Following Old Carey’s 2-0 victory over Caulfield, senior coach Alex De La Torre gave his thoughts on the match
It must be a relief to get the first win on the board…
It was more a case of being really happy for the players. They have worked so hard during the pre-season and it was wonderful that their hard work was rewarded with a great result. Hopefully it will give them the belief that if they continue to work hard, success will follow.
On the performance…
I have to say that I thought it was a very even performance, with everyone contributing. Everyone gave the team 100% and worked tirelessly until the final whistle. It was very pleasing to see that many of the skills we worked on during the week were applied successfully.
On the tactical change from Round 1…
It was necessary. The team will need to learn to adapt to many different tactical formations and game plans and it was one of the real positives from the weekend that the players adapted so well to the change in formation and tactics. There will be more changes in the future no doubt, and Thomo and I were delighted with the way the players responded to the changes.
On Ayman Amin’s performance…
As you know, I don’t like to single out individuals. I did however think that Ayman had a very good game and his combination with Mara upfront looked very dangerous at times. He looked like he was enjoying his game and hopefully he can continue to work hard over the coming weeks.
On keeping a clean sheet…
It was vitally important. Keeping the opposition at bay means that the team is always in the game. We have spoken as a group about the need to work hard when we don’t have the ball and I think this weekend’s was a very good example of how if you have 11 players working hard as a defensive unit, it is very difficult to break a team down. Hopefully the first of many in 2010.
On picking up a win away from home…
It was crucial that we picked up points in this game. Having dropped all 3 points in our “home” fixture last week against Old Brighton, we really put ourselves under pressure. It was tremendous to see how the players responded to the challenge. It is only one win however, and the coaching staff will be looking for the players to back up the performance against Caulfield with another hard-working performance against Lyndale at home. Consistency is what we are looking for.
Were you concerned at half-time…
I was delighted at half-time. We spoke about how we wanted to come in at half-time at 0-0 and we did that. I would have been concerned if the team had played poorly or had really been battling, but the players had played very well and worked very hard. I had a real belief that if we could repeat the first half’s performance we would win the game.
On Caulfield…
Caulfield are a very good side. They have some technically gifted players and are well coached. They will do very well in 2010. This is why I was so pleased that the Carey players were able to compete with them on all aspects of the game and run out worthy winners.
