Key pair in doubt for Rockingham

Rockingham City Football Club are sweating on the fitness of key players ahead of Saturday’s State League division 1 opener against Joondalup.

City warmed up for the clash with a comfortable 5-1 victory over Kingsley last Thursday in the FFA Cup and were due to play Armadale in the next round on Monday.

Rockingham dominated against Kingsley early and took the lead on the 15-minute mark when Mitch Morrin converted a cross from the right.

A quick-fire second gave the visitors a 2-0 lead at half-time, with City nullifying their opponents’ attacking play by starving the hosts’ target man of possession.

Another Rockingham goal early in the second half killed the game as a contest and any chance Kingsley had of staging a fightback ended when City goalkeeper Alfie Brincat saved a penalty shortly afterwards.

Coach Cameron Lord looked to save some of his players’ legs by making substitutions on the hour mark but Rockingham are now sweating on the availability of two key men.

Morrin, who scored twice in the 5-1 win, collided with the post and is now nursing a back complaint, while right-winger Jason Pottier picked up a swollen ankle in the victory.

The pair join Callum Rothwell on the sidelines, with the City forward expected to be out for a month after cracking a rib in training.

Lord said he was happy with his side’s cup performance against Kingsley but the league was the priority in 2018.

“While it would be nice to do well in the cup, our focus is 100 per cent on the league,” he said.

“It was a good professional game from us. There were a lot of factors that didn’t go our way like the kick-off time and the travel.

“The boys did really well and dominated the factors that we could influence on the pitch.”

Lord said he expected a tough game against a combative Joondalup outfit but was confident his team could start the league campaign strongly.