Sydney FC and Adelaide United traded second-half goals to share the spoils 1-1 in a hard-fought National Youth League clash at Leichhardt Oval.
Sydney FC and Adelaide United traded second-half goals to share the spoils 1-1 in a hard-fought National Youth League clash at Leichhardt Oval.
A Mitchell Mallia goal soon after the interval looked set to give Sydney the points amid a flurry of spurned goalscoring opportunities but Liam Wooding stepped up to equalise with 17 minutes remaining.
The opening period was largely a scrappy affair under a warm midday sun, with the two goalkeepers rarely troubled.
Jared Lum produced a good save from Nicholas Munro in the Adelaide goal in a rare moment of goalmouth activity. However, the best chance of the half saw Joel Chianese’s powerful header desperately cleared off the goal line by Jake Monaco.
In contrast to the first half, the second period commenced with several goalscoring chances for Sydney.
The effervescent Mallia saw a shot narrowly go the wrong side of the post, while the Adelaide defence then managed to clear a goalmouth scramble when a goal seemed all but certain.
However Sydney, and Mallia, got their reward just five minutes after the break with the midfielder converting from close-range after a cut-back from the right-hand side.
The one-way traffic continued but the Sky Blues, to their cost, were unable to secure a crucial second goal.
Adelaide, with new senior team striker Ricardo Da Silva in their ranks, slowly started to work their way back into the contest as captain Evan Kostopoulos directed an awkward close-range header over the bar from a right-flank cross.
A similar move did, however, provide the visitors with their reward as Wooding comfortably headed home from six metres after a perfectly-flighted delivery.
Sydney substitute Hassan Daramy provided Adelaide with some nervous moments late in the contest, most notably a looping effort which was expertly finger-tipped over the crossbar on the stroke of 90 minutes.
Sydney FC 1 (Mallia 50)
Adelaide United 1 (Wooding 72)
