Auckland FC left it late to snatch a dramatic 1-1 draw against Sydney FC at Leichhardt Oval, scoring in the fifth minute of stoppage time to stun the hosts.
The match burst into life early when Jesse Randall tried to catch Harrison Devenish-Meares off his line with an ambitious lob from distance. A pinpoint long ball from Felipe Gallegos dropped invitingly 20 yards out, but Randall’s effort didn’t trouble the scrambling goalkeeper.
At the other end, Apostolos Stamatelopoulos teed up Victor Campuzano for a close-range effort that was bravely blocked by Francis de Vries. Campuzano went even closer moments later, only for Michael Woud to produce a sharp diving save from four yards to keep the scores level.
Stamatelopoulos forced another strong save from Woud early on, headed wide from a promising position on the hour mark, and was denied yet again as Sydney ramped up the pressure.
The breakthrough finally arrived in the 84th minute. Alexandar Popovic rose unmarked to meet a Piero Quispe delivery, flicking his header into the bottom corner. After a tense VAR check, the goal stood and it looked as though the points were staying in Sydney.
But Auckland had the final say. Deep into stoppage time, a long ball into the box caused chaos. Devenish-Meares parried a Nando Pijnaker header, but Jordan Courtney-Perkins’ attempted clearance cannoned off Alex Grant and looped into the net. In extraordinary fashion, Auckland rescued a point at the death.
Player of the Match: Louis Verstraete
Next match: The DERBY! We take on the Wellington Phoenix in Wellington on Saturday 2st Feb, 5pm at Sky Stadium.
Next home game at Go Media: Fans will have to wait until the end of the month when we face Melbourne City on February 28 at 5pm. Tickets for this and all Auckland FC games can be bought here.
