Perth Glory coach Alex Epakis says his team can’t afford to get distracted by the ups and downs of Melbourne Victory as the race for fourth spot in the Liberty A-League heats up.
Glory’s four-match winning streak has put their finals destiny back in their own hands.
Earlier this year, Victory sat 11 points clear of Glory.
That margin has now been whittled to five points and Glory have two games in hand on the fourth-placed Victory.
Perth will be aiming to continue their hot form when they host ninth-placed Western Sydney at Macedonia Park on Sunday.
Victory, who have been held to draws by Adelaide and Brisbane in their past two matches, are next back in action on March 13 when they take on third-placed Melbourne City.
A win for Perth on Sunday would place huge pressure on Victory, but Epakis wants his team to focus on themselves rather than thinking too much about how their top-four rivals are going.
“If we worry about what next door is doing, our own grass is going to grow a little bit too long and we’re going to have to cut it,” Epakis said.
“So we need to keep our own house in order and make sure things are running smoothly.
“We were working very hard to put ourselves in this position now.
“We let the shackles off and said we’re just going to go out to play to win, play every game as if it’s a final, and that’s going to continue to be the message.”
The Wanderers will no doubt have done their homework on Hana Lowry after the emerging Glory star scored two goals in last week’s 2-0 win over Brisbane.
Epakis is confident the 19-year-old will be able to handle anything thrown her way.
“She’s definitely very level headed and grounded. She won’t get carried away with what happened last weekend,” Epakis said.
The Wanderers will be aiming to bounce back from their 3-0 loss to Canberra last week.
“They do have the players that if we’re not focused and if we’re expecting to roll up and get the job done, they will hurt us,” Epakis said.
“We can’t take anything for granted.
“They have a few players who in transition and in attack can cause damage with their speed and directness.”
