AN 89th-minute equaliser from Frank Talarico ensured a gritty 3-all draw for the Mitchell Rangers senior men in a tense matchup against Dynamo Melbourne on Saturday.
Heading to Kensington for an away day, the Rangers have enjoyed some stronger results in recent weeks and had the chance to put a gap between themselves and the bottom of the table with a win.
Cards flew early with William Mulvey and Kash Laws each receiving a yellow within the first 30 minutes of play, and Dynamo were first to hit the scoresheet in the 22nd minute.
Laws evened up the game just before half time, and Mulvey added a second from the penalty spot just after the break, his fifth overall for the season, to give his side a 2-1 lead.
But the momentum swung back in the home team’s favour as the game wore on, netting back-to-back goals to hit the lead with seven minutes of game time remaining.
Needing a miracle to save a point, Talarico stepped up when his side needed him most, scoring his first goal for the senior team in his first start this year.
The Broadford-based side now sits less than a game back from La Trobe University with plenty of time left in the season to bridge that gap.
Earlier in the day, the reserves made it two wins in a row with a four-goal rout over the home side. The win sees them move above Dynamo and Footscray into eighth on the ladder.
On Sunday, it was a second loss in a row for the senior women’s side who went down to La Trobe University 2-nil.
There were positive signs for the Rangers at the start of the game as they controlled much of the possession through the first 20 minutes.
Charlette Edmonds was active up forward while Rikelle Stephenson’s speed and strength prevented any meaningful shots on goal at the other end.
Despite the ascendancy, they couldn’t put any score on the board and La Trobe Uni took its chance when it came.
Two goals in ten minutes from the Eagles broke the game wide open, and it proved to be the difference with no further scoring in the remaining hour of play.
The senior men will stay on the road this Saturday, going up against fifth place Wyndham FC under the lights, while the senior women will play the second of their back-to-back home games against FC Birrarung on Sunday.
The All Abilities side will also return to the pitch this weekend, playing Watsonia Heights in Greensborough.