Auckland took the lead in the A-League men’s game twice through Jesse Randall and Sam Cosgrove, but Oli Lavale scored goals late in both halves to ensure the ledger would stay square.
The New Zealanders will view the draw as two points lost after dominating most of the play and spurning several chances, compounded by the fact that Lavale’s goals were Central Coast’s only two shots on target.
It was the third time in four games that Auckland had dropped points after conceding in the last 20 minutes, including last week’s loss to Melbourne City and a draw with Macarthur earlier this month.
Auckland looked like they had set the tone when Randall opened the scoring in the 12th minute with a quality finish after being plated up by Guillermo May for his fifth of the season.
Auckland had many chances to score, including after a four-on-one when May elected to shoot at Andrew Redmayne, and they were made to pay for their profligacy in the 44th minute when Lavale made some space for himself and cracked a shot past Michael Woud.
Order looked to have been restored when Cosgrove rose at the back post to nod home a quality Francis de Vries ball in the 58th minute, and Auckland pressed and probed for a third largely via Randall, May and Lachie Brook.
Lavale made the Black Knights pay in the 89th minute, however, pouncing on a Woud error from the second phase of a corner to force the equaliser in from point-blank range.
Auckland will rue the missed chances but may point to a moment in the 21st minute when a potential handball in the Mariners’ area was not awarded as a penalty.
The draw continues a fallow run for Auckland, who have recorded just one win in their past five starts.
Auckland retain their position atop the A-League ladder, however, although Sydney FC can join them level on points if they win the Big Blue against Melbourne Victory tonight.
They will have to regroup for a long road trip to Perth on Saturday night, while the Mariners face Melbourne Victory on Sunday afternoon.
• The Wellington Phoenix’s unbeaten start to 2026 has come to an end.
The Phoenix men were beaten 4-1 by the Newcastle Jets in Australia on Friday night.
The Jets led 1-0 at halftime after scoring their opener just one minute into the game.
Newcastle then added another two in the second half before the Phoenix were able to respond when new Norwegian attacking midfielder Sander Kartum scored just a handful of minutes into his club and A-League debut.
Wellington remain eighth, two points outside the top six, and head coach Giancarlo Italiano was disappointed with the final result.
"Always disappointed when we lose, especially when it was pretty even in terms of big chances created," Italiano said.
"It was a 50-50 game in terms of possession. We got punished for some sloppy defending, but in fairness they probably deserved the points."
Italiano does not believe the Phoenix have taken a step backwards after two wins and a draw to start the year.
"If we didn’t make any chances, we got torched 4-1 and we weren’t in the game then I would be a little bit worried.
"On a better day, honestly, it could have been 4-4. If we defend a little bit better, we could have won the game 4-3. I’m still positive with how the team played in certain periods."
Italiano named the same XI that started the 2-0 win over Sydney FC and included Kartum on the bench following his arrival from Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts.
The Phoenix play Melbourne City at home on Friday. — RNZ/Allied Media
