Wanganui Athletic's David Glaister jostles with PN Marist in his side's narrow loss at Wembley Park on Saturday.PHOTO/BEVAN CONLEY
It was a narrow 2-1 loss for Devon Homes Wanganui Athletic against the Palmerston North Marist Reserves in the Lotto Federation League while the Athletic Reserves dug deep to grind out a well-earned 1-0 Western Premiership victory over the Red Sox Manawatu Rovers on Saturday.
It was yet another valiant and defiant display by the Athletic first team at Wembley Park as they continue to make headway after a horrible start to their season.
The body language of the players as they walked from the pitch spoke volumes as to how they felt about being within grasping distance of the result they have been craving all season.
And if they can continue to play the way they have in the last two weeks, it won't be long until everything clicks and they find that elusive three points.
A good-sized crowd had gathered around the well-manicured No1 ground to take in the match between the PN Marist Reserves and the Athletic firsts, with Marist the clear favourites going into the game based on their performances in recent weeks.
For the second week in a row, the Central Football body made the decision to appoint an official from the visiting team's region to look after the match on Wanganui Athletic's home ground - a highly unusual move considering the CF body had previously been quoted boasting how "there are actually more Central Football referees in Whanganui than there have been for quite some considerable time, and these referees are appointed to Whanganui games".
Yet with this decision as well as barely a handful of local senior games covered by local officials, the veracity of that statement seems to be coming more and more into question.
Athletic again showed they were ready to battle for their home supporters right from the first whistle, and have spent a lot of time on getting back to the basics of the game.
While Marist did find the back of the net in the early stages, it was Athletic's creative midfield general Ryan Holden, who has been outstanding for the Reds all season, who gave the home side a glimmer of hope with a beautifully taken goal to bring an edge in to an already tense and evenly fought match.
Athletic did well to control long phases of play in the midfield, setting a good foundation for the games in the future.
But with a mere 10 minutes left in play, the visitors found their mark and rippled the back of the net, sending a collective despondent sigh rushing from the lungs of those watching as it became apparent that it was not going to be the Reds' day, giving the visitors victory at the final whistle.
This coming weekend's trip on the road over to Napier will be a true test of how well the team are resetting their foundations and if they can continue to resurrect their season while they're away from home.
The Reserves completed their phase of resurrection with a determined effort which saw them claim their third win for 2016 over an experienced Red Sox Manawatu Rovers.
It was clear something had changed about the squad and with stalwart Scott Burney joining the ranks as he makes a recovery from injury, the young development team had a good mix of youthfulness and experience as they shaped up before the kick-off on Wembley No1.
The young side looked ready for a match as they strode onto the park, and right from the whistle sought to apply pressure on the visitors - pegging them back into their own half for extended periods of play.
From the off it seemed neither side was going to be able to gain ascendancy, until a moment of brilliance about 20 minutes into the match when Burney sent a screamer into the net, putting the Reserves into an unfamiliar situation of having to defend a slim lead for the majority of the match.
But this side that took to the field on Saturday were ready and willing to give their everything to keep the margin intact, while still taking every opportunity to find ways to extend it.
At the final whistle, the Reserves still held their 1-0 winning score, and claimed a valuable three points,
But it was an even more valuable morale and confidence boost for the developing side as they look to put their own talent on display and push first-team players for positions.
The Reserves are set to travel to Palmerston North's Skoglund Park this coming weekend for their first encounter with North End, and the match could prove to be another good confidence-builder off the back of Saturday's win.