United move up table
Gippsland United's senior men continued their impressive run of form with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Mooroolbark at Baxter Park on Saturday.
Despite a slow opening 20 minutes that saw the visitors take an early lead through John-Paul Cooper, United responded superbly and seized control of the contest.
The home side looked increasingly dangerous as the match wore on, creating the better opportunities and applying sustained pressure.
Mitch Jones restored parity before the break, powering home a header from a set piece to swing the momentum back in United's favour.
With the clock winding down and the contest seemingly headed for a draw, Bayden Heusmann delivered once again, unleashing a trademark left-foot rocket into the roof of the net with just five minutes remaining to spark jubilant celebrations.
The result marks Gippsland United's fourth consecutive home victory, with the youthful side continuing to gather momentum as the season progresses.
The win has seen United move into fourth on the State League 2 Men's South-East table as they prepare face top-of-the-table Knox City away from home this Saturday.
Reserve men
Gippsland's reserves pushed third-placed Mooroolbark all the way before narrowly going down 1-0 in an entertaining, high-quality contest.
After suffering a heavy defeat in the corresponding fixture earlier in the season, the young United side produced a vastly improved performance, matching one of the competition's strongest outfits for much of the afternoon. The continued integration of under 18 players into senior football was another positive, with the youngsters again making the most of their opportunities at the higher level.
Senior women and Boys Youth State League
Gippsland United's women enjoyed another scheduled bye, while the Boys Youth State League competition also took a break, with all teams set to return to action next weekend.
Under 13 girls
This week United's under 13 girls took on a strong team, Bayside Argonauts, who came out firing from the first whistle
Although Gippsland began a little slowly, they continued to work hard throughout the first half but went into half time conceding eight great goals.
At half time, the team's attitude was super positive. The girls came back onto the field smiling and laughing, with determination to keep fighting, and their effort paid off almost immediately.
Libby scored a fantastic goal from a free kick just outside the box, sending the parents into a wild celebration as if the team had just won a grand final That goal gave the whole team a huge confidence boost, and everyone lifted their intensity.
Bayside added a couple more goals, but Gippsland never gave up. Milla made a brilliant run down the wing and delivered a beautiful cross that hit the top corner before bouncing back into play.
Everyone held their breath, but Libby reacted quickest, finishing the chance with her second goal of the game. The final score was 10-2.
