Melbourne Heart FC Head Coach John van ‘t Schip admits his side is approaching a potentially decisive period of the season ahead of the Club’s match with the North Queensland Fury next week.
Melbourne Heart FC Head Coach John van ‘t Schip admits his side is approaching a potentially decisive period of the season ahead of the Club-s match with the North Queensland Fury next week.
After navigating recent trips to Newcastle and Perth, Heart faces five matches in an 18-day period, starting with the Club-s encounter in Townsville on Wednesday.
Having been unbeaten in five matches, Heart has marched up the table in recent weeks, maintaining three clean sheets in succession.
Van ‘t Schip said Heart-s early season form has contributed to the importance of the upcoming month of football, revealing the following four weeks arrive at a crucial juncture in the season.
“It-s a very important period of the season, and has everything to do with the start that we had which was really not what we expected to have of course,” he said.
“The games are getting more important every time. That is why we are happy with what we are achieving now in this difficult schedule and the three away games we have now and the two top placed teams at home.
“It-s going to be very interesting to know where we can be at the end of those games.
Following the emergence of former Victorian Premier League stars Nick Kalmar, Aziz Behich and Adrian Zahra, the competition for places in Heart-s starting line-up is becoming increasingly hard-fought, highlighting the impressive level of depth present in the Club-s inaugural squad.
Van ‘t Schip said: “I-m telling all the players who are coming in and going out, the ones who aren-t playing really have to be sharp and train well and be ready for even if it-s maybe a few minutes, a half game or a full game.
“They have to be ready and that-s the positive thing of the last few weeks. It-s not only 11 players who can be in the starting line-up, we have now 16, 17, 18 players who can all be part of the line-up without the team playing less. “
