Football: Rovers grind out a stalemate

Rovers goal scorer Chris McIvor surges ahead as Taranaki rightback Wade Randle keeps him in check while Blues midfielder Karan Mandair watches in Napier today. Photo/Duncan Brown

Napier City Rovers have staved off Team Taranaki's threat to relegate them to the bottom rungs of the table after coming from behind to draw their soccer match at Park Island this afternoon.

The Conroy Removals-sponsored Blues made hard work of it and, at times, looked content to end their season meekly but found some much-needed zest in the last 20 minutes to salvage a valuable point to see where they finish in the bottom half of the Lotto Central League standings.

Rovers made their intentions clear in just the second minute from veteran Chris McIvor, running from an oblique angle down the left flank before curling it into the top of the net on the far post to leave Taranaki goalkeeper Santiago Fernandez stranded for a 1-0 lead.

The visitors kept a poker face and soldiered on. They were rewarded in the 12th minute when striker Sandro Grandi couldn't believe his luck to find all the time and space inside the 18m box, after receiving a feed, to tuck the ball away to the bottom left corner for the 1-1 equaliser that goalkeeper Ruben Parker Hanks could do little about.

A relieved Hanks collected the ball again in the 27th minute when Taranaki captain Paul Cunningham's worm-burning free kick from the top edge of the box, after Blues centreback James Hoyle tripped a player, landed into his hands although the keeper appeared to be unsighted behind the wall.

Teenage midfielder Jorge Akers showed some dazzling skills in beating a defender on the right flank before making a deft cross but keeper Fernandez snuffed any thoughts the Rovers might have harboured to nudge ahead as the teams went into the changing rooms with the scores locked.

When play resumed, Blues coach Bill Robertson took off Akers, pushed rightback Charlie Yexley up to right midfield and injected Ethan Ladd to rightback.

But it was the visitors who went up 2-1 in the 50th minute when Cunningham side-footed a free kick from about 25m out almost on the goal line to ask more questions of the hosts' defence to hush the home fans into silence.

Leftback Danny Wilson and Oliver Coren were spurred into finding a tit-for-tat reply but the yellow brigade stood defiant in defence to deny the Rovers joy.

Robertson also replaced defensive midfielder Blake Koolen with English import Fahad Rwakarambwe in the engine room in the 67th minute but the equaliser remained elusive as dark clouds hovered and light rain did its bit on what was a crisp Bluewater Stadium surface.

It looked like the game was gone but that wily customer McIvor, left unmarked on the front post, nodded in the ball from a cornerkick from Blues skipper Joshua Stevenson to equalise, 2-2, in the 85th minute.

Taranaki's Dom Squatriti had a chance to push ahead after a deft back heel from striker Joshua Smith two minutes later but his finish was feeble and rolled into Hanks' hands.

It was the Blues faithful's turn to agonise after McIvor missed a chance to claim three points from point-blank range but found an errant defender's foot in the way.

Desperation kicked in as both sides found urgency amid silly fouls to break the stalemate but it was not to be as rain settled in.