The two teams met at the Wingham Sporting Complex on Saturday afternoon in a match Wallis Lake led until the last 10 minutes, when Wingham scored a late penalty goal to see the game end in a 1-1 draw.

The result leaves Wallis Lake just one point clear of Tuncurry Forster ZPL with two rounds of competition left, after Tuncurry Forster ZPL accounted for Hallidays Point Barracudas 4-1 at Tuncurry on Saturday.

Great Lakes United Football Club secretary Kevin Stevens said Wingham played with a lot of energy on their home turf, which was not the smooth surface Wallis Lake were used to playing on.

"The field was very bumpy and bouncy," he said.

"(It was) difficult to control the ball and pass quickly to the feet and it prevented the boys from playing fluently."

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Mr Stevens says he hopes Wallis Lake can win their next two games and close out the first-past-the-post season in the top spot.

Considered competition favourites since they were relegated to the Men's Southern League after the newly-formed Zone Premier League folded at the beginning of the season, Wallis Lake have struggled to maintain consistency in 2020.

They have beaten second-placed Tuncurry Forster ZPL in both their match-ups but suffered a surprise loss against the Old Bar Barbarians back in round eight, before their unexpected draw on the weekend.

Tuncurry Forster ZPL, on the other hand, have been steadfast in their consistency, beating all their opponents except Wallis Lake.

Coach Scott Fletcher said he was happy with how his team handled Hallidays Point on Saturday, with Tuncurry Forster ZPL avoiding the Barracudas' strong mid-fielders by playing the ball wide and putting away a number of goals as a result.

"They (Hallidays Point) were competitive the whole game but realistically we were comfortable the whole game," he said.

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Having previously said Tuncurry Forster ZPL wouldn't deserve to win the competition if they couldn't beat Wallis Lake, Mr Fletcher now believes his team will be worthy winners if they can claim their next two games and Wallis Lake can't.

"We've been consistent throughout the whole season," he said.

However, Mr Fletcher admitted Tuncurry Forster ZPL had a tougher road home than their cross-town rivals, with their next two matches against Pacific Palms and Wingham FC ZPL.

Wallis Lake, on the other hand, face eighth-placed Great Lakes Vikings and seventh-placed Tuncurry Forster respectively.

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