By Michael Ireland 

Photo: James Ireland

FC Bulleen Lions extended its lead at the top of the PS4 NPL1 West table to 3 points with a 4-2 win over Brunswick City on a chilly Saturday afternoon at Dunstan Reserve.

The bottom-placed Brunswick City side equalised twice only to fall away in the final half-hour to a Bulleen team determined to secure promotion in 2015.

Bulleen had the lion's share of the chances in the first 15 minutes, with Sayeed Reza Hussaini testing City keeper Jake Crea on numerous occasions without success.

His first chance came after 3 minutes as Crea managed to hold onto a deceptive lob, and soon after he came even closer to opening his account with a low curving ball which went narrowly wide to the right hand side. 

The visitors' intensity was eventually rewarded after 18 minutes when Hussaini capitalised on a clever ball from teammate Takanori Nishimoto by sliding it past Crea.

Three minutes later, the Lions looked likely to double their lead with Hussaini again, however after taking too much time on the ball the City defence was able to recover. 

Bulleen goalkeeper Stefaan Sardelic was called upon when Anthony Ianchello came through with a rather tame effort on goal, however the visitors were not troubled again until later in the first half.

After watching the Lions control possession for much of the half, it was Brunswick's Juan Portillo who put his case forward for goal of the year with a sublime finish at the 43-minute mark.

His 30-yard attempt curved into the top-right corner of the net, giving Sardelic no chance to deny the equaliser.

Brunswick started the second half with its confidence high, but the scores only remained level for another six minutes when Hussaini secured a brace to give Bulleen the lead once again. 

The hosts hastily responded one minute later through Anthony Ianchello, with a shot that saw Sardelic miss what should have been a routine stop.

With the scores once again level, City gathered some momentum, with the contest see-sawing from end to the other.

Soon after coming on, Dean Lorenzi took a free kick which dipped centimetres above the bar.

The Lions grabbed the lead once again to make it 3-2 after Nishimoto launched an attempt at goal which took a slight deflection.

At the dying stages, City went down to ten men as Duglas Mendez was sent off for a last-man challenge.

In the last action of the game, Bardhi Hysoli ended a three-on-one counter attack with a cool finish to kill off any chance of a last-minute comeback.

While it was its ninth consecutive defeat, City held its own against the league's best for much of the afternoon before ultimately being outclassed when it counted most.

Match Details: 

Brunswick City 2 (Portillo 43', Ianchello 52') defeated by FC Bulleen Lions 4 (Hussaini 18', 51', Nishimoto 69', Hysoli 90') at Dunstan Reserve 

Brunswick City: 15. Jake CREA (GK), 61. Duglas MENDEZ, 45. Frank SERRATORE, 48. Nick TZOULIS (6. Matthew DIGIOVINE 86'), 50. Resit CULCULOGLU, 35. Anthony IANCHELLO, 18. Matthew MURPHY, 10. Juan PORTILLO, 00. Dimitri VITHOULKAS (77. Alessandro VERRATTI 72'), 49. Peter CONSTANTINOU (4. Yasin ABDULAHI 75'), 29. Lucas AOUN

Unused Subs: 1. Christy BENNETT-SPARK (GK)

Yellow Card(s): Serratore 25', Vithoulkas 62'

Red Card(s): Mendez 83'

FC Bulleen Lions: 21. Stefaan SARDELIC, 3. Will ABBOTT, 5. Lewis WADDELL (13. Dean LORENZI 53'), 6. Bardhi HYSOLI, 8. Matteo BALLAN, 10. Takanori NISHIMOTO, 11. Gianni DE NITTIS, 12. Eli LUTTMER, 9. Sayeed Reza HUSSAINI (14. Sami NOUR 75'), 16. Matt DIMECH, 18. Felix ROSMAN

Unused Subs: 23. Edison PONARI, 31. Dylan BRESOLIN, 41. Luke GALLO

Yellow Card(s): None

Red Card(s): None