IT WAS anything but mellow yellow as the Nambucca Strikers forced a late one-all draw away to Woolgoolga Wolves in a North Coast Football men’s second division match this afternoon.
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In the first half the Strikers had the breeze at their backs, but it was the hosts who dominated many of the contests to be one to the good going into the break.
The pitch was in excellent condition despite the rain squalls of the past day, and both sides were more than willing, with the referee producing a spate of yellow cards with some tackles testing the boundaries.
On the resumption, the Wolves looked the hungrier, and their defence was looking as solid as Uluru.
The Strikers then lost their backfield general as Ryan Flack came off second best in a contested ball – which saw the introduction of the other half of ZZ Top, Ryan’s brother, Dan.
As the half wore on, the game started to open up. The Strikers were unlucky as an unchecked break down the right saw the Woolgoolga keeper stranded, only for the ball to kiss the far post.
Seconds later the Wolves were down the other end and cruelled of what would have been a match winner as a shot nicked the underside of the top bar and somehow stayed out of goal.
With 10 minutes on the clock, the Strikers switched to ramming speed, and the ever present Ethan Hocking went on a wild break down the left – centred and steadied – and buried it deep for the equaliser.
While both sides might rue squandered chances, a draw was a fitting result from a spirited arm wrestle – and both squads are on track for the finals.
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