Sport
4 May, 2026
Bulls falter after bright start against rampant Tigers
MAREEBA United endured a difficult night at Tiger Park on Saturday, going down 6-1 to Edge Hill United despite showing promising signs early in the contest.
The Bulls were dealt an early blow when an own goal in just the fourth minute handed the home side the lead. However, Mareeba responded well to the setback, gradually working their way into the game and matching Edge Hill’s intensity through the middle stages of the first half.
Their persistence paid off in the 24th minute when Dillan Cummings found the equaliser, giving the travelling side belief that they could challenge the competition leaders. That confidence was tested late in the half when Edge Hill regained the lead in the 34th minute through Lewis Marano.
Still, at 2-1 down at the break, Mareeba remained within striking distance and appeared capable of mounting a second-half challenge.
The match, however, turned decisively after halftime. Already stretched defensively, the Bulls were dealt a major setback when stand-in defender Lino Kairi was sent off for a second bookable offence.
Edge Hill capitalised, with Marano completing his hat-trick and Kaleab Agegnehu adding two more goals as the scoreboard quickly blew out. The result was a disappointing follow-up to Mareeba’s encouraging win over the Southside Comets the previous week, with the side now looking to regroup ahead of their next fixture.
Bulls coach Victor Madrid acknowledged the challenges faced on the night but pointed to areas for improvement moving forward.
“You could call it a tough day at the office,” Madrid said. “Our efforts were great in the first half, I felt we kept up with their intensity. Defensively we were not good tonight, our will to defend was not there and then the red card made it worse.
“A credit to Edge Hill, they are a free-flowing team and they exposed us defensively. It’s back to the drawing board for us.”
The Bulls play hosts to Innisfail this weekend in a super Saturday involving juniors all day, with the Premiers match kicking off at 7pm at Borzi Park, Mareeba.
