Ballarat SC has bounced back from a disappointing loss to produce an impressive 2-1 win over the Deakin Ducks in the men's state league 5 west competition.
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A cold and "murky" Ballarat day made for a close contest on Saturday at Trekardo Park.
But the home side relished the poor conditions, much to the delight of coach Jamie Winton who described the match as a contrast to the side's previous outing.
"The whole team played well, we had good players all over the park," he said.
"Even though the conditions were significantly worse, the skill level and quality of our play was significantly higher.
"They really bounced back that's for sure."
Ballarat was the first to open its account after a strike from forward Justin Whitcher beat the Deakin goalkeeper.
Taking a 1-0 lead into the break, Deakin evened things up in the second period off the boot of Marcus Lindeberg.
The goal set the stage for a showdown heading into the final stages as both teams searched for a dagger to put the game out of reach.
Ballarat found one after a lucky corner shot from Whitcher created confusion among defenders and found the back of the net.
"It was a bit of a mix-up, the slippery ground helped and it was a bit of a lucky one for us," Winton said.
The lucky goal opened the door for a potential hat-trick for Whitcher which wasn't to be.
Ballarat defender Jack Mirabella proved a standout on the day whose ball delivery provided a number of transition opportunities.
Winton heaped praise on fellow defenders Declan Hennessy and Zach Daniels who he said were also very strong.
"Because they held out Deakin, as the game wen't on it helped us get more opportunities up forward because they were shutting everything down on our end," he said.
The win means Ballarat reclaims second spot on the ladder with an impressive five wins and two losses.
After being run off the park in last week's two-goal loss to Barwon, Winton said Ballarat's ability to 'run out the game' was back on display.
"It has become part of our game that we are quite fit and strong across the ground," he said.
"We win a lot of contested ball late in the game, which provides good opportunities, and that happened again."
The side will now look ahead to this week's match-up with Melton who sits eighth on the ladder with two wins to its name.
Winton said his side had every reason to be optimistic.
"Given the way we played on the weekend we should be confident," he said.
