An unlucky 13 for Rovers

It was a bad day at the office for the Manjimup Rovers as both the women’s and men’s team went winless in round 13 of the South West Soccer Association 2021 competition. The women started the day off in high spirits as they took on Bunbury United at home, but eventually went down 5-2. The opening period saw both sides miss chances to put themselves in front and take control of the game. It was only after a nifty one-two between the Bunbury strikers that the Manjimup defence found itself opened up where the ball was powered past the goalkeeper to make the score 1-0 to Bunbury. The Manjimup hurt would be compounded before half-time after a cross from the right flank found the head of a Bunbury player who flicked it over the oncoming Manjimup goalkeeper to make it 2-0. After the break both sides dug in defensively, as Bunbury tried to shore up their lead and Manjimup wanted to avoid conceding any more goals. A perfectly timed through-ball split the Manjimup centrebacks and led to Bunbury going 3-0 up. However, Manjimup showed they still had some fight left as Alicia Gluck stormed forward on a powerful run and smashed the ball into the back of the net to keep Rovers in the game. But a corner from Bunbury shortly after stopped any comeback possibilities as they went 4-1 up with less than 10 minutes left. Another goal from Jenine Dilts Bayman gave the home team some hope but it was not their day as Bunbury scored yet another goal to kill the tie off for good. In the men’s game, the Rovers had a top of the table clash with Geographe Bay who won 6-3. The Rovers, who needed to be reinforced with four players from the women’s team, went into the game hoping for the best but not expecting much. Jamie Mair scored twice for the Manjimup outfit who just did not have the numbers to compete with Geographe. The next game for the Rovers men’s team is a catch-up game against Eaton-Dardanup on Sunday.