Goulburn Valley Suns have progressed through to Round 7 of the FFA Cup qualifiers with an impressive 2-3 win over Essendon Royals on Monday.
The synthetic pitch at Clifton park favoured the flowing and smooth passing style of the Suns, who made excellent use of the ball early.
Gliding through the midfield was Sean Ellis, with Craig Carley also dynamite down the left – both standouts for the Suns this season.
Essendon did find their feet early as well, making the transition out from the back and through the midfield.
They were a tough match for the Suns in the early stages, but a lapse in the 25th minute saw Matthew Lelliot punish the Royals by opening the scoring for the Suns.
The hosts rallied but the Suns continued to press high, piling on the pressure with Craig Carley consistently harassing the defenders.
His efforts were rewarded in the 32nd minute with an intercept that put him one-on-one with the keeper.
Unselfishly, he pushed the ball across the area to Vani Shamoon, who confidently placed it into the net to double the visitors’ lead.
Following the break, the Royals re-entered the pitch with a renewed energy to work their way back into the match.
Success came in the 63rd minute when Jonathan Aguayo-Munoz found space, striking a right footed effort that flew past Suns’ keeper Phillip Petrovski into the bottom corner.
A boisterous Royals crowd found their voice to lift the local team, however just three minutes later Goulburn Valley hit back, finding the net to restore their two goal advantage.
The goal came via a one-on-one chance that Shaun Kane dispatched expertly.
The scoreline would stay this way until the first minute of stoppage time, when Goulburn Valley conceded a penalty that Neven Antic converted.
It proved to be the last kick of the match, however, with the Suns recording a 2-3 win to advance through to the next round of the FFA Cup.
Goulburn Valley will travel to Olympic Village in the coming weeks to take on Heidelberg United for a place in the FFA Cup Group of 32.