A tightly fought contest saw Bulls FC Academy share the spoils in a 1-1 draw with the Macarthur Rams at Northbridge Oval in round 12 of the National Premier Leagues Women’s NSW competition.
In spite of their choppy form this season, the Bulls will have entered this fixture buoyed by the prospect of several A-League women’s talents returning to the team.
The Rams, pictured above during the pre-match warm up, were focused on muscling their way back to the top of the ladder.
The opening goal of the match would not take long to be scored, just nine minutes after the kick-off, and it was the Rams who were celebrating.
Bethany Gordon intercepted the ball in midfield before playing a sublime pass through to Kelli Brown, who showed off her striking instincts to set up a shot for herself in the box.
Brown fired home a low finish into the bottom left corner to give Rams first blood and 1-0 on the scoreboard.
The Bulls were buoyed by the returns of Peta Trimis and Avaani Prakash following positive stints with the Central Coast Mariners and Western United in the A-League women’s competition.
The equaliser came in the 71st minute off the back of fantastic work in the build-up by Prakash and Trimis.
It was Trimis who finally planted the ball into the back of the net from distance with a reflex finish to earn a point for her side.
The Rams are second on the ladder with 22 points, two behind competition leaders Manly. However Macarthur – the reigning premiers – have a game in hand.
The Bulls Academy side, who sit in eighth spot on the ladder of the 14 team competition, face a big test this weekend, taking on competition leaders Manly.
The Rams meanwhile are back home at Lynwood Park this coming Sunday, May 26, where they will host APIA Leichhardt.
