MUDGEERABA SAMBA TO VICTORY

Broadbeach Utd 0

Mudgeeraba 2 (A. Roche, Eric)

HT 0:1

MUDGEERABA’S new Brazilian forward Eric injected some samba swagger into his new side’s season as he plundered the decisive goal in his side’s surprise 2-0 win away at Broadbeach United.

The win arrested a four-game run without a win for Marc Boelen’s men and will be a vital three points in their fight to avoid the drop.

Mudgeeragba had goalkeeper Ersoy Koch to thank for a string of saves that held the lead for the visitors and midway through the second period they made sure of the points when Eric capitalised on another defensive error to make it 2-0 with an assured finish.

Chris Broadfoot’s normally reliable finishing deserted him on this occasion and with the absence of striker Shuya Yanai, who has returned to Japan to trial in the J-League, United lacked bite in front of goal.

The loss was a blow to Broadbeach’s top four aspirations but United coach Simon Kalaba accepted that it just wasn’t his side’s day.

“It was one of those games,” said Kalaba.

“To be honest we could have played for another two hours and not scored. They stuck to their guns and in the end we weren’t good enough to stick the ball past their ‘keeper.

“We’ve played worse and won games so it’s very disappointing. I’m still confident that we can get in the top four at least though,” he added.

The relief for Boelen was tangible with his team delivering a win at a time when their season was threatening to disintegrate following a horror run of results.

“It’s always good to get three points. Eric has been brilliant for us; he’s tiny but has been a real calming influence on the team,” Boelen said.

He continued: “We went with a game-plan and executed it. To go to Broadbeach and take three points from them on their own ground is a great result for us. We never looked like conceding.

“Last night wasn’t about football for us, it was about grinding out a win.”