A LATE Dale Blundell winner has given Culburra the three points over Huskisson to reinforce their second position on the competition table with four rounds left.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Cougars left it late to secure the victory but in doing so, walked away with the valuable points in the context of their season.
Culburra opened their account within 20 minutes when a Kieran Witt through ball found Corey Ryan open and on goal.
Ryan finished clinical to give his side the early advantage.
Not long after, Huskisson got on the board through Jake Malligan who pounced on a blocked shot, knocking it into the back of the net to make it 1-1.
The teams went to the sheds locked at 1-1 at half time but it was Culburra who found their feet first after the break.
With about 20 minutes to go, Corey Ryan broke through the defence and found himself on the corner of the 18 yard box.
Ryan unleashed on his left, hammering the ball into the top corner of the net to give his side a 2-1 lead.
However Huskisson weren’t done yet, finding an equaliser shortly after.
As time ticked away, both teams searched for the decider and with five minutes to go, Culburra managed to find it through Dale Blundell.
Blundell found himself 25 yards out and had a crack on goal, with his shot rocketing into the bottom left corner to give his side a 3-2 lead in the dying stages.
Culburra coach Matt Parker was happy to walk away with the three points in what he said wasn’t his side’s best performance.
“It’s pleasing that we got a win especially when we weren’t at our best, but there’s still plenty of work to do,” he said.
Parker said his side started strongly out of the blocks, but noted a drop in intensity that allowed Huskisson to get back in the game.
“As far as our football ability goes, we don’t have any problems.
“Our only hurdle is ourselves… we need to make sure we keep working on our fitness to ensure we run out these games,” he said.
Parker said teams often struggle to take points away from Culburra Oval, which is something his side needs to capitalise on as finals draw closer.
“We didn’t lose a game at Culburra last year and we haven’t so far this season.
“It’s a difficult place to come and play and pretty hard to come away with points,” said Parker.
Parker credited Huskisson, who dug deep to hold on in the match but was pleased to be able to scrape home late and grab the three points.
“It’s a really positive result for us, especially with Gerringong dropping points on Saturday,” said Parker.
Scott Merivale had a good game in goals for Culburra, as well as brothers, Kieran and Jayden Witt, who had strong performances for the Cougars.
