A Scott Galloway stunner was not enough for Adelaide United as they were held to a 1-1 draw in their Hyundai A-League 2018/19 season opener against Sydney FC at Coopers Stadium on Friday night.
Galloway, on his league debut as a Red, opened the scoring just before the break in sensational fashion before Adam Le Fondre levelled proceedings for Sydney 12 minutes from time.
Marco Kurz fielded a strong line-up for Adelaide’s opener with Captain, Isaías anchoring the midfield alongside Vince Lia and new signing, Mirko Boland. Craig Goodwin also started on the left wing upon his return to the Club, while recruits Michael Jakobsen and Scott Galloway featured in defence.
It was a cagey start to the game from both teams with neither creating any clear chances.
Ryan Strain, on the wing, saw a speculative effort fly over the bar early, as the game was largely played between the two 18-yard boxes.
But in the 21st minute, Craig Goodwin had a glorious opportunity to give United the upper hand when Isaías saw the run of the winger.
45'+2' | GOAL! @scottgalloway31 makes it 1-0 for #AUFC with a stunning strike! #ADLvSYD pic.twitter.com/s6TugJxvNp
— Adelaide United (@AdelaideUnited) October 19, 2018
The 26-year-old took a touch to set himself before seeing his close-range shot well-saved by Andrew Redmayne.
Sydney had a dominant spell of their own but it was only fleeting as Adelaide finished the half stronger.
And just before the break Adelaide struck through an unlikely source. Galloway received a lay-off from Goodwin, who had the awareness to see Redmayne off his line and dispatch a curling shot 25 yards out.
The Reds continued to apply the pressure from the re-start and played at a high tempo with several combinations involving crisp passes in advanced positions.
There were a couple of heated exchanges following some strong challenges from the visitors which warranted yellow cards.
However, the visitors equalised on 78 minutes when Le Fondre pounced on Milos Ninkovic’s low cut-back from the left.
Adelaide rallied and brought on Ken Ilsø in search of a winner but the game remained deadlocked as United had to settle for a share of the spoils.
Key moments:
21’ | Goodwin is played through by Isaías, but the winger’s one-on-one shot is saved is tipped over the bar by Redmayne.
https://players.brightcove.net/5498268479001/default_default/index.html?videoId=5850758474001
40’ | O’Neill dribbles forward and unleashes a curling effort which flies past the top corner.
45’+2’ | GOAL! 1-0: Boland switches to Goodwin, who controls the ball down for Galloway and he takes a touch before picking his spot from outside the box to beat Redmayne at full-stretch.
https://players.brightcove.net/5498268479001/default_default/index.html?videoId=5850770540001
78’ | Goal 1-1: Ninkovic from the left picks out the onrushing Le Fondre and burries his finish past Izzo.
Match details:
Friday, 19 October 2018
Hyundai A-League 2018/19 – Round 1
Adelaide United 1 (Galloway 45’+2’)
Sydney FC 1 (Le Fondre 78’)
Venue: Coopers Stadium
Attendance: 10,018
