North Force's Scott Burgess. Photo/ Sharon Teh-Hall
North Force's Scott Burgess. Photo/ Sharon Teh-Hall
A wake-up call has sent a shiver through the North Force camp after they came back in the second half of their round 15 match against Papatoetoe AFC to grind out a tight, 2-all, draw at Murdoch Park, Auckland.
Two goals down at halftime, a result of two successful attemptsby Papatoetoe's Iwa Shaker, forced North Force to be on the chase for the remainder of the match.
"A lot went wrong first half, [a] very poor first half. We're disappointed and we think it's two points dropped," North Force coach Russell Baddeley said.
Some superb keeping from Leon Jarman-Taylor let North Force off the hook many times and kept their hopes alive in the tough encounter.
A change in formation then allowed North Force to go on the attack and a header by captain Mark Ruddell from a corner kick saw North Force get on the board, 1-2.
A penalty kick to Scott Burgess then gave the northern side a chance to level the game, which he sent into the back of the net to bring the score to 2-2.
North Force were back playing near their best in the last 10 minutes but it was too little too late.
"There are no easy games in this league," Baddeley said.
