The Wanderers NPL NSW Men’s 1 senior side were held to a 1-1 draw against Mt Druitt Town Rangers on Saturday afternoon at Wanderers Football Park.
In the season opener on Saturday, the Wanderers looked to start off the season on a positive note looking to secure three points against newly promoted side Mt Druitt Town Rangers, but we were unable to seal the win after a series of missed opportunities.
In the season opener on Saturday, the Wanderers looked to start off the season on a positive note looking to secure three points against newly promoted side Mt Druitt Town Rangers, but we were unable to seal the win after a series of missed opportunities.
The first chance came in the 6th minute with Alaat Abdul-Rahman failing to convert his one-on-one chance following a great run, only for the shot to find its way into the hands of Ranger’s goalkeeper Dylan Niski.
The next 20 minutes of the match was a hard-fought battle as both teams searched to find the opener, but neither managed to create a clear-cut chance to test the keeper.
Luka Knezevic came closest to opening the scoring, but the Ranger’s defence held up to prevent the striker from breaking the deadlock.
In the 30th minute, Wanderers goalkeeper Tristan Vidakovic made a crucial point-blank save, denying Joey Gibbs half-volley with his legs. It was the first of many vital stops form the young keeper throughout the match.
After a series of pinballing in the box, it was defender Richard Nkomo who broke the deadlock in the 41st minute with a stunning first-time strike into the top right corner. The young defender was in the right place at the right time to give the Wanderers the lead heading into half-time.
A few minutes later, Jesse Cameron found Abdul-Rahman with a great ball into the box, but the striker was unable to capitalise.
The Rangers started the second half strongly and equalised in the 51st minute when Caleb Jackson-Brown played a clever pass to Gibbs, who finished from close range.
The equalizer gave the Rangers a boost of confidence as they pushed for a second, putting the Wanderers under sustained pressure and forcing Vidakovic into making several outstanding saves from all angles.
This sustained pressure cultivated in a goal-line clearance in the 78th minute by the Wanderers goal-scorer, Nkomo, who cleared a shot off the line that was destined for the back of the net by Ranger’s attacker Olayinka Sunmola.
The final 10 minutes of regulation time saw the game pushing for the winner, with the game becoming end-to-end. Captain Aidan Simmons came agonizingly close to scoring our second goal, as his curling right-foot shot narrowly missed, striking the wrong side of the post in his attempt to secure the victory.
In added time, Vidakovic made two crucial saves, denying Jackson-Brown and Joao Pedro from scoring and keeping the Wanderer sin the game during the dying moments.
The result means the Wanderers walk away with a point heading into next Saturday’s clash with Sydney Olympic at Belmore Sports Ground, where the Red & Black look to capitalise on the positives taken from this game and collect their first three points of the season.
