Whittlesea Ranges coach Vinko Buljubasic hopes his side isn’t too far away from recapturing its early-season form in the National Premier League.
After being on fire early in the NPL 2 west season, the Ranges have won just one of their past five games, although they have drawn two.
Buljubasic said injuries and an unsettled line-up had seen them slip.
“There’s been a change of personnel with a few injuries and there’s been some shuffling around,” he said.
“When you don’t have a stable line-up it can cause problems.
“[But] Players are starting to get used to different positions and are now able to absorb pressure.
“If we are to be successful, it’s about everyone being ready to play and using the whole squad.”
Against Ballarat Red Devils on Saturday, Buljubasic said his side showed signs .
The match ended in a 1-1 draw. The Devils scored first then Atilla Ofli scored his 17th goal of the season to earn Ranges a point.
“It was a fair result, with both teams defending well and attacking well,” Buljubasic said.
“It could have gone either way as both sides had their chances.”
Despite the ups and downs of the past five weeks the Ranges remain in the mix, sitting in third position – three points behind North Geelong Warriors.
Second through to fourth are separated only by goal difference.
“It’s a very close competition with four or five teams in the mix,” Buljubasic said.
“North Geelong is three points clear but we are still in contention.
“We’ve got to get on a winning run and get ahead of the pack.”
The Ranges are set for more changes next week. Jasdip Dingh Dosanjh hurt his hamstring and is unlikely to play, while Naum Sekulovski is likely to be suspended after his fifth yellow card of the season.
In NPL, Hume City’s hot streak continued with a 4-1 win over Port Melbourne Sharks.
Kym Harris and Nick Hegarty scored for Hume in the first half.
The Sharks scored their goal early in the second.
Theo Markelis then made it 3-1 for Hume before Hegarty scored his second.
Hume remains fifth on the ladder, nine points behind leaders South Melbourne.
City will be back on the park on Wednesday night to take on Malvern City in the sixth round of the Victorian stage of the nationwide FFA Cup.
