United at risk of relegation - DAILY GRAPHIC

Kildonan visits tonight
BY JOEY PAYEUR
Thursday July 28, 2005

PORTAGE LA PRAIRIE — Big games demand big efforts. Small efforts can lead to big-time punishment.So it was for Southport United, which lost a 1-0 decision at home to Reservoir Dogs in Manitoba Major Soccer League Fourth Division play in a game which may come back to haunt them at season’s end.“I was not happy at all,” said United coach Karl Seidlitz, whose anger at his team’s lacklustre play translated into a postgame session of running laps for his troops. “There were some good efforts, but collectively, there was not enough. They suffered my wrath.”And how much wrath did they feel?“Let’s say enough to make them pretty tired,” stated Seidlitz, whose team is now in real danger of being relegated from Fourth Division, thanks to the folding of another squad in the 12-team group.Southport entered the game in 10th place with an official record of 1-7-2 for five points, three ahead of the 11th-place Dogs, which were 0-4-2.The bottom two teams in the division are automatically relegated to the next lower division at the end of the season.The three points for the victory put the Dogs even with United for the time being. With Boni Vital Inferno dropping out of the league recently, leaving them officially in last place in the season standings, that meant only one other team would join them in moving down the league ladder to Fifth Division.But the Inferno’s withdrawal also led to a ruling all points received by other teams in games against them this season would be taken away. Southport’s only win of the year came against Boni Vital, which means it will drop to just two points once the ruling officially goes into effect. Meanwhile, the Dogs, who tied the Inferno earlier in the year, will lose only one point and remain two ahead of United.Furthermore, the Dogs have four games in hand on Southport, which made the defeat on Sunday even more devastating.So with approximately 10 games left in the campaign, is it a case of referring to each outing from here on in as a must-win game?“I think we’re almost at that point now,” said Seidlitz. “We have to get results and soon. We’re getting desperate.”Defender Trevor Kehler was the lone Southport player to draw positive reaction from his coach.“We put Trevor in there about 25 minutes into the first half in the stopper position, and he stayed in there because he did so well,” praised Seidlitz. “He was quite effective.”Seidlitz’s search for a spark has led him to implement some mysterious inspiration.A former United and Southport Aeros player, whom Seidlitz wouldn’t name on the record, is scheduled to make his return to United for tonight’s battle with Kildonan.“He could be a surprise to the guys. He’s a player from our past,” hinted Seidlitz. “He can play forward, midfield or defence. He’ll be in the lineup, as long as his player card is signed and returned (to the league executive) in time.”SUNDAY SORROWUnited played evenly with the Dogs in last Sunday’s affair, and was victimized by a foul call against it midway through the second half which gave the visitors a direct free kick from just outside the 18-yard box.“The call was a little questionable, but it was more our failure to respond to it which hurt us,” said Seidlitz.“Our wall was not set up at the right location, and it made it easy for them by leaving the left corner open. We could see it coming from the bench.”The subsequent kick evaded Southport goalie Steve Assenmacher, who had to leave the game shortly thereafter in favour of backup Cory Thiessen due to aggravating a groin pull he suffered against Carman Kickers on July 21.“I don’t believe so,” said Seidlitz when asked if Assenmacher would be available for action against Kildonan.“Steve didn’t practice last night, but if he’s not ready, Cory’s ready to jump in.”Before the goal, the United coach thought his team was playing on par with the Dogs, something which didn’t tickle his fancy.“It was even, but it shouldn’t have been,” said Seidlitz. “We should have been leading. The other team wasn’t doing anything special.”United has been shut out in its last three regular season games and six times overall this season, accumulating a meager seven goals in 12 games and scoring more than one goal only once in a game -- against Boni Vital in a 3-2 triumph on June 18.Tonight, the Aeros take on archrival Kildonan Fusion (3-7) at Southport Recreation Centre at 7:30 p.m.