BY DANIEL CAMPOS @francisfields

Whittlesea Ranges fought back from two goals down to hold St Albans Saints 2-2 in an action-packed NPL1 West contest at Epping Stadium on Saturday.

Against the run of play, the visitors got on the break with Nicholas Scerri on four minutes to indicate much of the afternoon's run of play.

Forward Barry Devlin later on seven minutes could not capitalise on a pouncing rebound from goalkeeper Gian Tapia.

Ofli on the quarter hour mark made his presence felt in the 18 yard box with Stuart Webster getting himself involved for the first time in the match coming out quickly off his mark.

A lost ball on the left hand side left Tapia outstretched leaving an unmarked Barry Devlin with the easiest of touches to slot the ball calmly for one-nil.

In the space of two minutes Nick Scerri got his name on the scoresheet with a finish worthy for appraisal, unmarked on the near post with only Tapia to beat and it was two for the Saints.

Then on 28 minutes a second bookable offence by Nicholas Sarbin saw his marching orders and the visitors reduced to ten men.

Attila Ofli got the Ranges back to reduce the deficit. On 44 minutes right before the stroke of half time the equaliser arrived and Ofli's double for the afternoon putting Whittlesea back in the game.

Mustedanagic was dribbling and holding the ball on the break after a gradual build up play that saw the hosts on the verge of pulling the trigger however the young midfielder got pushed and earned himself and his side a penalty. Ofli did his duty to slot the ball straight down the middle for 2-2.

The Saints were relying on long balls on the counter especially using Scerri on the left to find the breakthrough. As Whittlesea grew tired legs, goalscorer Ofli was also seen doing defensive duties.

On 68 minutes a brilliant collective effort saw Matthew Kundevski served for a winner in front of goal but took his shot well over the bar to forgive Webster and his backline for poor marking.

Ilhan Altuntas got fouled from behind on 73 minutes with a free kick in favour for Whittlesea and Iuliano's free kick went on target, forcing Webster down low for a comfortable save.

Sotiropoulos could have also secured a winner with fifteen remaining on the clock with a free unmarked header from a corner kick but went wide..

Tapia got his moment to shine in a pivotal stage of the match when Tedros Yabio was one-on-one and the tall keeper's foot was the difference not only to stop the shot but to keep scores locked.

Nicholas Scerri almost won a penalty on 84 minutes but the central referee's decision to point to the spot was overruled by the assistant referee flagging that the ball had gone out before an infringement took place.

Tussles in midfield continued much like the majority of the game until the full time whistle gave both Whittlesea and St Albans a hard fought draw.

MATCH DETAILS

Whittlesea Ranges 2 (Attila Ofli 33',45+1') drew St Albans Saints 2 (Barry Devlin 15', Nick Scerri 18').

Whittlesea Ranges: 1. Gian TAPIA, 19. Adem MUSTEDAGANIC, 20. Tobias HAEGELE, 5. Daniel SOTIROPOULOS, 2. Pavle DURKIC, 13. Ilhan ALTUNTAS (21. Marijan TOTIC 81'), 10. Matthew IULIANO, 15. Matthew KUNDEVSKI, 17. Stefan BARICEVIC, 6. Andrew TAYLOR, 25. Attila OFLI.

Unused Subs: 27. Jarrod HILL, 8. Andreas BACHOS, 3. Gianni FALZON, 23. Ryan PIPER

Yellow Cards: 5. Daniel SOTIROPOULOS 6', 6. Andrew TAYLOR 71', 17. Stefan BARICEVIC 83'.

Red Cards:

St Albans Saints: 1. Stuart WEBSTER, 2. Ryan MCGUFFIE, 3. Nana Yew OTUO-ACHEAMPONG, 4. Nicholas SARBIN, 5. Tedros YABIO, 6. Ben SHAPER, 8. Ross HARVEY, 9. Barry DEVLIN, 11. Nick SCERRI, 15. Konrad DOBRASZKIEWICZ, 20. Ante KOZUL (13. Anthony BORAS 46').

Unused Subs: 10. Tomislav TRBUHOVIC, 17. Stepjan TRBUHOVIC, 19. George NICESKI, 21. John SCOLLO

Yellow Cards: 4. SARBIN 23', 8. HARVEY 45', 5. YABIO 74', 9. DEVLIN 84'

Red Cards: 4. SARBIN 27'