We return to our new home base of Cambridge looking for our first win since the opening day of the season. We caught up with head coach, Peter Smith, ahead of Saturday’s match against Southern United.
Smith was in an up-beat mood despite the recent set-backs. “Frustration is probably the dominant emotion within our squad after the last few matches, so we’ll be attempting to channel that into a positive performance at the weekend,” he explained during the week. “We really need a win and the guys are desperate for a result so hopefully that’s what we can deliver for our fans at Cambridge.”
Like any Dunedin-based side competing in a national competition, Southern United have to do a lot of travelling. Smith is hoping this will play into his team’s hands but is genuinely wary of a side with nothing to lose. “Southern will be a long way from home on Saturday and I don’t expect they’ll want to head back to the deep south without taking anything from the match,” said Smith. “They’ll be very keen to get a win for themselves so they don’t lose touch with everyone else, so we expect another tough game. This is shaping up to be a competitive league and every team must be on their game every week if they intend to do well.”
Smith is fully aware of the run of away games following this fixture, which makes it all the more important to his side to achieve their second win of the season. “After the Southern match we have three away games in a row, spliced by the Christmas break, so we need to make the most of our home advantage and grab the points.”
The match is at John Kerkhof Park in Cambridge and kicks off at 5pm.
Entry costs $10 for an adult, $5 for a student and pensioner and is free for children of Intermediate school age and younger.
