Mariners drop first points
16/09/2007 8:07 PM
Bren O'Brien at Telstra Dome
getting himself in good position. The relentless attacking pressure told on Damian Brown, who dragged Leigh Broxham down and was booked.
The Mariners spent most of their time defending, but did get forward on occasions with Jedinak produced a cracking 30m shot, which forced Theoklitos to parry wide. Vukovic did likewise soon after, knocking Allsopp's well-taken shot around the post.
On the hour mark, Daniel Piorkowski was booked for a foul just outside the box, and from the resultant free kick, Kwasnik hit the bar for the second time in the game. The intensity of the match lifted further as the home side squandered a chance with Thompson directing a shot straight at a busy Vukovic.
Thompson and Allsopp looked the most likely to break the deadlock, and on 70 minutes, the former broke wide and delivered a cross which Allsopp managed to get his foot on, but the ball dribbled agonisingly wide
Theoklitos produced an excellent save from Pondeljak's clever shot to preserve the stalemate, while Matthew Kemp continued to just miss his targets from the multitude of corners he was taking.
Leandro Love, who had come on for Carlos Hernandez, produced another solid save from Vukovic on 87 minutes, the Brazilian combining well with Muscat but unable to get the ball past the stoic Mariners custodian.
The only late drama was a poor tackle from Tony Vidmar on Thompson, who would have been clear on goal, which saw the veteran red carded. The Victory couldn't do anything with the free kick, with Broxham's shot deflecting off Piorkowski and over the bar.
Melbourne Victory 0
Central Coast 0
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