SOCCER - Force boss laments six mad minutes

A six-minute lapse in concentration caused North Force to suffer a huge turnaround in fortunes at Forrest Hill on Saturday.
North Force played well to establish a 2-0 lead with 20 minutes of the match to play and seemed to be on track for their second win of the season until unaccountably fading to a 2-4 defeat, their coach Dean Wheatley said.
"With 20 minutes to go they scored three goals in about five minutes. It was almost bizarre, it was pretty gut-wrenching, you'd have to say," he said.
"You never mind losing when you've played badly but we were excellent until we conceded those goals."
Goals to Calvin Erick and Steve Schimmel gave the visitors a handy lead going into the final quarter and Wheatley was at a loss to understand why the side had imploded in such spectacular circumstances.
"The only thing that really changed was that Kyle Mac was injured, he was doing a good job breaking up their attacks in the midfield and that may have something to do with it ... it's hard to explain it just started to go all wrong," he said.
The side went close to equalising after conceding but instead Forrest Hill added another goal with the final kick of the game.
The North Shore club are the only new club in the US1 Premier League this season and Wheatley said they had prepared well for the step up. "They've spent some money and brought players into the side and I think they'll do all right in this competition," he said.
The bright news from the trip to Auckland was that the club's reserve side had a 3-1 win. Two goals by Murray Wootten and one for Thomas Taylor were enough for the side to score their second win in the division and they'll face another unbeaten team, Albany United, today at Tikipunga Park for top spot in the division.
The senior side also plays Albany today in a match that has now assumed extra significance.
"Our target was to have nine points by the end of this weekend now it has to be six," Wheatley said.
Mac will probably be missing for the match while Matthew Ward is another doubtful starter.
Meanwhile, Kaitaia United's first foray into the Northland Premier Division was spoiled by Kerikeri on Saturday, who easily beat the Awanui-based team 8-0.
Champions Kamo beat Onerahi 5-0, with Keegan Baddeley claiming a hat-trick, while FC Whangarei claimed their first win of the season with a 4-1 win over Madhatters.
A new-look Tikipunga side, strengthened by some of the former Kaikohe FC premier players from last season, beat off a strong challenge from another newcomer to the premier league, Okaihau-Kaeo, 2-0.