Sydney United held to scoreless draw by Rams

The game was delicately poised within the first 5? minutes; first chance of the game arrived in the 6? minute when Macarthur midfielder Jason Lewis provided an ideal through-ball on his right side to Renato Jelen who managed to feed a cross inside to Hugo Coronel, who put in a courageous plunging header that skimmed over the bar.
Sydney United soon after began to hold some quality possession, forward Elsid Barkousir and Luka Glavas linked-up with Ivo Bosnar and Christopher Boyle in the midfield looking to trap the Macarthur defence.
In the 11? minute the hard work was nearly rewarded after a great low cross from Petar Markovic, latched on to by Luka Glavas, only for his shot to rebound off the Rams defence.
Both sides were competitive in the centre of the park, however United came closest again in the 15? minute when Luka Glavas used his strength inside the 18-yard box to turn and shoot, however Roy Bell was well positioned to make the save.
United were starting to raise the tempo of the game, this time defender Josip Moric showed some quality pace storming past a couple of Macarthur midfielders providing an ideal pass for Ivo Bosnar, his shot was well struck with power, however Rams defence held their ground.
In the 27? minute Macarthur?s Adam Wither could have opened the scoring after his shot off Michael Brown?s corner was well saved by United goal keeper Vedran Janjetovic.
In the latter stages of the opening-half Macarthur looked to dominate possession as Michael Brown and Jason Lewis were the stand-outs in their quality passing game.
The Rams however failed to create any real chances from their well-held possession.
Sydney United?s Christopher Boyle and Elsid Barkhousir were most dominant for their side and it nearly paid off when the pair linked up on the left side with Boyle providing a decent cross to the centre, however no United player was on show to latch on to the cross, which allowed the game to remain scoreless at the interval.
The second-half began with both sides holding tight grip in the middle of the park, Macarthur?s Josh Ford nearly opened proceedings in the 57? minute after he nearly latched on to a header from a sensational free-kick by Jason Lewis.
United responded well in the 60? minute as Luka Glavas linked up with Ivo Bosnar only for his poor strike from 18-yards out to end up way left of the goal.
In the 66? minute Luka Glavas and Damon Collina played some clean touches to pick-out Christopher Boyle hanging around the 18-yard box. Boyle?s strike was hit with venom, though Macarthur?s Roy Bell pulled off a great save.
Sydney United were keen on taking all three points in a must win game after two straight losses, and again it was Elsid Barkousir in the thick of it, this time he created a good run to beat his marker and strike a spectacular shot to the right of goal, however Roy Bell again put his hands up and made a tremendous stop to keep the game scoreless.
In the 85? minute Barkhousir again showed his great skill and control of the ball inside the 18-yard box, though was brought down by a Rams defender inside the penalty-area. Referee Jonathon Streater though controversially ruled that the United striker was the player to commit the foul. 
Sydney United could have won the game a minute from time when Christopher Boyle linked-up with Barkhousir again, this time Boyle?s cross fell into the path of Elsid in the centre, however his attempted shot sailed to the left of the goal.
Macarthur coach Paul Carter was delighted with the performance and believes his side was better on the day.
?I thought we created great chances from some good quality possession, however we need to finish off our opportunities and score more goals so we can turn these close draws into wins.
?The boys showed a lot of courage out there, I think we?re performing well as a club. It?s just a matter of getting the right result, and we?re confident that we can achieve the better results.?
Match Stats
Sydney United 0 
Macarthur Rams 0
Venue: Sydney United Sports Centre
Referee: Jonathon Streater    
Crowd: 500 approx
Sydney United: 1. Vedran Janjetovic; 3. Josip Moric, 4. Milan Bosnar, 5. Damon Collina, 6. Joe Vrkic, 11. Luka Glavas, 14. Petar Markovic, 15. Christopher Boyle, 16. Elsid Barkhousir, 21. Sash Trajcevski, 23. Ivo Bosnar.  (39. Anthony Golec 63?), (Ben Vidaic 75?), (9. Christian Soares 56′)
Substitutes Not Used: 39. Steven Minovski (Gk) 18. Andrija Petkovic 9

Yellow Cards: 23. Ivo Bosnar 18?, 21. Sash Trajcevski 72?, 6. Joe Vrkic 90?
Red Cards: Nil
Macarthur Rams: 40. Roy Bell; 4. Jason Lewis, 5. Michael Brown, 7. Matt Toogood, 14. Daniel McCann, 16. Steven Baveas, 17. Adam Wither, 18. Hugo Coronel, 19. Paul Crisp, 21. Renato Jelen, (Craig Cooley 63?), (Shannon Hankin 73?), (Scott Goodwin 78?).
Substitutes Not Used: 1. Brody Crane

Yellow Cards: 17. Adam Wither 25?, 16. Steven Baveas 35?, 24. Scott Goodwin 81?
Red Cards: Nil
Player Ratings:
3 ? Elsid Barkhousir (SU)
2 ? Christopher Boyle (SU)
1 ? Michael Brown (MAC)
-By Johnny Casni