The Western Sydney Wanderers have fallen to a heartbreaking stoppage time defeat against Macarthur FC, losing 4-3 in a dramatic match at Campbelltown Stadium.
The boys in Red & Black played valiantly, clawing back an early deficit and defending for much of the second half on an extremely hot day with 10-men after Tom Beadling’s dismissal, but Valere Germain’s 93rd minute header condemned the Wanderers to defeat.
After a quiet opening period, the game sprung to life in the 16th minute when Tom Beadling was adjudged to have handled the ball in the box, allowing Germain to convert from the spot to put the Bulls ahead.
The boys weren’t behind for long, as just four minutes later they were level, after Marcus Antonsson laid the ball off the Lachlan Brook, whose powerful first time shot nestled in the top corner.
Brook then turned provider eight minutes later as he lifted a delightful cross towards the back post, where an unmarked Nicolas Milanovic was able to score with a header past a despairing Filip Kurto.
Just when it looked like the Wanderers were going to run away with the game, they were pegged back just minutes later as Raphael Borges Rodrigues scored after a solo run down the left.
The Wanderers once again hit back in double quick time, as the Antonsson-Brook combination created another goal, as Antonsson’s cross found the onrushing Brook, whose perfectly timed run allowed him to meet the ball with a deft header to put the Wanderers back in front.
Antonsson almost got on the scoresheet when he cut inside after a mazy solo run, but he couldn’t direct his effort on target, and the Wanderers would rue the miss on the cusp of half-time as Germain scored a second when he got on the end of a knock down from a corner and headed home from close range.
The Wanderers were forced into a change at half-time as Daniel Margush was forced from the field due to concussion, meaning Lawrence Thomas made his return very soon after his return from Socceroos duty in Qatar.
The Wanderers started the half well, with Brook forcing Kurto into a diving save, but the game turned on its head in the 52nd minute when Beadling received a straight red card after a challenge on Ulises Davila.
With the Wanderers reduced to 10-men, they were forced to adopt a more defensive set up, with Jorrit Hendrix having to shift to centre back, but the side still created chances as Antonsson and Brook went close to putting the Wanderers ahead.
The Wanderers remained in their solid defensive set up whilst still sending men forward in an attempt to find a winner, and it looked like they had done enough to earn a point on the road in difficult conditions, but their hopes were dashed in stoppage time when Germain netted his hat-trick with another header at the back post.
The officials came to the decision that the ball had crossed the line despite the best efforts of Lawrence Thomas, and the Wanderers had no time to find a late equaliser.
The Wanderers drop down to fifth on the table with the Bulls overtaking them, though they have played a game less than Macarthur; the Wanderers return home next Sunday as they face the Newcastle Jets.
