A SHUTO Kuboyama double against Gold Coast United has sealed Redlands United first win on their 2018 National Premier Leagues season.
Redlands coach Nick Dibbs said it is always good to get the first win of the season.
"It was coming," he said.
"I knew it was coming and I'm pleased with the result today.
"If I'm going to be really critical it could have been more but the big thing for us was the clean sheet and it was good to have a bigger choice of players and to have the right players in the right positions.
"We've got good depth in the squad but I think we needed that stability," Dibbs said.
The game looked like it would start out as the previous home games, with rain. While the rain held off, the lightning in the background laid the backdrop for an interesting match. There was a late change for Redlands after midfielder Scott Sargent, who had been battling a hamstring injury since the draw to SWQ Thunder, chose not to play and Sam Langley slipped into his place.
It was also the first time this season Redlands captain Scott Bow started the match, after injuring his knee in December last year. Gold Coast came into the game without their central midfielder Nicholas Panetta and central defender Brandon Reeves, who were both shown red cards last round.
Redlands were able to start the game strong and scored in the opening 20 minutes. Gold Coast also had their chances but their lack of finishing on the counter-attack meant the side missed their opportunities to level the game.
“Obviously (Gold Coast) were going to create their chances and they're going to have their moment in the game,” Dibbs said.
“To be honest, I think we dealt with it really well and our transition was way better.
“I knew this week we would be in a better position with our choice of players, even though I have confidence in all of them, it was something going forward we needed to put to bed and its consistency now,” he said.
After half-time, Redlands were looking to extend their lead as they bombarded goalkeeper Zac Speedy but they had to wait until the 74th minute for Kuboyama to play the ball around Speedy for the goal.
Gold Coast had a period of domination and it looked like they scored off an Alistair Davis header but the assistant referee flagged it as offside.
Redlands will trip up north to Cairns FC for a Saturday night match before returning to the showgrounds the following week against Brisbane Roar Youth.
