Adelaide United goalkeeper Annalee Grove made a string of impressive saves to ensure her side came away from Suncorp Stadium with a point in a 1-1 draw with Brisbane Roar on Sunday evening.
The Reds did take a 1-0 lead early in the game with Mariah Lee converting from a slender angle, before Mia Corbin’s 38th-minute equaliser breaking Brisbane’s four-year wait for a Liberty A-League goal at Suncorp Stadium.
The special moment might have launched the Roar toward an important win at home if not for the excellent form of Grove in goal for the Reds whose repeat saves kept Adelaide on level terms until full-time.
Lee bagged the opener after breezing past Roar defender Jenna McCormick to go one-on-one with Jordan Silkowitz in Brisbane’s goal; Lee skipped past Silkowitz and narrowed her angle to score, but squeezed the ball home from the tightest of angles.
Then came Corbin’s equaliser on 38 minutes, brushed home at the back post after an exquisite cross from Leah Scarpelli whipped off the right wing.
Grove denied Sharn Freier on two occasions in the first half, and she continued to show a safe pair of hands after the break.
The Reds custodian pushed Holly Palmer’s shot away from the bottom-left corner soon after half-time, and less than 10 minutes later stuck out a strong left left to keep Freier’s close-range attempt in a one-on-one off target, reacting to quell Palmer from the rebound and keep Adelaide on level terms.
Just beyond the 70-minute mark it was Silkowitz’s turn to come up with an important save, collecting Rosetta Taylor’s close-range attempt flicked off a cross from out wide.
Lee continued to threaten down the other end for the Reds but couldn’t add a second goal to her all-round attacking performance.
The 1-1 draw kept Brisbane in touching distance of the top four, with an eight-point total after six games two shy of Victory in fourth spot. For Adelaide, it’s just a second point earned this season – but one that lifts Adrian Stenta’s side off the bottom of the table.
