Bereft of urgency in the first half, the defending champions slotted three unanswered goals to snatch the points 3-1, and with other results jump to the top of the NIPL ladder.

Down on troops, with at least three players out through suspension, FC took it to their more-fancied rivals, with the game in the balance until the last 10 minutes when Benn Gennardini picked up the scraps in the box to slot the Mushies’ third goal.

Josh Bartlett had given FC the lead about 10 minutes into the first half, after a well-placed switch from the right had found him vacant on the left post. Both sides had chances in the first half to amend the 1-nil scoreline before the break, the Mushies the better of them, but were unsuccessful.

Mushies coach Tim Coates admitted he might have had a few “choice” words to his side at the break.

“I just suggested that we needed to win more second balls and have more urgency,” he said.

Their usual fluency and connection wasn’t there with passes missing their mark and thwarting their attacking rhythm. Credit to FC they played with heart, and played with intensity, he said, and made life difficult for them by ‘parking the bus’, as described it.

“They played five in the back field and four in the middle. That’s very to breakdown,” he said.

James Bailey levelled the scores early in the second half, Luke Purcell then finishing off a quick transition from defence, after FC had been pressing, to put Oxley Vale ahead.

Coates said once they got that first goal he relaxed.

“Once they figured out how to score the first one I was right,” he said.

FC coach Greg Bartlett didn’t feel 3-1 was a fair indication of the game, and thought there were a couple of things that didn’t go their way. But he wasn’t using that as an excuse.

They had a few moments they didn’t take advantage of. They had a couple of good chances not long after Bartlett’s goal, and later in the second half botched a free kick about a metre out after Keyte had picked the ball up after kicking it.

It would have made it 2-all.

Beau Langenbaker was only minutes later adjudged offside as another equaliser went by the wayside.

While disappointed with the result, Bartlett was thrilled with way they performed. 

“I think that might make a few people sit up and take notice,” he said.

They were for a fair bit of the game the better side, and in the first half seemed to have the Mushies rattled.

“We took care of them for 60 minutes but unfortunately it’s not a 60 minute game,” Bartlett said.

Not to fault their effort, which was for him the most pleasing thing.

“We had four guys that played nearly two full games,” he said.

“(But) We tried right from the word go to the end and it showed. We did lead them.”