Soccer: Home win eludes plucky Knights

The New Zealand Knights again failed to deliver the home win they so wanted but they could at least take some satisfaction from holding runaway league leaders Adelaide United to a 1-1 draw.

No one would suggest the two teams were in the same class but in pluck and courage, the Knights at least held their own and went away from North Harbour Stadium on Saturday night with their third draw of the season and a much cherished A-League point.

Their effort was capped by a fine first goal of the season for Chinese midfielder Xiaobin Zhang.

While the result was of little concern for Adelaide coach John Kosmina, he would have been happy to get through with a below full-strength team against a Knights side which has caused them problems in all three meeting between the two sides.

In the biggest upset of the round disregarding the overnight fixture between Perth Glory and Sydney FC, the Newcastle Jets, touted by some as Adelaide's greatest threat, were thumped 5-0 at home in front of 10,271 spectators by a Queensland Roar side who kept their slender play-off hopes alive.

Melbourne Victory's wretched season continued when beaten 3-1 away by Central Coast Mariners in front of 11,945 in Gosford.

Melbourne took the lead after 13 minutes through Michael Ferrante. Goals in the 29th and 63rd minutes from Mariners captain Noel Spencer put his team in control and they coasted home.

Melbourne now prepare to play out their season at home on Saturday night against the Knights in a game with nothing on it.

It will be a chance for the Knights to chase a second win against a down-in-the-dumps Melbourne.

The Knights will, however, need to step up from the hesitancy which marked their game against Adelaide, played in far better conditions than the water polo affair earlier in the season.

The Knights struggled in front of goal.

At the other end, their defence was under almost constant pressure from the visitors, who played every set play from long throws to freekicks as if they were gilt-edged scoring opportunities.

The opening goal, in the 22nd minute, came when Knights defender Cole Tinkler was exposed.

Instead of clearing for safety, he attempted to play out from the back, gave the ball away and Fernando Rech sprang, gathered and found Lucas Pantelis who provided a pinpoint cross which Louis Brain headed home.

Rech could have had one of his own a minute later but his header was trapped by goalkeeper Glen Moss, who fell in the path of the ball.

With the defence again in a shambles, Brain headed wide and then from a corner, Mike Valkani's header seemed goal-bound until Noah Hickey headed off the line.

The onslaught continued with Tinkler again under pressure from the Adelaide attack. Rech won the ball, found Pantelis, whose snap shot hit the bottom of the upright and bounced away.

There were fewer second-half chances, although the Knights were again stretched in dealing with second-phase pressure from set play.

Three minutes after being freed from the substitutes bench, Zhang gave the 3079 Knights faithful something to cheer about.

Hickey played the ball in, Sean Devine headed on to the Chinese player who charged on to the ball and headed down and watched in absolute delight as it bounced in, beating towering goalkeeper Robert Bajic's vain attempt to save.

That he was booked by the referee for taking his shirt off in celebration did not matter.

Devine had a late chance to steal that sought-after victory but his shot went wide.

That pretty much summed up the Knights' game and season.