By Connor Schmidtke
With the EFNL off and running following a successful season launch last weekend, all eyes now turn to Round Two (and One) on Saturday.
One very intriguing match-up this weekend is the Division One clash between Upper Ferntree Gully and Lilydale.
The two sides suffered incredibly disappointing 2021 campaigns, finishing last and second last respectively in Division One. They combined for just three wins from 22 matches.
Eager to improve in 2022, both teams fell short in Round One and opened their seasons with a loss.
For Lilydale, it was an agonising five-point loss to Croydon after several wasted chances, whilst Upper Ferntree Gully however were comprehensively beaten by Bayswater.
The Key Round One Takeaways
Lilydale
The Falcons faced a Croydon side who finished the 2021 season in the top four and not only did they challenge them, but they outplayed the Blues for the majority of their round one clash.
Put simply, Lilydale threw the game away with their inefficiency in front of goal.
After an even first quarter, the Falcons kicked just three goals from 16 scoring shots after quarter time with many of these shots reasonable looks from deep inside their forward 50.
To cut them some slack, the conditions were quite ordinary for football with rain and wind prevalent through most of the game.
But in a game where less than a kick decided who took home the four-points, Lilydale would be bitterly disappointed that they couldn’t convert more of their chances to seal the game.
From a technical standpoint, Lilydale played a good brand of football throughout most of the game.
The Falcons looked strong through the midfield in particular, with their structures holding up well all day around the contest. This allowed them to get their hands on the footy first, winning plenty of centre clearances and stoppages around the ground.
Perhaps the most impressive thing about the Lilydale midfield however was what they did when Croydon had the ball.
They were able to apply great pressure in tough conditions, tackling hard and being aggressive when the ball was in dispute on the ground. This meant that Croydon, even when they did win the footy at stoppages, were rarely allowed the space to cleanly exit the front of the contest. This then meant that they were unable to find efficient entries inside 50, leading to a lack of good scoring opportunities for the Blues.
The main negative takeaway from Lilydale’s clash was their transition strategy from defence to attack.
As seen in the screenshot above, the Falcons have the ball in a potentially dangerous position, at a true centre half back with minimal pressure on the ballcarrier.
Instead of turning inside, using the corridor and moving the ball through the most direct and dangerous path to goal, the Falcons defender looks outside and hits a target wide on the wing.
This was something Lilydale got too absorbed with throughout their game against Croydon. They continually chose to move the ball wide around the wings when exiting their defensive half, often getting pinned along the boundary leading to slower ball movement heading forward.
This style of movement becomes far easier to defend for the opposition, because it meant the Falcons were bringing the ball into attack from one half of the ground, forcing their forwards to lead into fairly similar positions.
If they can bring the ball through the corridor more going forward, it opens up the entire forward arc and can lead to more space for their forwards. This could help them to find easier shots on goal, and may help increase their efficiency on the scoreboard.
In comparison here, Croydon take the ball through the middle and find a target in a damaging position at half forward. Their deepest forward then has a paddock of space to work in, and multiple possible leading patterns which lead to an easy Blues goal.
Upper Ferntree Gully
The main factor that plagued Upper Ferntree Gully was their disposal efficiency in their own back half, particularly in the opening quarter.
It was a rainy and wild day for football, but the trademark of most good sides is their ability to cope with any conditions on any day.
Upper Ferntree Gully were unable to adapt to the tough conditions and it showed in the first quarter. On four occasions in the opening term, they attempted short little passes inside their back 50 that were turned over straight to Bayswater in terrible positions. These four turnovers lead directly to four scoring shots and three goals, putting them on the back foot early in the contest.
Upper Ferntree Gully need to be able to recognise situations better under pressure, being able to steady and make the correct decision if they want to be competitive this year.
The other concerning factor for Upper Ferntree Gully is their midfield structure.
Bayswater’s midfielders were afforded too much space through stoppages so that when they won the footy, they were able to break away from congestion and get into damaging positions.
Upper Ferntree Gully’s midfielders were getting sucked into the contest too often, allowing Bayswater’s midfielders to get goal side and set up dangerous attacks with no real pressure.
This factor will be particularly important this week, against a strong looking Lilydale midfield.
Round Two Predictions
This is a great opportunity for the Falcons to get their season away to a solid start, following their disappointing close loss in Round One. Expect them to come out with a high intensity, high pressure style of play early in this match in the hopes to bury Upper Ferntree Gully early in the game.
For Upper Ferntree Gully, it is a chance to show they can be competitive against a team who many expect them to be fighting it out with this season.
It is important to remember that Upper Ferntree Gully won the last meeting between these two sides and should look to exploit any edge they can against Lilydale, bringing everything they have into this game.
Prediction: Lilydale by 30