Pride is a stake. Be part of the drama as Glory aim to finally get a morale-boosting win
Saturday 29th January 6:45pm
Pride is a stake. Be part of the drama as Glory aim to finally get a morale-boosting win over last season-s Champions.
Perth Glory have their eyes well and truly on revenge as last season’s Champions head to town for the final meeting between these two sides this season. Generally, this campaign has seen Sydney experience an equally miniscule amount of joy as their hosts, however, their two battles with Glory have offered rare moments of joy. After flying out of the blocks, Perth had started to really stumble and fall by the time the Sky Blues visited in late October.
Sydney had yet to win a single game at that stage, but they soon sorted that out, as a fine Bruno Cazarine brace sandwiched Alex Brosque’s strike. A month later, at Parramatta Stadium, Glory looked like they had done enough to hold on for a hard-earned 0-0 draw, until two late goals from full-back Shannon Cole and Brosque again sealed a 2-0 win for the home side.
So, as the teams come together for the final time in the Hyundai A-League 2010/11 season, Glory find themselves seeking, not just their first win against the Sky Blues, not just their first point against them, but their first goal as well. It’s time for Ian Ferguson’s men to finally get one over their rivals from the other side of the country. Revenge is nigh!
Glory will also be looking to bounce back from a miserable result last weekend, when the undermanned visitors were beaten 4-0 by Wellington Phoenix at Westpac Stadium. However, minus star players like Robbie Fowler, Jacob Burns, Andy Todd, Jamie Harnwell and Adriano Pellegrino, coach Ian Ferguson fielded one of his most youthful sides of the season and, despite what the scoreline suggests, there were plenty of positives to take from the game. Ultimately though, it was Wellington’s vast comparative experience that proved to be Perth-s undoing.
Ferguson will hope to have a few more names available for selection this Saturday but, with nothing to play for but pride at the tail-end of the Hyundai A-League 2010/11 season, he will perhaps continue to give some more of the squad-s up-and-coming stars a chance. And they-ll be in for another stern test though, as Sydney look to keep their unbeaten run going.
The Sky Blues will be kicking themselves that their hopes of reaching the top six all but died last weekend, especially considering they were 2-0 at half-time. A first-half brace from teenager Dimitri Petratos in Gosford looked set to give Vitezslav Lavicka-s men a surprise win which would have kept their season very much alive but Mariners pegged them back and, in the end, it was only keeper Liam Reddy that prevented them from an unthinkable defeat.
Reddy won-t be in a position to prevent anything at all this weekend though, as he serves a two-match ban following an incident in the game at the Bluetongue.
Glory are playing for little but pride now, but there will still be plenty of sweat and passion on display on the field on Saturday, as both clubs aim to end their Hyundai A-League campaigns in upbeat fashion. Perth are looking to build towards next season, while the Sky Blues have the Champions League to get their teeth into. So get along to 6PR Stadium and get involved in a full-blooded Hyundai A-League clash between two outfits that have a lot to prove, as the season draws to a close.
