Bula FC and South Island United have played out a tense 0-0 draw in their OFC Pro League Round One catch-up fixture at the Home of the Matildas in Melbourne.
South Island United controlled much of the contest but were unable to find a breakthrough, with young Bula FC goalkeeper Matthew Foord producing the save of the match in the 65th minute to tip a curling free kick from Ryan Feutz over the bar.
Jacob Krayem twice threatened as the Fijian side spent long periods of the game pinned inside their own half.
South Island’s early pressure nearly paid off when David Yoo struck the upright after 14 minutes, the best of several chances in a dominant opening 25 minutes.
The New Zealanders continued to press, and in the 30th minute Adam Supyk was forced to clear off his own line following a Yoo corner. Bula FC struggled to gain a foothold and had to wait until the 38th minute for a half chance, when Filipe Baravilala delivered a dangerous cross from the right that Roy Krishna could not quite reach.
Late in the half, Jaylen Rodwell was shown a yellow card for a high boot. It was his third booking of the campaign, ruling him out of his side’s opening Round Four clash in Honiara.
A neat one-two between Harris Zeb and Feutz just before the break ended with Zeb firing over the crossbar. Then, against the run of play, Kaile Auvray slipped a pass through to 16-year-old Maikah Dau on the stroke of half-time, but the teenager scooped his effort over when well placed.
Bula FC’s best opportunities came on the counterattack in the second half. Supyk forced Steven Van Dijk into parrying a powerful cross with Thomas Dunn blazing the rebound over the bar.
Despite sustained pressure from South Island United, Foord and the Bula FC defence held firm to secure a hard-earned point. They came close to pinching it in injury time when Kaile Auvray forced Van Dijk into making a brilliant reflex save to deny the 20-year-old a late winner.
The result lifts South Island United above Vanuatu United FC into fourth place in the table, whilst Bula FC remain seventh, level on points with Tahiti United.
Bula FC: 0
South Island United: 0
HT: 0-0
Photo Credit: OFC Media via Phototek