The Macleay Valley Rangers escaped with the three competition points against the Camden Haven Redbacks on Saturday but their lack of patience in-front of goal almost proved costly.
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The Rangers held a 2-1 advantage early in the second half and their opponents were reduced to 9-men after a defender was shown a straight red and a midfielder received their second yellow.
However, Rangers were wasteful with their chances in front of goal and they nearly paid the price as the Redbacks fought for an equaliser until the final whistle.
"We weren't very patient in front of goal so we will need to work on our build up play," Rangers coach Chris Walker told the Argus.
"We should have put them away and not given them a chance but we missed a few opportunities."
The Rangers raced out of the blocks and Walker claims his side produced "the best opening 20-minutes of the season" and they were rewarded when Kurt Riordan latched onto a through ball and made no mistake from the edge of the 18-yard box.
However, an injury to Riordan, who plays in the midfield, halted Macleay Valley's momentum and the Redbacks levelled the scores before the break.
Rangers' lead was reinstated minutes after the break, as Chad Applegate converted a freekick from the edge of the box, which also saw the aforementioned Redbacks player shown a red card.
Despite creating the majority of chances for the remainder of the contest, Macleay Valley weren't able to capitalise.
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