Green Gully will be hoping to boost their finals hopes this weekend when they head on the road to face fellow top-six contender Port Melbourne Sharks at JL Murphy Reserve.
Despite a spirited performance, Gully lost 1-0 to league leaders South Melbourne on Saturday afternoon, courtesy of a second-half strike from Emile Peios.
Ramon Falzon’s side pushed South from the get-go but ultimately fell away as the game wore on, particularly when going down to 10 players following Adolph Koudakpo’s red card in his final game for the club.
Gully is seven points behind sixth-placed Dandenong City heading into the last four games of the season and needs points, and fast, if it is to keep its slim chances of playing finals football alive.
Up next is a clash against the seventh-placed Sharks, who have fallen out of the top six in recent weeks following a seven-game winless run, including three straight defeats.
Port lost 3-1 on the road against Dandenong Thunder last weekend, missing the chance to jump back above Dandy City on the table after they lost to Hume City on Friday night.
They remain a point behind Hajduk going into this weekend’s contest, and they will hope to claim a huge three points and bolster their finals chances.
Nick Marinos’ side lost several key contributors in the mid-season window, including Jackson Courtney-Perkins, Dan Edwards, Lucas Byrns, and Emmanuel Peters, who is in action against his former side for the first time this weekend.
Peters scored seven goals in a Sharks jersey to start the season, including one in their 2-1 victory over Gully earlier this season.
He’s still yet to open his account for Gully but hopes this is the week he finds the back of the net for the first time in Green and White.
Port still bolster plenty of quality, chiefly Eoghan Stokes, who has six goals this season and the likes of Fraser Dunlop, Dane Milovanovic and Illia Shalamanov-Trenkov in goals.
Kick-off is at 5 PM, with the Under 23s taking the field at 7 PM.
Gully’s Under 23s extended their lead atop the ladder with a dramatic 4-3 win over South last week and can edge closer to wrapping up the top spot with a win over the fourth-placed Sharks, who lost 5-1 to Thunder last week.
