A-League: Patrick Wood and Milos Ninkovic take Sydney Sky Blues to a 3-0 win over Macarthur FC

Milos Ninkovic produced a moment of magic as Sydney FC beat a 10-man Macarthur FC side in a weather-affected match.

Mark Milligan of Macarthur FC tackles Trent Buhagiar of Sydney FC before being given a red card during the A-League match on Saturday. Picture: Ryan Pierse/Getty Images

Milos Ninkovic produced a moment of magic as Sydney FC beat a 10-man Macarthur FC side in a weather-affected A-League match at Campbelltown Stadium on Saturday night.

A severe electric storm forced the match to be delayed for close to an hour at halftime, but a second-half brace for teenager Patrick Wood, plus a Ninkovic special, eventually gave the Sky Blues a 3-0 win.

Macarthur had played admirably despite losing Mark Milligan in the first half, but ran out of energy as Sydney began to press in the second half.

Wood’s introduction off the bench was telling as the 18-year-old went on to score a tap-in twice, while Ninkovic oozed his class when he waltzed through Macarthur’s defence to get on the scoresheet himself.

“I’m very pleased with the boys that came on,” Sydney coach Steve Corica said. “They made a difference — they changed the game.”

The win eases the pressure on Sydney, who bounced back after last week’s shock loss to the Central Coast Mariners. The three goals will also boost their confidence in front of goal after struggling in the final third in their previous two matches.

The key moment came just 20 minutes into the game, when Macarthur were reduced to 10 men. Trent Buhagiar’s turn of pace forced Milligan into a clumsy challenge just outside the box.

It was a clear goal-scoring opportunity for Sydney’s speedster and with Milligan the last defender, the referee had no choice but to send the captain off.

The storm approaches Campbelltown Stadium. Picture: Getty Images

As the match approached half time the heavens opened. Greg O’Rourke, head of the A-League, decided to delay the match after lightning strikes were detected in proximity to the ground.

After nearly an hour off the field, the stoppage unsurprisingly halted the game’s momentum as the players had to go through their warm-ups before the match could resume.

It was Sydney who took the lead thanks to Wood in the 66th minute. Ninkovic added a second 10 minutes later, before Wood wrapped up the win.

The Sunday Telegraph