SOCCER - Victory eludes dogged North Force again

It was another disappointing day for North Force Men as they came close, but not close enough, to defeating Birkenhead in the US1 Premiership.
North Force coach Dean Wheatley said his troops were down 1-0 at halftime, despite dominating the first half at Shepherd Park on the North Shore.
"In the second half we equalised with a Steve Schimmel penalty then had corner after corner, and defended well," he said.
"But they (Birkenhead) got a break away and scored again and they held us off to win 2-1."
Carl Frankson booted both goals for Birkenhead and coach Malcolm McPherson - an old friend of Wheatleys off the field - admitted after the game, his men had been lucky to come away with the win. Wheatley agreed.
"The boys are working really well together now and were disappointed at the end to come away with nothing again," Wheatley said. "If they were playing badly I'd be worried - but they are playing really well ... it was a similar situation to last week."
At Tikipunga last week, North Force went down 2-1 to East Coast Bays, in a match where the Northern boys played out of their skins.
Again, North Force stepped up. "There were a lot of standouts this week - but Calvin Erick in the midfield played his socks off - and Mark Ruddle in the left midfield had a great game," the coach said.
But the hard work North Force invested in their last two games has not paid off and they are still stuck in eighth spot on the table.
Putting the losses behind them, North Force are now concentrating on their match at Tikipunga Sports Ground against third-placed Takapuna - another tough game in their relentless struggle for US1 Premiership points.
Takapuna defeated fourth-placed Albany United 4-2 at the weekend, while East Coast Bays remain the competition frontrunners following their 2-2 draw with Glenfield, in sixth. Second-placed Waitakere City got a run for their money from fifth-placed Forest Hill, but won 2-1, and North Shore, in ninth, beat Oratia, at the bottom of the table, 4-2.
In the US1 premier reserve grade, North Force drew 0-0 with Birkenhead but are starting to mature nicely, Wheatley said, with classy play from Murray Wootten up front, Tom Taylor in midfield and Alex Stevenson in goal.
The weekend North Force Women's game against Glenfield was postponed but they will line up against a hardy second-placed Three Kings United outfit at Keith Hay Park in Auckland on Sunday.