The Web is becoming a fortress. And the locals are starting to notice.
A strong crowd packed Eltham North Reserve for the Round 2 opener against Brunswick Juventus and saw their side deliver a composed 2-0 win. Round 4 brings another big night under lights, and the opposition carries even more weight.
Brunswick City are no strangers to VPL1. They’ve been a fixture in this division for years and last season took it a step further, reaching the promotion play-off final. This is a club that expects to be competing at the top end of the table. Right now, though, their season has been a rollercoaster.
Round 1 saw them lose 4-2 at home to competition leaders Northcote City. Round 2 was a 3-2 defeat to Manningham United. Two losses, ten goals across two matches, chaos in both directions. Then came Round 3 and a 5-0 demolition of Port Melbourne. Trent Skapetis opened the scoring after 21 minutes and added his second in the 82nd. Lissandro Paz struck in the 25th, Dylan Alshon made it three before half-time, and Austin Wong completed the rout in stoppage time. That performance looked far more like the Brunswick City that went deep in last year’s finals series.
The numbers back up the volatility. Nine goals scored, seven conceded, a goal difference of plus two despite sitting 8th on three points. When Brunswick turn up, they can hurt anyone. When they don’t, they leak.
Eltham arrived in a very different state of mind. Third on the ladder with six points from three rounds, the Redbacks have lost only to Melbourne Victory Youth in Round 1 and have won back-to-back since. Monday night’s 3-1 dismantling of Bulleen Lions was the standout performance so far. Lewis Collins scored inside the first minute. Billy Romas doubled the lead just before half-time against his former club. Josh Dennett’s long-range strike in the 54th minute killed the contest. Eltham didn’t just impose itself physically on Bulleen. They were the better side with the ball.
A third straight win would take Eltham to nine points from four games. Depending on results elsewhere, that could mean top of the table.
Brunswick will test this side differently to Bulleen. They carry more attacking threat, they’re more unpredictable, and they’ll be desperate to avoid slipping further down the ladder. But The Web has already proven to be a difficult place to come and get a result, and this Eltham group has shown it can handle whatever VPL1 throws at it.
Round 4.
The Web.
Under lights.
Another chance to show the rest of the league what the Redbacks are about.