Metro and Aces in Stalemate
Logan Metro 2 (Viphakone 26’, Manayiro 53’) North Brisbane 2 (Kharaud 61’, J Singh 82’) HT: 1-0 Played at Compton Park
A chilly evening was warmed up by the frenetic pace of the match with neither side giving the opposition time to settle on the ball. Logan Metro looked to have the game under control but North Brisbane fought back to claim a share of the spoils. The first half was end to end football as neither side could string too many passes together due to the pace of the game and the pressure from the opposition when in possession. North Brisbane had the first real chance on eleven minutes when Amardeep Ghooti received the ball in the area but before he could muster a shot, Metro keeper, Nelson Aunti was out to block the ball and knock it away. Ghooti had another chance ten minutes later when he beat his man on the right but hit the side netting from an acute angle. Metro started to take control of the match but were not making any clear opportunities until Tommy Vikaphone received the ball just outside the Aces’ area and hit a shot on the turn which beat keeper Jason Rai’s right hand and nestled in the net midway through the half. Metro were now in control and pressed the North Brisbane defence. Ghooti had another good chance that he blazed over the bar while John Wani had a chance at the near post that was saved by Rai. Early in the second half, a free kick out on the left for Metro was sent in by Jean-Claude Manayiro which eluded everybody to sneak in at the far post to give them a two goal lead. North Brisbane then started to get back into the match and reduced the deficit on 61 minutes when a ball was nodded through and chased by Aaron Kharaud. While the Metro defence were appealing for off-side, Kharaud calmly slotted the ball under the advancing Aunti. The Aces upped their game in search of further goals and took control of the match. In the 72nd minute a great cross from the right was headed on to the angle of the goal by Ghooti. Ten minutes later another cross from the right reached Jashanpreet Singh at the far post and he controlled the ball before driving it into the roof of the net. Their best chance of a winner came shortly after when Deng Neyal had a clear chance but his chipped shot went just over. Metro then seemed to lift in search of victory with two good chances coming in added time. The first of these was when Ruben Rubilar had a goal-bound shot blocked by the cover defence and then a couple of minutes later, John Baptiste Habiyambere sliced a shot wide from a good square ball. This was a match that both sides really needed to win. This showed in the competitiveness of the game with many a crunching tackle being made. Both sides had periods of dominance and both had chances towards the end to take the win.
Coaches Reactions:
Pat Castillo (Logan Metro): “We were up 2-0 but a couple defensive errors cost us. We were missing two key defenders today so had to reshuffle. I think our structure and formation worked well. We made them resort to long balls which was our game plan. We could have had a couple of goals at the end but it was a good game and hopefully we can keep going from here. ” Navneet Sandhar (North Brisbane): “We were down at half time which is a position we haven’t really found ourselves in too much this season. It was a good test of the boys’ character and obviously they showed it coming back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 and we almost snatched it at the end. They dominated the first half but we dominated the second. It was good game for the spectators I think.”
Team line-ups
Logan Metro: Aunti (GK), Shaka, Al Hilali (86’), Lopez, Eremugo, Jabo, Wani (68’), Mokrani, Manayiro, Rubilar, Viphakone Subs: Eastwood (86’), Habiyambere (68’)
North Brisbane: Rai (GK), Alhasan (57’), Brar, Hundal, Neyal, O’Donohue (71’), Prefontaine, Atwal (35’), Ghooti, G Singh, J Singh
Subs: Scales (71’), Kharaud (57’), Sanghera (35’) REFEREE: Jose Neves
