By: Joseph Arthur
HOT off a 47-point victory against Lilydale, Doncaster East has extended its winning streak to nine and remains atop the Division 1 ladder, one win and percentage clear of second.
However, Doncaster East faces arguably its toughest outing yet this weekend, as a date with second-placed Croydon away from home awaits.
At an 8-2 record, Croydon is a force to be reckoned with and despite his team’s winning streak, Doncaster East senior coach Steve Buckle said he knows that no wins will come easy in perhaps the EFL’s most tightly-contested division.
“I don’t think you can feel comfortable at any stage in this division,” Buckle said.
“We’re going pretty well there’s no doubt about that, winning nine on the trot we’re obviously happy with that but we’re still not totally satisfied with how we are playing and our consistency throughout games.
“I think there’s probably only a couple of games were we’ve put for quarters together, it’s still patchy.
“Maybe I’m a perfectionist, but you’re always striving for a perfect game and there’s always room to improve but we’re happy with where we are sitting.”
Doncaster East coach Steve Buckle. PHOTO: Davis Harrigan Photography/EFL Media
With only six points separating third to sixth and a number of upsets already throughout the season, Division 1 is once again as tight a race as any.
The competitiveness across all teams in the division comes as no surprise to Buckle, who said he has come to expect this level of even competition.
“This is one of the closest divisions historically, it’s always like this and anybody can beat anybody on any given day,” Buckle said.
“If we’re off our game or the other teams are right on theirs it’s any-bodies game for the taking.
“There are no comfortable games – you’ve got to turn up week in, week out.”
The team’s defence has been key to its success, only conceding around 50 points a week on average across the year.
Buckle credited the preparation and pride his defence takes into every week, not giving their opponents an inch and making sure nothing comes easy.
“They (defence) pride themselves on being really stingy, that’s their trademark,” he said.
“Whenever they concede they’re always processing how goals come about, so there’s no surprise they’ve leaked so little.”
With the reserves winning five games in a row after a slow start to the season, the entire club is firing on all cylinders and the coach says that hard-work is finally paying off.
“It was a really tough slog earlier in the year and they (reserves) probably coughed up a couple of games they should have won to be honest,” Buckle said.
“They’re putting in all the work and all that hard-work is starting to pay off.
“It always helps when you get a few experienced bodies back, they’ve actually got some targets down there now and it’s going to help put pressure on spots for the senior group which is good.”