Sydney FC were made to rue their missed chances as they suffered a 2-2 draw with the Central Coast Mariners, off the back of two decisive strikes by Roy O’Donovan and Harry Ascroft.
Ashcroft’s late equaliser, off the back of a calamitous error from Sydney FC goalkeeper Vedran Janjetovic, saw the Central Coast Mariners claw back a two-goal deficit to most likely end the Sky Blues’ finals hopes.
George Blackwood opened the scoring for Sydney FC 10 minutes in with his first A-League goal, a tidy strike from the edge of the area. After a brief period of which saw a few rare Mariners chances, including a tight offside call denying Irish striker Roy O’Donovan, the young Central Coast side switched off for a split second and were caught out by a quickly taken free kick which was clinically converted by Shane Smeltz.
A largely static second half saw Sydney miss a collection of headline chances, including an incredible goal-line clearance by Ashcroft to deny Shane Smeltz. Once O’Donovan found the back of the net for the first time since his eight-game ban for head-butting Manny Muscat, tense moments followed, as the Mariners pushed for an elusive equaliser. Here are some glaring points which emerged from this action-packed fixture.
Blackwood has what it takes to be a star
Central Coast Stadium saw the day which promising youngster George Blackwood finally broke a league goal drought, a moment that had been coming for several weeks. Ever since being thrown into the deep end against David Villa’s Melbourne City in the first game of last season, the 18-year-old has shown glimpses of what he is capable of, however he failed to convert a plethora of great chances, proving that he was still a ‘raw talent’, not quite the finished product.
However, his performance against the Mariners was a step up from what we have ever seen before; an outstanding work-rate offensively and defensively, as well as bringing a much needed creative outlet to what has been a struggling Sydney FC attacking force. Keeping in mind that he was backing up from a significant amount of game time in Korea vs Pohang Steelers midweek, Blackwood is certainly a name to remember.
Costly ill-discipline
The Mariners’ suffering this season has been greatly self-inflicted. A double blow was inflicted as a result of last week’s 4-0 loss to Perth Glory, with automatic one-match suspensions as a result of red cards to legendary Spaniard Luis Garcia and electrifying youngster Mitch Austin. Their creative spark was clearly missed against the Sky Blues, with a great burden placed on the shoulders of Portuguese winger Fabio Ferreira, who was charged with filling the void left by two of Central Coast’s primary attacking outlets. Sheer force of numbers eventually allowed the Mariners to steal a point, but man-for-man they lacked an attacking edge in the first hour of play.
Lack of energy
For prolonged periods throughout the 90, there seemed to be a lack of intensity shown by both sides. Although the Mariners produced sporadic bursts of energy, they played, for the most part, as the team now guaranteed the wooden spoon. However unlike their late push in the first half, a domination throughout the final minutes of the game produced two decisive goals, ultimately levelling proceedings.
Sydney were in cruise control, 2-0 up, yet always showed signs of vulnerability, and failed to convert the range of chances on the counter-attack, for most occasions being lethargic on the break, a stark characteristic of their incredible form slide.
Sydney FC’s A-League season may well be over
For a team three points away from finals football, with a final three games against top six opponents, anything but a win against the wooden spooners was a must. And it was Vedran Janjetovic’s nightmare moment which may well have cost the Sky Blues this opportunity. A moment which summed up the past few months for Sydney, they just lacked that cutting edge in attack, and surety in defense which will most likely now cost them a top six position. For the Sydney faithful, the only positive in this current moment would be the prospect of success in the Asian Champions League, their only dream from this season which is well and truly alive.
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