Navua and Ba football teams settled for a 1-1 draw in another round of the Extra Super Premier League at 4R Stadium at Govind Park yesterday.
Navua stamped their mark in the first half with disciplined structure and smart football, holding their ground against Ba’s attacking pressure and the roar of the home fans.
Their persistence paid off in the 40th minute when Peniame Drova broke through to score the opening goal, putting Navua firmly in control before the break.
At the restart, Ba regrouped strongly and lifted the tempo with fast, attacking play.
Their efforts were rewarded early in the second half when Penisoni Tirau found the back of the net to level the scores.
Both sides continued to press forward, creating opportunities but failing to convert, as the match ended in a 1-1 stalemate at full-time.
Navua coach Saiyad Ali said the result was a reflection of their strategy to secure at least a point away from home.
“This was our away match so after Ba scored we tried to settle for that one point. Ba was playing on home soil in front of their home crowd and we thought we better keep it that way,” Ali said.
“We decided that at least we want to go back with one point. Playing against Ba here is always a tough match. They have a very young and good side, physically very fit and they also played very well.
“My boys played very well, we played according to the game plan we had and I think that was a really good and entertaining game,” Ali added.
Ba coach Joshua Wilson admitted his side had areas to improve on.
“The result was not to what we expected but I think there’s few errors we have to work on and we will be working on it in the coming weeks especially when IDC is around the corner,” Wilson said.
In another EPL match played yesterday, Nasinu thumped Tavua 5-2.
