Green Gully has missed out on its fairytale ending in the FFA Cup.
The Cavaliers were bundled out of the cup by a gutsy 10-man Canberra Olympic in a 1-0 defeat at Deakin Stadium in the nation’s capital on Tuesday night.
Olympic got the job done with barely seconds left on the referee’s watch.
Green Gully’s most experienced defender Rodrigo Vargas made an uncharacteristically careless tackle on Olympic substitute Jeremy Habtemariam in the penalty box and gave the referee no option but to point to the spot.
Olympic goalkeeper Angelo Konstantinou stepped up to take the penalty and unleashed a rocket of a left footed shot, which smacked the underside of the crossbar and beyond the reach of Cavs goalkeeper Rani Dowisha for the game’s only goal.
It denied Green Gully the chance to host a second A-League game at Green Gully Reserve, with Olympic advancing to face Sydney FC in the final four with the other semi-final being a tasty Melbourne derby between Melbourne City and Melbourne Victory.
It was a memorable cup run for Green Gully nonetheless.
The Cavaliers fans will never forget the night their side eliminated A-League opposition Central Coast Mariners from the tournament.
They also stuck it to cross-town rivals Melbourne Knights on their home soil in the round of 16.
The gutsy Cavaliers had a long injury list to contend with but continued to defy the odds.
Cavs coach Arthur Papas will see the loss in the nation’s capital as an opportunity lost, but he will sit back in the coming months and be proud of what his side has achieved in the FFA Cup this season.
