Football: Harsh lesson for Bay but draw's fair

Bay goalkeeper Joshua Hill finds support from captain Finlay Milne as Dragons striker Stephen Hoyle waits to pounce and teammate Matthew Weisenfarth anticipates a second chance. PHOTO/Paul Taylor

YOU win some, you lose some but then, especially in football, every so often you draw some, too, and that doesn't always have to be a bad thing.

Thirsty Whale Hawke's Bay United came away feeling like they had lost a game after undefeated Canterbury United held them to a 1-1 stalemate during their 2016-17 Stirling Sports Premiership match in Napier.

While it won't be much consolation for a few days to the Bay, it's fair to say the Finlay Milne-captained Bay United must have learned a bit about their character and resolve at Bluewater Stadium, Park Island, as they played more than half an hour with 10 men.

It was also a lesson for every franchise team that it's not over until it's over as four goals were conceded in 90-plus minutes in round five of the national summer league.

Conversely, the loss of Martin Canales Ramos in the 65th minute to a straight red card for what referee Campbell Waugh perceived to be a professional foul to deny Canterbury player Andre de Jong a goal, had spurred the Brett Angell-coached hosts to another level, raising the question: "Why weren't they playing with such urgency before the crisis?"

In some respects, a point each way was a fair outcome for two sides who had turned around what appeared to be a predominantly dour affair in the scoreless first half to a nail-biting second spell, especially with the visitors sitting back despite the help of a stiff breeze behind them in the first 20 minutes.

The plot was clearly set for a bloke on either side to hog the limelight - Bay United goalkeeper Joshua Hill and Canterbury striker Stephen Hoyle, an English import who represents Napier City Rovers over winter and regards the province as his home away from home.

That honour also was justifiably shared.

"It's always frustrating when you are 1-nil up and you concede a goal in 90-plus minutes ... ," said Hill, revealing Bay United wanted to atone for the 4-2 loss to Team Wellington in their previous game at home to turn Bluewater Stadium into a fortress.

"I suppose it's a bonus that we haven't lost the game but conceding in the last few minutes it feels like a loss to us."

A jovial Hill accepted he had had the Midas touch until that goal but that was the nature of the beast as a goalkeeper.

While not too well versed in the rules, he thought the Ramos red card was "harsh" because his understanding was if it wasn't a goal-scoring opportunity then it should be a yellow although it was the ref's call to deem it as such.

"It's always frustrating to go 10 men down but at least the guys were jogging around and played hard for the last [32 minutes]."

Canterbury goal hero Hoyle saluted Hill, mindful he was named man of the match in the previous round's 3-1 victory away over Tasman United.

"I've had five or six decent shots which he has saved and there were other chances as well," said Hoyle, relieved to have snuck one past him two minutes into seven minutes of added time after Bay striker Saul Halpin put the hosts up 1-0 from a penalty kick when midfielder Brock Messenger tripped substitute striker Facundo Barbero in the 18m box in the 74th minute.

Hoyle said the Dragons' unbeaten streak was a testimony to their resilience.

"We're very proud to be unbeaten. We're not a team that's just going to lie down because a bloke like Willy is always screaming at you and getting you going so we're never going to quit during a game," he said of German coach Willy Gerdsen who only two games ago switched him from the wings to his preferred striker's role which has yielded three goals.

The officials - missing a country-mile offside and lacking consistency, especially in letting off Messenger with a yellow card in what also appeared to be a professional foul - didn't have their best game but showed they were human and in some ways added spice and urgency to the game.

Bay United, who are fifth on the table, travel to Kiwitea St on Saturday for a televised 4.35pm kick off against Auckland City who succumbed 1-0 to Wellington Phoenix U20s yesterday and, in doing so, conceded their top-rung perch to sit two behind Eastern Suburbs.

The Dragons are third a point behind Auckland and Team Wellington are fourth on equal nine points but an inferior goal difference.