A-League: Newcastle hold out Sydney to seal tense draw

Poor shot accuracy has kept Sydney FC from taking home the three points against a brave Newcastle Jets outfit.

Sydney FC had almost twice as many shots on goal as their Novocastrian rivals. (Photo by Ashley Feder/Getty Images)

Not for the first time this season, Sydney FC were left to rue a missed opportunity after they were held 1-1 by the Newcastle Jets at McDonald Jones Stadium on Saturday.

The A-League match wasn’t without controversy as Roy O’Donovan scored from the spot to give the home side a shock lead, before a calamitous own goal handed the Sky Blues a share of the spoils.

While the result wasn’t enough to end Newcastle’s horror 12-match winless run, Craig Deans will be the happier of the two coaches after his table-dwelling side managed to hold the defending A-League champions to a draw.

For Sydney and Steve Corica, the result sees them lose further ground on leaders Melbourne City as they were again made to pay for not taking their chances early on.

The match was fraught with frustration for Sydney after they failed to turn their dominance into goals.

Kosta Barbarouses and Bobo had chances to put the Sky Blues in front early on, but there was a lack of cutting edge in the front third – something that has plagued them all season.

Sydney will be itching to get Adam Le Fondre back after the prolific Englishman completed his quarantine, with the club still in search of more goals.

The Jets defended admirably and their confidence grew as the first half progressed. By the end of it, the home side had strung together a few good opportunities themselves and would have been the happier of the two sides to enter the break at 0-0.

Sydney began the second half in much the same way as the first until they were undone by a controversial VAR decision in the 57th minute, when an innocuous hand ball by an off-balance Bobo in the box was turned into a penalty for the Jets.

Bobo was tugged back while contesting a corner, with the ball ricocheting off his hand in the process. After reviewing the incident, the referee pointed to the spot and Roy O’Donovan duly converted to give the home side a controversial lead.

Steve Corica responded by replacing Bobo with Trent Buhagiar and the move nearly paid immediate dividends when Buhagiar thundered his header into the woodwork with 20 minutes left on the clock.

But Sydney didn’t have to wait too much longer for their equaliser thanks to some calamitous defending from the Jets. Buhagiar cut the ball across goal, only for Connor O’Toole to smash the clearance straight into Nigel Boogard and into the net.

Valentino Yuel could have won it for the Jets at the death, only for him to blaze his shot from close range over the bar.

It was breathless at the end, but the scoreline remained 1-1 in what will be a costly blow to Sydney’s Premier’s Plate aspirations.

Roy O'Donovan kicked Newcastle’s lone goal of the evening. (Photo by Ashley Feder/Getty Images)

It’s not been a season up to Barbarouses’ standards, and the stats prove it. Heading into the match against Newcastle, the Kiwi striker had 60 shots for just six goals for Sydney this season. It’s surely the reason why Corica was so keen to bring Le Fondre back to the club.

News Corp Australia Sports Newsroom