Adelaide United put in another workmanlike performance to grind out an uninspiring 0-0 draw against Queensland Roar at Hindmarsh Stadium.
A reasonable crowd of 11,020 turned out at Hindmarsh Stadium though the expectation was for this game to be sold out.
Queensland Roar started the game strongly with Adelaide running hard and hitting long balls but lacking in imagination. Queensland gave Adelaide an early scare when Richter hit the side netting with his powerful shot from 20meteres.
The game sprang to life in the 21st minute for the wrong reasons. Adelaide's Angelo Costanzo attempted to get on to a long ball to the edge of the box. Queensland's goalkeeper Tom Willis sprinted out and bravely grabbed the ball at the feet of Costanzo. Costanzo and Willis collided leaving the goalkeeper on the ground and needing treatment. While the referee saw no issue with the incident the same could not be said of Queensland defender Karl Dodd. He took matters into his own hands and struck Costanzo in the back of the head behind play. A melee ensured before officials separated the two teams. Dodd was fortunate to escape the incident with only a yellow card.
In the 27th minute Queensland Roar were awarded a free kick on the edge of the box. Captain Chad Gibson powerfully drove the ball goalwards. United's goalkeeper Beltrame was unsighted by his defensive wall and almost moved too late. He was at full stretch when he turned the ball around his post.
Beltrame was back in the action only 3 minutes later. He pulled off another good save from a long range effort but was only able to deflect the ball into the path of Richter. Richter made no mistake putting the ball in the back of the net from close range. To the relief of the Adelaide fans the goal did not count as Richter had strayed into an offside position.
In the 37th minute Adelaide's Louis Brain should have opened the scoring. Travis Dodd crossed the ball to Pantelis who headed the ball on to the edge of the 5 yard line. With the goal at his mercy, Brain swung his boot at the ball but to his embarrassment only hit air.
A minuted before half time an otherwise very quiet Aloisi sprung into the game and almost caught Queensland's Wallis asleep in goals. Aloisi hit a dipping shot from 20 metres that struck the post with Wallis stranded and flat footed.
The two sides went into the half time break with the score remaining locked at 0-0.
The second half saw an increasingly un-imaginative Adelaide strangle the game. The goal mouth action dried up and the fans went to sleep.
Adelaide's best opportunity of the second half came in the 62nd minute. Queensland's captain Chad Gibson miss-controlled a pass and the ball struck his hand inside the penalty area. But Adelaide's fair claim for a penalty was turned down by referee Ben Williams.
Aloisi once again popped up in the closing minute of the half and attempted to steal the points for Adelaide with a clever 30m drive but did not find the back of the net.
The game ended with the score locked at 0-0.
Adelaide's coach John Kosmina should be disappointed with the result. A goal-less draw at home is as good as a loss. This was reflected in the post match comments from Queensland Roar's coach MIron Bleiberg who said he was relieved with the result given Roar were the away team.
Adelaide's hard-running and tough-tackling style makes them very difficult to break down. Yet this strength is also its weakness. Its workmanlike midfield is devoid of imagination and with arguably the weakest forward line in the league this means Adelaide are going to find it tough to score goals.
The other impact of this style will be felt in the ticket booth. Adelaide's opening NSL game attracted over 17,000 fans, but 11,020 fans turned out for its opening A-League game - a drop of 6,000 fans despite all the A-League publicity leading up to the game.
With Adelaide's marquee player Qu looking more like a tourist than a professional footballer, Adelaide fans are desperately hoping the club fills the final 20th spot in their squad with some "bling bling".
Best for Adelaide was goalkeeper Beltrame. Veart toiled hard up front trying to be the anchor man for the long ball "hit and hope" tactics. He always gives 100% but looks a far better player when his is facing the goals. Brain showed some spark in the first half but drifted out of the game in the second half.
Best for Queensland was birthday boy Massimo Murdocca. He was ably supported by Matt McKay and Hyuk-Su Seo in the midfield. Alex Brosque showed some great touches along with Chad Gibson and Tom Willis was solid in goals.