South Coast United and Bulli couldn’t be split after a tense 1-1 draw at Ian McLennan Park on Sunday night. Ben McDonald opened the scoring for Bulli before Advin Trebincevic levelled it up right on the stroke of half time.
It was a non-eventful start to the match with limited opportunities.
Bulli did however start the brighter of the two sides and a forced turnover on five minutes deep into the South Coast half saw McDonald unleash a shot from the edge of the box that whisked by the post.
The game sprung to life midway through the first half when Naoto Matsui sparked Bulli’s attack. He went on a mazy run and a good scoring position however he shot straight at Jason Bleakley.
Just a few minutes later, Cody Ashburner got on the end of another swift break from Bulli however South Coast United’s defence showed great resilience as they were determined not to be breached with a desperate lunging block to deny him.
It was much of the same with Bulli now forcing the issue on the half hour mark. Denim Nou getting on the end of the long ball and driving towards goal however Michajlo Jonic produced some top drawer defending to do enough to delay the shot and then block his effort.
South Coast United were targeting Bulli’s right side however time and time again, the delivery into the box was simply not good enough as Bulli’s defensive line was able to repel any genuine raids and prevent clear cut opportunities.
Just two minutes before the break, Bulli got their reward. A good cross from Samuel Sisounon found McDonald lurking six yards out. His header was well blocked by Bleakley who showed cat like reflexes however the ball fell back to McDonald who bundled it over the line.
Just as the first half was drawing to a close, Trebincevic linked well with Mark Moric and he cut straight through the Bulli defence heading for goal. He tucked the ball beyond the advancing keeper to draw the game level right on half time.
It was a set back for Bulli as they went into the sheds with a tied ball game.
The goal right on half time seemed to energise the home team as they started to enjoy more of the ball and possession early in the second.
On the hour, a weaving run from the energetic Trebincevic saw him again put himself in a strong scoring position however Luke Palermo made a desperate and perfectly timed challenge to deny him.
This seemed to spark a flurry of action as South Coast United took it up a notch.
Just seconds later, Moric created some space for himself just outside the box and curled an effort with his left foot just wide of the upright.
On 63 minutes, Moric linked with Galbraith who in turn laid it off to Trebincevic who had his shot saved. Moric got in the end of the follow up and produced a double save by Sebastian La Luz.
With South Coast still peppering the Bulli goal, a failed corner clearance just two minutes later saw Lucas Loncar let loose a thunderous volley from 25 yards that appeared goal bound however a Bulli defender managed to head it to safety.
Bulli could offer only fleeting moments for the remainder of the half with South Coast sensing an opportunity for maximum points.
Bulli held firm and seemed to stem some of the raids as the game started to settle back down.
The final opportunity of the match falling to Chang just five minutes from time. A neat little ball from Moric saw Chang volley from 10 yards out that went straight to La Luz. One can’t help but feel that had that been anywhere either side of the goalkeeper and it would have been in.
Bulli saw out the game and whilst the teams each dominated each half, it was perhaps a fair result in the end.
Report by Bobby Mazevski
Photos courtesy of Gragrapix
