Central Coast Mariners 2 Melbourne City 2: Fornaroli earns dramatic draw

31 December 2016 11:38

Melbourne City gave up the lead before coming from behind to snatch a dramatic 2-2 draw away to Central Coast Mariners in the A-League on Saturday.

The familiar figure of Tim Cahill opened the scoring for the third City match in succession with five minutes to go in the first half in Gosford. Former Mariner Nick Fitzgerald held the ball up and laid it off to Bruce Kamau, who swung in a cross that Cahill met to guide a downward header past goalkeeper Paul Izzo.

Central Coast equalised in the 77th minute, substitute Fabio Ferreira charging forward and slipping in teenager Trent Buhagiar for his second goal in two matches.

The Mariners must have thought they had won it when they scored from another counterattack with four minutes to go in normal time, Connor Pain finding Buhagiar down the right and the goal-scorer turned provider by teeing up Roy O’Donovan to slide home.

But a clumsy sliding tackle from Scott Galloway then undid his team’s good work, the referee pointing the spot and Bruno Fornaroli confidently converting the penalty to get City back on level terms.

Daniel Arzani should have won it for the visitors in injury time, the 17-year-old, on in place of Fitzgerald, dragging a shot horribly wide from a good opportunity.