Australian Championship
Bayswater City were forced to settle for a point after a goalless draw with Victorian NPL champions Oakleigh Cannons, who claimed the bonus point with a 4-2 penalty shootout victory in the Australian Championship.
Bayswater City made a positive start against Victorian NPL side Oakleigh Cannons, as they looked to continue their perfect start to the Australian Championship with another important result.
However, the visitors threatened early, creating several promising opportunities in the opening 10 minutes as both sides looked to establish themselves in the game.
Bayswater gradually found their footing and came close to opening the scoring when Pat Loughrey connected with a left-footed volley after Oakleigh failed to properly clear a corner, his effort sailing just over the crossbar.
Chok Dau came close to creating another opportunity in the 16th minute when he whipped a dangerous cross into the penalty area, with Chris Jackson narrowly unable to make the connection that would have given Bayswater the lead.
The first booking of the afternoon came in the 23rd minute, with Bayswater coach Matt Sparrow shown a yellow card following an altercation with an opposition player.
Jahce Novello then had a promising opportunity to put the hosts ahead after Bayswater launched a rapid counter-attack, but his effort sailed over the crossbar.
A long throw created another opening for Bayswater in the 29th minute, with Cameron Teece seeing his effort deflected behind for a corner as the home side continued to search for the breakthrough.
Baysie goalkeeper Jason Saldaris was called into action in the 36th minute, producing an important save to deny Campbell Strong as the visitors looked to make the most of their opportunities.
Teece came close to breaking the deadlock just before half-time, but his headed effort drifted wide as the two sides went into the break level.
The visitors enjoyed more possession in the early stages of the second half, looking to find a way through the Bayswater defence as the contest began to open up.
Bayswater came close to earning a penalty when Dau made a driving run into the final third before delivering a cross towards Jackson, who went down in the box. The referee initially pointed to the spot, but after speaking with his assistant, the decision was overturned and a foul was instead awarded to Oakleigh.
There was further controversy in the final 10 minutes when Joel Anasmo went down inside the penalty area claiming a pull on his shirt, but the referee waved away Bayswater’s appeals.
The closing stages developed into an end-to-end contest, with both sides pushing forward in search of a late winner. However, neither side could find a breakthrough, with the match finishing 0-0 before heading to penalties
Following an important save from substitute goalkeeper Lachie Charles, Oakleigh Cannons held on to claim the bonus point, winning 4-2 in the penalty shootout.
Match details
Bayswater City 0 (2)
Oakleigh Cannons 0 (4)
Bayswater City: 2. Brent Quick, 4. Luke Palmateer (C), 5. Patrick Loughrey, 6. Declan Hughes, 9. Cameron Teece, 10. Chris Jackson, 11. Chok Dau, 16. Jonathan Corness, 18. Aidan Coyne, 23. Jahce Novello. 25. Jason Saldaris (GK).
Subs: 1. Tomislav Petkovic 8. Daniel Stynes, 14. Oli La Galia, 15. Jackson Stephens 17. Sean O’Connor, 21. Joel Anasmo, 29. Ethan O’Sullivan.
