Navua, Nadroga play to a 1-all draw in DPL duel
THE Nadroga football side extended its unbeaten run to five games in all competitions after holding Navua to a 1-all draw in the Digicel Premier League competition at Lawaqa Park on Thursday.
In a scrappy affair on slippery conditions, both teams tried hard, but failed to stick passes together.
Heavy rain hours before kick-off had pools of water in most parts of the mid-field.
Nadroga had the best opportunities in the first spell when Sunny Deol’s free kick skidded off the left hand upright of the Navua goalmouth.
The teams rested with a nil-all score line at halftime. Both teams came out composed in the second spell as the rain also stopped.
Brian Charitar put Navua ahead minutes into the second spell with a beautifully timed pass from Vineet Chand.
Charitar neatly placed the ball beyond the reach of a diving Isikeli Seva Jr in the Stallions goal.
Nadroga applied relentless pressure on the Navua goalmouth and were finally rewarded mid-day through the second spell when Jibola Afonjo tapped in from point blank range after the Navua defence failed to clear a loose ball inside their six-yard box.
Nadroga’s Tomasi Tuicakau and Navua’s Charitar had chances of winning the match for
We faced many challenges, some even just hours before the game.
– Rajeev Prasad
their teams, but good goal keeping saw the match end with the two teams sharing a point each.
Nadroga coach Joseph Nand was disappointed with the draw.
“It is a good thing that we haven’t lost since the Fiji FACT, but we need to win our home games. We have had a good first round and we need more points in the second round to take us where we want to be on the table,” Nand said.
Navua president Rajeev Prasad commemded his side for a gallant effort.
“We faced many challenges, some even just hours before the game. We had to make some last minute calls, but we are glad to be talking a point from here. The ground condition wasn’t too great but slowly my boys adapted to it,” Prasad said.
The draw puts Nadroga in seventh spot with 10 points while Navua lies in eight spot with eight points in the 10-team competition.