Inglewood United coach Taki Nicolaidis is retaining a realistic outlook following his side’s thrilling win over Bayswater City on Saturday.   A late Brian Woodall goal – his third in as many games – was enough to get the job done and move Inglewood to joint top of their Night Series group, a position they share with Cockburn City.

Despite beating last year’s National Premier Leagues champions, Nicolaidis is keeping a lid on things.   “Beating Bayswater on Saturday was very important,” Nicolaidis said.   “It gives the playing group that little bit more self-belief that we can mix it with the best in this league, and it puts us in a much better position to qualify for the semi-finals.”

“In our first three games we’ve played three different systems, it’s been very encouraging to see how well the players adjusted to and executed the game plan on each occasion.   But we can’t get too carried away, Saturday was another small step forward.   We celebrated the win and the next morning we started preparing for our next game.”

Inglewood are back on the park this Friday when they host Subiaco AFC in round four of the Night Series.   “Subiaco are a very difficult team to break down and Gerry McEwan has them very well drilled,” Nicolaidis said of this week’s opponent, who scored a 2-1 win over Perth Glory last time out.

“We will need to be at our best and make the most of the opportunities if we are going to break them down and get the win.   With us sitting second in the group, we have a lot to play for and I’m sure our guys will be geared up to put their best foot forward.”