A team who have struggled to score goals all season against a team who have found it hard to score away from home; the end result of 0-0 shouldn’t have come as a surprise to anyone last weekend.
A worn-out rugby pitch at AAMI Park made the challenge of finding the net even tougher, and neither team could oblige. Even still, both the Victory and the Glory had their moments to take home all three points and will think what might have been.
No goals in an A-League game is a rarity these days, especially for the Glory and Ruben Zadkovich. It’s our first since the 30th of March last year, and also the first scoreless draw against the Victory since 2007.
Don’t let that fool you into thinking last Sunday was a dull affair. There was plenty of action in the final minutes and heart in mouth moments at both ends, although not so much in the Glory’s attacking areas mind you.
One shot on target in the 89th minute, 39 per cent possession for the match. Make no mistake, the Victory were the dominant side on the ball. They just didn’t have the cutting edge to make it count and to our credit, we defended resolutely throughout the 90 minutes.
Zadkovich made some interesting choices in his starting eleven, opting to play Darryl Lachman in midfield with Mustafa Amini. Mark Beevers, Jacob Muir and Jordan Elsey made up the back three, while Luke Ivanovic came in for Adam Taggart up front.
It didn’t take long for those watching to realise the back three was ineffective in an attacking sense in this game. Glory’s initial build up relies on the centre backs passing through the midfield or out wide into space for the full backs.
The pitch and the pressing from the Victory forwards made it hard to play the style of football Zadkovich wanted to. The ground passing was off and when the pressure was applied, we resorted to long balls in behind which the Victory defence dealt with comfortably.
As the attack struggled to find the ball, the defence was hard at work. A pass across the box from Kadete was cleared away sensationally by Jack Clisby, sliding in ahead of the oncoming Bruce Kamau. Fernando Romero hit the post shortly after, getting on the end of a long ball which Cameron Cook opted not to come out for. He was fortunate the shot rebounded off the woodwork and back into his arms.
Muir was replaced in the first half by Joseph Forde and the shape was altered as a result, reverting to a back four with Trent Ostler moving to the left side of the attack. Victory still controlled the game in the second half, but I felt the change eased some of the pressure off the defenders and gave our forwards a chance to try and make something happen.
The standout chances of the game fell to us in the closing stages when Luke Bodnar’s header forced a brilliant save from Paul Izzo, and then Adam Taggart missed a routine header from Williams’ cross in the 93rd minute. Despite scoring against Macarthur and a solid showing off the bench last time out, Taggart is still trying to find his sharpness in front of goal and here’s hoping he can find it fast.
The biggest drama was saved for the dying moments when Lleyton Brooks went to ground after a challenge from Elsey. No penalty was given but a scuffle ensued involving a host of players, Beevers being most prominent. He received a second yellow and will miss the clash against Sydney.
It’s a big loss with the form he’s been in this season, contributing on the scoresheet and providing a steady presence at the back. Him and Clisby combined for half of the 38 clearances against Victory, both playing huge roles in getting us a point on the road.
Tony Popovic’s men remain stuck at the bottom of the ladder, missing a chance to jump nearly half the table with a win. Rai Marchan was key in their midfield and the centre half pairing of Damien Da Silva and Roderick Miranda were solid throughout the contest.
The wait for a second road win continues, but a point is not a bad result by any means. It keeps us in the mix, still behind Sydney by a point heading into our clash at Allianz Stadium. The Sky Blues have the worst home record in the league, winning just three times from eleven at their new home.
It’s the final away game of the regular season, and it will be treated like a final. A win gets us into the top six ahead of our remaining two games at home, a loss could spell the end of our run for the finals. All to play for on the weekend, let’s see if we can step up to the plate.
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