South have progressed to the next round of the Cup after a 2-1 win against Bentleigh after extra time.

The first half was a pretty dour affair, closing at 0-0 with only three shots recorded for both teams.

The second half picked up a little but no team was really dominant for the match. A late goal to Bentleigh threatened to unravel Sinisa Cohadzic’s first game in charge however, mercifully, South managed to equalise just a minute later when a scuffle in the box from a set piece saw Jankovic score from close range.

It’s heartening to see the boys fight to the end here, but the following extra time could have been avoided noting the Oakleigh game coming up on Sunday. Not that we expect a win, even with fit legs, but an extra 30 minutes was a disappointing result against lower league opposition, albeit strong ones.

Miraculously in extra time South managed to snag a win, after Mesorouni of all players finished off another close range shot after a scuffle in the box.

It seems that Estaban is gone, but it is telling that our recent goals from open play have all been tussles in the box.

So that’s that -a 2-1 win and happy days right? Well, there’s an unfortunate footnote to the match. Both Brennan and Marshall appear to have been injured, both are huge out especially considering the importance of the next few games.

Hopefully we can see Bonada back soon, but either way it appears the best we can hope for in the next few weeks is a weakened team on the park.

Side note, it could have been worse, not just considering our improbable late equaliser, but also noting other big teams lost to lower league opposition, namely Preston to Whittlesea!

Oakleigh up next, let’s hope it’s not another Avondale bloodbath.