A goalless draw away to Preston in Round 3 of the Australian Championship has maintained Avondale’s unbeaten run and keeps them top of Group C on goal difference.
Overall, the visitors looked the more assured in possession while Preston was a constant threat on the counter.
Half an hour in, the hosts had the best chance of the first half when Jason Romero cut inside from the left and launched a ferocious shot on goal from over 30 yards out, but the American was to be denied by a diving save from Avondale goalkeeper Thomas Manos.
Avondale continued to look bright in the second half and created several chances, but nothing to seriously trouble Ryan Scott in the Preston goal.
Romero went close again for Preston in the 71st minute with a chip over the keeper that hit the crossbar and should have at least hit the target nine minutes later, but blasted his shot from just outside the six-yard box well over.
Bruno Fornaroli went close to snatching a win for Avondale in the 89th minute with a low half volley from just outside the box, but it was saved by Scott.
As has been the pattern so far this competition, Zachary Cianci’s introduction from the bench resulted in a spark for Avondale, but the problems he caused Preston’s defenders didn’t ultimately amount to breaking the deadlock.
The draw came at a heavy price for Avondale, who will now be without centre-back Matthew Reid next week after the defender was shown a second yellow card in added time for a cynical but professional foul on Lleyton Brooks, who was bursting forward with the ball and had almost entered the box before Reid’s intervention.
“It keeps us unbeaten in the group, which is nice,” said Manos after the match, “And I think we’ve had two pretty tough away games – and it was a short turnaround too, so you can’t be too disappointed.
“I think we dominated for the most part. The chances were pretty even and yeah, we’ll take a point coming away.”
Manos believes his side showed composure in what was an intense encounter.
“It was almost a game of whoever makes their mistake first is going to concede, so we held our nerve pretty good, I think,” he said.
“I think it got to the last five minutes, just before Reid unfortunately got sent [off], and we just said, ‘You know what, bunker in, take the draw.’”
The goalkeeper acknowledged that Reid’s absence is going to be felt next week against Canberra Croatia, but says it provides an opportunity for others to step up.
“He’s an experienced campaigner, he’s one of our leaders,” admitted Manos, “But look, we’ve got two good young centre-backs … I guess now it’s their chance.
“We’ve got depth all over the pitch, which is great. So if one person’s out, the other person comes in and we back them and make sure that they’ve got our support and hopefully we can get a result next week.”
Next Home Game:
Avondale FC vs NWS Spirit FC
Sunday, 9 November | 4:30 PM | Avenger Park
Skip the queue and grab your tickets now:
https://www.intix.com.au/event/avondale-fc-vs-nws-spirit
#lafamiglia
Credit: Article by Raymond Lawrence at Il Globo
Credit: Photos by Damian Briggs