Casey stays committed

By Gavin Staindl
SAFE from relegation concerns, but too far away to aim for a top four finish, it could be reasonably assumed that interest in the Casey Comets’ season is fading.
But one only had to look at the numbers at training on Tuesday night to realise such could not be further from the truth.
Coming off a frustrating 1-0 loss on Saturday, Division Two Casey coach Doug Chisholm was ecstatic with the numbers he had to work with at Tuesday’s training session. “We had our full squad there,” Chisholm said.
“All 19 turned up and we took them aside before the start of training and said to them ‘well done, this is a fantastic effort’. To be honest, it hasn’t been difficult at all to motivate the players. Their commitment to each other and the team is something we can’t knock.”
This commitment to the club was highlighted on the weekend, when injured young gun Brendan Elmazovski sent Chisholm a text message on Sunday outlining his disappointment in not getting a run during Saturday’s game with Noble Park.
Despite the game carrying little importance in terms of the ladder make-up, Elmazovski, who was suffering a niggling knee injury, wanted to play.
“He was really disappointed,” Chisholm said. “He missed a few weeks with a knee injury and he was champing at the bit to play against Noble Park but we had to pull him back. It is easy for a coach to let him play, and we definitely needed him last week, but we thought we’d give him one more week to get it right. I would rather lose a game than put the career of a young boy in jeopardy.”
Elmazovksi’s expected return for this week’s match against South Springvale will be one of four vital inclusions for Casey, which lacked the “cutting edge” against Noble Park.
Veteran Tony Saunders is expected to return from injury, while newly recruited livewire Bujar Thaqi will be available for selection after he returns from school duties on Friday.
The leagues’s leading goalscorer, Liam Ryan, will also make his return from suspension.
DIVISION Three sides Doveton and Berwick will be hoping to salvage wins to retain a buffer over the closing relegation zone.
Doveton went down 3-2 to Nunawading at Mahoneys Road Reserve on Saturday and will be looking for a win to extend its two game gap on the drop zone. Meanwhile, Berwick played out its second consecutive 1-1 draw, this time against Frankston Pines, and remains one point ahead of Doveton. In the Provisional Leagues, Endeavour United and Casey Kings salvaged 1-1 draws against Bayside Argonauts and Keysborough respectively.