Hawke’s Bay teams snapping at Gisborne team’s heels

Gisborne Thistle striker Leo Maisey (left) contests possession with Western Rangers defender Liam Brown in Eastern Premiership football at Childers Road Reserve this month. Rangers won the match 3-1 and are at home to competition leaders Gisborne United tomorrow. Thistle are at home to Port Hill (2.45pm kickoff). Photo / Paul Rickard

Gisborne football teams United and Thistle fill two of the top three places in the Hawke’s Bay-dominated Eastern Premiership.

And if you listen carefully, you can hear all six southern teams snapping at their heels.

Heavy Equipment Services United lead the competition on goal difference. Theirs is 26, double that of second-placed Havelock North Wanderers (13). But their win/draw record is identical: four wins and two draws for 14 points each.

All the other teams have a negative goal difference. The worst is third-placed Electrinet Thistle’s -10 and the second-worst, fourth-placed Maycenvale’s -9.

All teams have had at least one win, but only Thistle have not drawn a game, which is probably why they are so high in the league despite some crushing defeats.

Two of them were to the top two sides, 8-0 to United and 6-2 away to Havelock North, but perhaps the toughest to take was the 3-1 home loss to the team that started the game in last place, Western Rangers.

But that league position was misleading, as Rangers had run several teams close with little or no reward, and they were desperate to prove themselves.

The Jags have also shown enterprise and fighting spirit. Seven days after their mauling by United, they beat Napier City Rovers Reserves 3-2 in Hawke’s Bay. Then came the better-than-it-looked loss to Havelock North, followed by a home game against Maycenvale that proved something of a crucible. They came through a torrid match with a 2-0 win, then beat Taradale Reserves 3-2 away.

In short, anything can happen at Childers Road Reserve when Thistle play Port Hill at 2.45pm tomorrow.

Port Hill are in last place, with a goal difference one worse than that of Western Rangers. But don’t let that fool you.

United are away to Western Rangers, who are on a one-game winning streak.

Rangers’ performance against Thistle in Gisborne two weeks ago shows that all teams in this league have the potential to cause an upset. At home, they will be even tougher than Thistle found them.

All-round quality and firepower should be enough to secure United the points, and they will want to reset after their 4-4 away draw with Taradale Reserves. In that game, they conceded two goals while reduced to seven men for eight minutes after one player was sent off and three did time in the sin-bin for dissent.

It’s an interesting clash – a team on the rise versus one having to take stock after a setback. Ninety minutes will reveal all.