A missed penalty in the dying stages has cost the Sutherland Sharks, as they were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw against Marconi Stallions at Seymour Shaw Park on Saturday.
Both sides came out with high intensity, but the Sharks' Gabriel Contigiani found the back of the net first after connecting with a curling Chris Lindsay free-kick in the 35th minute.
A stout Sharks defence made sure opportunities were limited until the half.
Marconi raced out of the blocks in the second stanza and finally found a breakthrough in the 69th minute when they were awarded a penalty.
Captain Marko Jesic obliged, blasting a violent penalty kick past the keeper and through the back of the net to level the score at 1-1.
The goal was an injection of confidence for Marconi, who were on the ascension, but the game took a significant twist with Sutherland awarded a penalty in the 82nd minute.
But Jeremy Cox could not make the most of the golden opportunity as the Stallions keeper denied the young striker.
The home side refused to give up and pushed for a win but couldn't.
Sharks coach Nick Dimovski looked at the result as a point won and not two lost after the match as he praised how his side performed against a potential finals contender.
"The boys played a fantastic game of football," he said. "If Marconi is supposed to be the benchmark, I'm impressed with what we did as we weren't played off the park and we probably created more opportunities than them."