Coming off a short turnaround after reaching the semi-finals of the Asian Champions League 2 in midweek, Sydney started strongly and seized an early lead through Adrian Segecic.
But they were pegged back by Kosta Barbarouses and couldn't rediscover that early lethal edge.
The draw moved seventh-placed Sydney to 30 points, three behind Melbourne Victory and Adelaide, who both lost their games this weekend. The result snapped a four-game losing run for the Phoenix, who remain 11th.
Running onto a Joe Lolley ball and finishing past a charging Josh Oluwayemi, Segecic's seventh-minute strike was his 14th goal across all competitions this season.
The attacker performed a 'call me' celebration after the goal, joining Western United's Noah Botic and Western Sydney's Nicholas Milanovic in using goal celebrations to send a message to Socceroo boss Tony Popovic after being left out of his squad for coming World Cup qualifiers against Indonesia and China.
But a week after coach Giancarlo Italiano said they were playing for pride, the Phoenix fought back and levelled when Francisco Geraldes played Barbarouses through in the 38th for an equaliser which stood after a lengthy VAR review for offside.
Segecic was replaced by Douglas Costa at halftime and the Brazilian star flashed a free kick wide just past the hour but Sydney couldn't find a second, with Oluwayemi producing a series of heroic saves.
Tensions bubbling over, skippers Rhyan Grant and Alex Rufer were booked for their role in a shoving match between the two sides with 10 minutes remaining, while Patryk Klimala and Scott Wootton needed to be separated after a war of words following the final whistle.
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