Irvine scores but fumes as St Pauli drops points in title race
Australia's Jackson Irvine cut a frustrated figure after his St Pauli side threw away the 1-0 lead he'd earned with a goal against bottom side Osnabruck, drawing 1-1 late on and dropping points in the race for promotion to the Bundesliga.
The Socceroos star almost scored inside the first five minutes, but his powerful drive was deflected behind.
But it was from the resulting corner that the club skipper scored his third goal of the season, powering a quality header into the back of the net.
St Pauli would hold that lead, and threaten several times to increase it, until the 82 minute when some sloppy defending led to Osnabruck's equaliser through Charalambos Makridis.
Irvine was seen absolutely fuming after that goal, and despite further efforts from his side to claim all three points and a second yellow card and subsequent red for Osnabruck's Niklas Wiemanm, it had to settle for just the one.
The Pirates remain three points clear at the top of the 2. Bundesliga standings, but with second-placed Holstein Kiel travelling to fifth-placed Fortuna Dusseldorf on Sunday, things could get a whole lot tighter regardless of any result in that game.
