South Melbourne have only enjoyed two clean sheets this season. They were against 14^th placed Port Melbourne, and 13^th placed Altona Magic. Outside of those matches, South have conceded 2 goals per game. Why is the defence so poor this year?

Is it the Goalkeeper?

No – if anything, Javier Lopez has minimised the damage with a number of saves this year. Although there have been goalkeeping errors this season (Lopez was off his line against Dandenong, and Pithoulas conceded an unfortunate penalty against Preston), South’s defensive issues appear to be further up the field.

Is it the Defence?

South has conceded 4 goals in first halves, and 10 goals in second halves this season. Our defensive issues are later in games, but why?

During games this season South is facing far more shots that it is creating, and it is struggling to maintain possession. This creates asymmetric pressure which leaves our defence more worn down than that of our opponents.

The result? 5 goals conceded after the 80^th minute, and an unnecessary 90^th minute red card for Jankovic. Our defence is getting fatigued – but also frustrated by facing constant pressure.

Why is there so much pressure?

Our opposition this year has dominated possession in midfield (leading to more open shots), and has often been able to play through the centre unimpeded (leading to counter attacks).

Even on the ball, our lack of midfield options is forcing our team into direct plays which results in turnovers. This leaves our team unable to rest on our own terms and burning out. If we want to cop less goals, we need the midfield get organised!