Mines Rovers coach Marc Johnstone welcomed the squad’s bye this weekend in the Goldfields Football League as an opportunity to recharge and regroup, but said most of the focus will likely be on off-field remedial work.
The Diorites are entrenched in second spot with seven wins, but they last weekend squandered a handy lead against Kalgoorlie and managed just 2.6 after half-time in a one-point defeat.
Fourth-placed Kalgoorlie were largely depleted, but have had the blue-and-whites’ measure in the past two clashes — and Johnstone conceded that his group’s struggles to follow a game plan was a worrying trend ahead of a round 15 clash against an unbeaten Railways.
“We just don’t seem to be able to control the footy when opposition teams get a run-on,” Johnstone said.
“I thought we were over that stuff, and it’s probably some whiteboard stuff that needs to be worked out, rather than actual ball-in-hand stuff, just to make sure we’re all on the same page.
“It seems like most of us are, but a couple tend to go a little bit rogue at times.”
In last Saturday’s wet and slippery conditions, Johnstone said his players had to be smarter in their approach.
“Especially in the last quarter when I specifically instructed them not to bring the ball to my (the grandstand) side of the ground and that it had to go to the dry side,” Johnstone said.
“These are just little things but sometimes it’s not the bloke firing the gun, it’s the one loading it and (doing) what they want to do.
“Even with a minute to go, we were still looking at chip passes — instead of just getting the bloody thing in there (attack).”
With a general bye applying on July 13 for the annual country championships in Perth, Mines Rovers will head into the clash against Railways without a game in three weeks.
Johnstone, however, said it would occur with a string of front-liners up for selection.
“We’re pretty undermanned at the minute, but with nine players due to come back in — probably seven against Railways (on July 20),” he said.
“There’s things to work on, but we’re still in second (position) and with a focus on continuing to win so we don’t have to rely on percentage of any other factors.”
In round 14 this Saturday, Kambalda host Kalgoorlie at Kambalda West Oval and Railways take on Boulder at Sir Richard Moore Sports Centre.
Ladder:
Railways 40 points; Mines Rovers 28; Boulder 20; Kalgoorlie 16; Kambalda 0.
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