series, which would cost it another $2500 or more. And because the stakes are so high, United

cannot afford the least complacency. A point gained for Auckland City would be like manna from heaven; a point lost by United would almost certainly be a disaster. But only a sharp, sudden decline from its present high standard of football would prevent the Christchurch club taking another two valuable points.

The conditions —soft but certainly not heavy—should suit United far more than Auckland. A muddy ground would have been a great leveller, as it was at Newmarket Park a fortnight ago when Auckland held Eastern Suburbs to a 1-0 victory in the cup. In its last two games, United has scored 10 goals, as the attacking combination of A. Marley and I. Park has borne a rich harvest and the mid-field of T. Randles, B. Hardman and V. Pollard has dominated the centre of the field. Varied attack It will be Auckland’s target to blunt the effectiveness of these three by crowding them into hasty distribution. These . tactics succeeded in part for Auckland when the two teams met earlier in the season, and United scraped home by 2-1. Since then, however, United has been better at varying its mode of attack to suit opposing tactics, and has been able to bring all of his great resources into play more purposefully and consistently than in some earlier games.

The key men in the Auck-

land side are the goal-keeper, M. Clarke, who has saved the team time and again, J. Lawrecen, the only City player in the World Cup squad and a strong, resourceful mid-field operator, and the wing, B. Leuschke, who will need to be watched all the time.

Brighton supporters will be as fervently hoping for a Christchurch win as the United supporters, for their own team hast a tough task ahead of it against Gisborne City at Childers Road. Lost advantage The last time these two teams met, Brighton looked assured of its first win, when leading 3-1 at half-time. Instead Gisborne hit back to force a 4-4 draw and nearly snatch a win. At home, Gisborne is a difficult proposition for any team and Brighton will need a 90-minute effort to get even one point. The Gisborne defence is often suspect to sharp, sustained attacks—but only from a team that does not make too many of its own defensive errors. And the concession of 14 goals in its last three games is something Brighton must improve. United’s rivals for the championship are concerned in the other three games. Eastern Suburbs are away to Wellington City and might well drop a point, Blockhouse Bay is at home to an inconsistent Stop Out, and anything might happen here, and Mount Wellington has the easiest task, with the visit of Caversham tomorrow.