Drawn match, but good signs

It may not be a win, but splitting the points with a powerhouse squad is always a commendable situation. Wangaratta City FC’s division one men’s team fought out a tight 2-2 draw with Melrose FC at South Wangaratta, agonisingly close to their first outright success of the 2026 season but taking plenty from the encounter. The clash was evenly-fought early, with neither side making any significant strides, until Melrose’s Ramesh Basnet found the back of the net in the 30th minute to put Melrose up. Devil Jack Whiley struck back with an equaliser just four minutes later, and the scoreboard would read 1-1 at the half-time break. The second half was almost a copy of the first, with Melrose edging ahead with a goal before Wangaratta would bring parity, this time through Zak Bouchier (68’). The Devils would have their chance in the 76th minute, when Melrose’s Faraja Kitambala received his second yellow card and a subsequent red, removing him from the game and giving Wangaratta a one-man advantage on the field. Despite some strong attempts, the Devils just lacked that last kick to seize the lead, with the clock ultimately winning out. Nathan Gleeson in goals was his usual dependable self, while Zak Bouchier and Fraser D’Agostino are developing into top-tier talent at a remarkable rate. Men’s coach Vitaly Leschen said while it wasn’t a win, there were definitely positives signs on display. “I never really do this but I rewatched the game last night and to be honest it was our best performance by far through the year,” he said. “There was a lot of good moments of teamwork, fighting for each other. “Defensively, we were really solid, we conceded one goal to a very good goal and one goal to just a missed header from a corner – apart from that, they [Melrose] didn’t look as threatening as they could be, Melrose have a very fast forward line and a good forward line. “I thought the young guys nullified that pretty well. “It was frustrating in a sense that it’s round four and there have probably been three games now that we should’ve picked up at least two results from, but it you take it on face value from the look of one game, we did play pretty well. “Melrose are a good team, probably up towards the top of the table - on reflection, I’m probably happier with the result more than I was on Sunday afternoon.” Leschen said they were still having trouble scoring, particularly in moments of pressure, which was a learning opportunity for the young side. “One thing I definitely sometimes lose sight of, on the weekend we had five players under the age of 18 starting and probably seven or eight players under the age of 20 starting,” he said. “We are a young side, and for the boys to be taking it to these teams at the top of the table, it does demonstrate where they are as talented young players. “Our composure, hunger, whatever word you want to use, to put the ball in the net when we have the chances to put the ball in the net, they’re currently just not happening. “Partly that’s down to inexperience, there is a lot of pressure on the boys in those situations to put the ball into the net to win games, and when they’re down to 10 [players], all of those things add up in your head. “At the end of the day, it’s senior football, and the players need to start to take those chances. “We need to find a way to rectify that, and hopefully once we do, we’re definitely going to take a step up.” The senior Devils sit 10th on the league table, winless with two draws from their four matches. Meanwhile, the men’s lower grade squads are thriving, with both the thirds and reserves maintaining their undefeated start to the season. The division two squad banked the points 2-1, with goals to Abraham Verbeek and Jimmy Wells, while a goal from Go Ashby helped the thirds to a 1-1 draw. Both the reserves and thirds sit in the top four of the competition.

Drawn match, but good signs

Wangaratta Chronicle, Friday, 18 September, 2026

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Wangaratta Chronicle, Friday, 18 September, 2026

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