Napier City Rovers coach Bill Robertson says the four-week home match stretch his side is set to begin is crucial for their 2023 season hopes. Photo / Neil Reid
Napier City Rovers coach Bill Robertson says the four-week home match stretch his side is set to begin is crucial for their 2023 season hopes. Photo / Neil Reid
Napier City Rovers have adopted a “cup final mentality” to their upcoming four-week stretch of home games as they look to keep alive their dream of reaching football’s National League.
The Bill Robertson-coached team kick-off the four successive home games – including a trio of Central League clashes and the opening match of their 2023 Chatham Cup campaign – against North Wellington at Bluewater Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Given the tightness of the Central League points table, that clash – and the other league games against Stop Out (June 11) and Petone (June 25) - is a must-win if the side wants to surge up the ladder and stay in National League contention.
Sandwiched in between the league games is next Sunday’s Chatham Cup clash against Capital Premier League side Island Bay United.
“We have targeted these home games,” Robertson said.
“We have added a bit of pressure to ourselves with this run of home games which are around us in the league are must-wins if we want to achieve what we have set out to do in finishing in the top three or four.
“This game on Sunday is really a must-win and we have to add that cup final mentality and ruthlessness about what we do.
“If we can continue to perform at the levels that we have been doing, I am confident that the results will come over the next four-week period.”
A log-jam in the Central League points table ahead of the halfway stage of the season means wins are crucial for Napier City Rovers. Photo / Neil Reid
Four teams will qualify from the Central League for the 2023 National League.
The Wellington Phoenix Reserves – who are currently in third place – are guaranteed one of those spots.
The other top three finishers will nab the remaining places.
League leaders Wellington Olympic – who beat Napier City Rovers 6-3 last weekend – are huge favourites to win the league.
Fellow Wellington club Western Suburbs are in second spot with 18 points, along with Wellington Phoenix Reserves, but are ahead of them on the table on goal difference.
Then five clubs – Petone, Miramar Rangers, Stop Out, Napier City Rovers and Waterside Karori – are in a tight logjam for places four through eight.
Robertson said his players were well aware of the situation they now found themselves in.
“It is pressure that the league table is putting on them,” he said.
“They don’t need me to show them the league table; everyone knows what we want to achieve this year and everyone knows the position we are in.
“The players will look at that themselves and they are intelligent enough to know which games are important. And this one on the weekend is very much in that mould, and the next few weeks will be as well.”
Karan Mandair is back for Napier City Rovers while enjoying a break from his university scholarship in America. Photo / Paul Taylor
Robertson said he was unsure if 2023 recruit Alex Mort would be back from injury to take on his former club on Sunday.
Mort, 19, was hugely impressive in his opening games for Napier City Rovers until he suffered a severe ankle sprain in training about four weeks ago. It was initially feared he may have broken his ankle.
Mort trained fully with his teammates on Tuesday night and will again need to get through a full training session on Thursday night to get into selection consideration.
While his lay-off forced him out of last weekend’s loss to Wellington Olympic, Robertson’s squad was lifted by the return of Karan Mandair who has linked back up with his old team during a break from his university scholarship in America.
Mandair was part of Napier City Rovers’ 2019 Chatham Cup-winning team and 2018 Central League-winning team. He will be available until around the end of July.
Despite the final 6-3 scoreline in last weekend’s loss to table-topping Wellington Olympic, Robertson said there were still numerous positives his players could take from the match.
And regardless of the scoreline, there was no need to panic especially given the quality of the opposition and what Wellington Olympic have done to other teams in the league.
“I watched the game back ... we were nil-nil at 20 minutes and then at 27 minutes we were 3-0 down. There’s a spell there when we have lost control and they have gone bang, bang, bang,” he said.
“They’re clinical and they are top of the league for a reason.
Former Manchester City youth team player Deri Corfe has been outstanding all season for Napier City Rovers. Photo / Neil Reid
“But then we did grow into the game and caused them some problems. We both had 11 shots on target. We scored three good goals, and created a lot of other opportunities, but we have obviously conceded a few goals.
“If we could have tidied up defensively a little bit and been a bit more clinical in the final third, the scoreline could have been a bit different.”
Among the standouts last weekend was English import Deri Corfe.
The 25-year-old – who spent six years on Manchester City’s books as a youth team player – has been an outstanding signing by Robertson, again using his body size and strength to create holes in the defence, adding to his own 2023 goal tally and laying on chances for his team-mates.
The ongoing impact of Corfe is one factor Napier City Rovers will need over the next month.
“He obviously wanted to challenge himself against the best team in the league,” Robertson said of Corfe’s showing against Wellington Olympic.
“He got his goal from a penalty, but he won that penalty by being quite smart and winning the foul.
“He has been a great addition for the club; he’s got seven goals from eight games which is a great return when we are not even halfway through the Central League.”
