Sydney FC and Brisbane Roar played out a goalless draw at the Kograh Oval in a tactical battle between the two sides.
The hosts appeared to control most of the first-half of the game as the ever creative Milos Ninkovic caused trouble with his vision and passing. But try as they might, the Sky Blues were unable to find the goal they were looking for.
But Brisbane boss Warren Moon managed to show excellent tactical acumen to ensure that his side fell back a bit to overload the midfield, so as to ensure that midfielders Paulo Retre, Calem Nieuwenhof and Anthony Caceres were stifled for long periods as the visitors pressed hard and well.
The gravity of the occasion was not lost on the visitors skipper Tom Aldred soldiered on with a bandaged thigh despite having appeared to have injured his hamstring at one point in the game.
Meanwhile, English defender Macaulay Gillesphey almost put the travellers ahead with a thunderous strike from about 30 yards out, which produced a strong tip over the bar from goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne.
With the scoreline goalless, Sydney boss Steve Corica decided to bring on Bobo for a debut following his return to the club, which was met with a raucous cheer from the home crowd. The Brazilian almost ended up scoring on his return after heading a ball from midfielder Alexander Baumjohann, but shot-stopper Jamie Young produced an excellent save with his foot to deny the effort.
Meanwhile, Sky Blues loyalist Rhyan Grant was denied twice by the crossbar as the game ultimately ended all square at full time.
Sydney FC have a massive game against Melbourne City on Tuesday, while Brisbane Roar travel to Western Australia to take on Perth Glory next Friday.
