Plains Rangers AFC
June 7th 2003 v Whakatane
| It took an hour to break the deadlock, when Plains
Rangers were at home to Whakatane Reserves on Saturday. Throughout the first half Rangers had marginally the better share of territory, but found it hard going to get into good attacking positions. Whakatane defended well and young ring-in goalkeeper Matthew Ward did his job ably. Whakatane came forward in numbers when they attacked and kept the home team honest. In the second half Rangers gradually gained the upper hand and after an hour secured the first goal. Bas Overdevest sent a perfectly weighted lob over the keeper. Whakatane gained a number of corners, and were unlucky not to score from one when the keeper was beaten but Jason Pullar raced back to hook the ball off the line. However by this time the home team were putting a lot of pressure on the Whakatane defence and it was no surprise when Dan Logan blasted a shot into the left corner of the goal, with keeper Ward diving and just getting his fingertips to it. The final score was Plains Rangers 2, Whakatane 0. For Rangers, David Dennis earned player of the day with another committed performance in defence. In goal Mark Thompson was sound, as he stood in for the injured Matt Aberhart. The first round now having been completed, Rangers will await with interest the make-up of the upgraded second division as the Eastern and Western divisions are combined. This Saturday Rangers will be participating in the annual Best Insulation Tournament in Rotorua. |