Sport
15 April, 2024
Bulls trampled at home
THE Mareeba Bulls premier men and women’s teams both went down to the Leichhardt Lions on the weekend, despite putting on a show in the first halves of their respective games.
The premier men had a devasting loss against the Lions, who dominated them 4-0 in Mareeba on Saturday night.
In the first half, it was neck and neck, with both teams giving it their all on the field, with Leichhardt scoring the first goal in the last 10 minutes before the break.
Bulls captain Adrian Madrid said despite coming out of the dressing rooms after halftime with a new game plan, they were unable to keep up with the Lions, who took three consecutive goals up until the 90-minute mark.
“We were feeling pretty flat in the dressing room and we needed to lift ourselves up, but we just couldn’t find a way out – our first touch wasn’t there,” he said.
“Our urgency was probably our biggest thing and I guess we weren’t hungry enough.”
Despite the rough loss, Madrid said it wasn’t all “doom and gloom” and that it was a “wake-up call” for the men as they head into their next games.
“It’s a wake-up call for us to lift our game and work as a team,” he said.
“We have the team to win games, but the effort has to come from every single one of us and not just a few individual players.”
On Friday night, the premier women’s team went down to Leichhardt 3-2, with a last-minute goal in the 90th minute from the Lions securing their win.
Coach Christian Mukadi said while the first half of the game was strong, the women began to fumble the ball during the second half.
“We were hitting the post but we just weren’t good at finishing the 90 minutes, which meant they were able to equalise us on the 15th minute,” he said.
“After that, we managed to score another goal, so we went into the second half thinking we had the control, but that wasn't the case, and we were missing chances.”
Goalkeeper Kaitlin Lesmeister stood out as one of the best players according to Mukadi, who named her the “woman of the game”.
Ayshia Brischetto also stood out as a key player for the game, putting on a great defensive performance.
The Bulls have a bye this weekend and will be back on the field on 27 April to face Innisfail United at Steve Corcia Oval in Innisfail.
