South Melbourne ground out a 2-1 victory over Preston Lions in the Australia Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday evening. The visitors took a commanding lead through two first-half goals before Preston Lion's fightback fell short.
Cuba opened the scoring in the forty-eighth minute, capitalising on a moment of space in the penalty area. Painter-Andrews doubled the advantage twelve minutes later, and by then the contest looked settled.
Preston Lions pulled one back through Cocks in the eighty-sixth minute, but the late strike came too late to salvage anything. The hosts worked the ball into dangerous positions but lacked the final product.
South Melbourne dominated possession at 61 per cent and registered eight shots on target against four. They also created more attacking opportunities with seventy-six attacks compared to sixty-eight, though their conversion rate left something to be desired.
Both sides showed discipline throughout, with three yellow cards issued between them. Preston's Bonada and Kubilay, along with South Melbourne's Giannakopoulos, all saw the referee's card.
The result extends Preston Lions' unbeaten run, which now stretches to five matches. South Melbourne's recent form has been uneven, but they showed enough composure to navigate a tricky fixture.
