South Melbourne close in on top-four spot with win over Bula FC

South Melbourne FC person moved to the brink of a top-four decorativeness successful the OFC Pro League aft a 2-0 win implicit Bula FC successful Ba.

Reinforced by the instrumentality of skipper Marco Jankovic and guardant Yuki Uchida, South Melbourne looked sharper than successful their caller nonaccomplishment to Auckland FC and made their vantage number early.

There was aboriginal contention when Bula defender Scott Wara escaped with a yellow paper pursuing a VAR reappraisal for a situation connected Uchida, with South Melbourne players appealing for a red.

Moments later, Uchida made the hosts pay, racing onto a Max Mikkola done shot and lifting a composed decorativeness implicit goalkeeper Didier Desprez.

Mikkola then doubled the pb wrong 20 minutes, cutting wrong from region earlier firing a almighty left-foot strike past a rooted Desprez.

South Melbourne controlled the remainder of the archetypal half, with Uchida and Nahuel Bonada some going adjacent to extending the lead.

Bula improved aft the break, with manager Stephane Auvray introducing Nabil Begg, but struggled to interruption down a disciplined South Melbourne defence.

Adam Supyk went closest for the hosts, firing narrowly wide, while Begg missed a precocious accidental to halve the shortage aft breaking wide successful the box.

Heavy rainfall successful the closing stages made conditions difficult, but South Melbourne remained composed done six minutes of stoppage clip to unafraid the result.

The win strengthens South Melbourne’s clasp connected 2nd spot and leaves them each but assured of a top-four decorativeness arsenic the OFC Pro League play enters its last stretch.