Western United and Sydney FC have played out an enthralling 3-3 draw at Allianz Stadium on Saturday evening.
Lachlan Wales, Nikolai Topor-Stanley and Connor Pain netted for United, while Robert Mak grabbed a brace and Diego Caballo scored for the home side.
Western were heading for all three points until Mak equalised in the 89th minute to retain a point for Sydney.
In Rhyan Grant’s 300th game, the Sky Blues looked to claim all three points to put some distance between themselves and John Aloisi’s side in the race to the finals.
It was almost the perfect start as Joe Lolley found Mak free in the area, but the Slovakian’s shot bounced off Leo Lacroix and went just wide of the post.
Sydney had started the brighter of the two sides and were controlling possession in the early stages.
Against the run of play, United went ahead through Lachlan Wales in the 15th minute after a well-executed counter-attack. Alex Wilkinson couldn’t react quick enough to Connor Pain’s through-ball, and Wales, despite slipping at the crucial moment, beat Andrew Redmayne in the Sydney net.
Just minutes later Mak almost had the equaliser, but it was veteran centre-half Nikolai Topor-Stanley with the last ditch effort to preserve Western’s advantage.
But Mak would not be denied, finishing off a classy Sydney move with a toe poke after Burgess had slipped him in to level the scores.
Parity would only last a few minutes, however, as the Sky Blues got their press all wrong and after Redmayne spilled a Dylan Pierias shot Connor Pain dispatched his strike into the corner, restoring his side’s lead.
It would remain 2-1 as Chris Beath blew for half-time, with Corica looking bewildered in the technical area and needing a big team talk to motivate his charges.
There was a nasty head clash between milestone man Grant and Ben Garuccio but both defenders were able to continue.
From the resulting set-piece the visitors would double their lead. Wales’ quality delivery into the penalty area met Topor-Stanley’s head with the final touch coming off Luke Brattan, recorded as an own goal by the midfielder.
Sydney managed to find an immediate reply, Diego Caballo cutting United’s lead to one with a powerful header off Brattan’s cross.
As the tension was turned up to 11 some dicey challenges started flying in, Aloisi leaping up dramatically after Caballo upended Pierias right in front of the United technical area.
Sydney somehow couldn’t convert a wild goalmouth scramble, with Joe Lolley blazing over after three or four blocked shots in the penalty area.
Redmayne made a fantastic double stop to deny Noah Botic and Alessandro Diamanti and keep Sydney in the contest as time ticked down.
Just as it looked like Western would survive the Sky Blue onslaught, Mak completed his brace with a lovely curling effort from outside the area to set up a grandstand finish.
In injury time Ramy Najjarine should’ve made it 4-3 but the substitute could only drag his shot wide.
It ended all square, however, in a compelling clash on a frigid Sydney evening.
Key Takeaways
Sydney dig deep to retain top-six place
Behind for the vast majority of the contest, the Sky Blues had to fight and claw for a point this evening. Whether it’s a point gained or two points dropped is open to interpretation, but the result will buy Steve Corica some more time in the dugout.
With four games left to play Sydney’s destiny will likely still be in their own hands, as it’s hard to see either Newcastle or Macarthur going 100 per cent from here on in.
Grant reaches milestone
A big congratulations to Sydney right-back Rhyan Grant, who tonight played his 300th game for the five-time A-League champions. The 32-year-old has unfortunately endured a difficult campaign in the club’s return to Allianz Stadium, and his form has been regressing for some time so it’s unlikely Grant will add to his 21 Socceroos caps.
Perhaps when he hangs up the boots Grant will wonder what could’ve been had he tried his hand overseas, but he still has those national team appearances and a raft of honours with his only professional club.
Is Corica a dead man walking?
If Scott Barlow and the Sydney board were still reluctant to tap Corica on the shoulder after the embarrassing 4-0 derby drubbing, it seems likely that the club legend will be given the reason of the season but patience must surely be wearing thin in Moore Park.
A “Corica out” sign was spotted within The Cove this evening, and a quick perusal of the club’s Twitter posts will give you an idea of the wider fan sentiment.
It’s a disaster for the Sky Blues if they miss the finals two seasons in a row. That just doesn’t happen at a club of their stature and if it does, it’s the head coach who must pay the pice for a second straight campaign of futility.
