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DESPITE having a greater share of the play and shots on goal, FC Bendigo was beaten by Springvale in Saturday night's National Premier League Victoria division one clash.
Bendigo set up chance after chance in the match on home turf at the Tom Flood Sports Centre.
On the rebound from a 3-0 defeat the previous round, Bendigo took the lead in this ninth round contest.
The Springvale White Eagles equalised on what was to the last attacking foray in the opening half.
FC Bendigo had at least 20 chances in the 30-minutes after the half-time break.
"The effort to set up chances was excellent," FC Bendigo playing coach Steve Martin said on Sunday.
"The half-hour was one of the best performances of the season," Martin said.
"It was not through lack of effort, we just could not score."
The Eagles took the lead when they capitalised on a counter-attack in the 77th minute of the contest.
About five minutes later and Springvale led 3-1 following a bizarre piece of play near goal.
The result became 4-1 when the White Eagles again beat Bendigo's defence in the 94th minute.
"To be beaten by three goals was disappointing," Martin said.
"We would have had 25 least shots on goal. Springvale's tally would have been about six.
"Our workrate, teamwork and concentration was at a high level for a lot of the match.
"There were just a few errors that the Eagles were able to make the most of.
"This result hurts because we had so much of the play."
FC Bendigo's best included George Slefenorfas and Matt Breeze. Both won many duels in attack.
Alon Blungart in central midfield and captain Trent Waterson also played well.
"It's important we keep the belief and work hard," Martin said.
FC Bendigo heads south this Saturday to play FC Bulleen Lions at David Barro Stadium. The senior match kicks off at 5pm at the Veneto Club venue.