COFFS City United Lions defeated the Coffs Coast Tigers 2-1 at Polwarth Drive last Saturday in the HIT105.5 North Coast Premier League’s battle of the big cats.

The first goal came from the fox-in-the-box Chris Dooley, with a looping header that proved too hot for the goalkeeper to prevent crossing the goal line.

The Tigers equalised in the 74th minute, but Melad Khalaf secured the winner for Coffs United with just 10 minutes to go, chalking up the Lions’ first victory of the season.

Coffs United Lions boast one of the youngest teams in the league, and coach Connor Knight is pleased with the team’s growth.

“I think we showed a decent level of concentration over the game and then a great reaction after being pegged back to 1-1,” he said.

“Defensively we had a much better reaction to losing the ball than what we saw in the first two rounds which gave us a good platform to launch from.

“Overall mistakes and breakdowns in communication were still present but the reaction and effort from the boys were to a greater standard to what we have seen so far this season,” Knight said.

The Lions will face last year’s Premiers, the Northern Storm, at Korora on Saturday, April 27, at 2:30 pm.

The Storm will be seeking to bounce back from their 4-1 defeat by Premiership newbies Urunga last week.

Meanwhile, the Tigers will face last year’s champions, the Woolgoolga Wolves, at Polwarth Drive, kicking off at 5:00 pm.

By David WIGLEY