Melbourne City FC put in a dominant performance against the FFA Centre of Excellence on Saturday but left it late to run away with a 2-1 win.
A brilliant header by Wade Dekker gave the home side the lead in the first half however a penalty to Daniel Arzani levelled the game for the young side.
After missing a chance in the 89th minute, James Brown popped again to tap in at the back post from a Marc Marino cutback, sealing all three points.
Blustery conditions greeted the sides at Broadmeadows Valley Park as Melbourne City FC looked to continue its momentum from their convincing victory against the Western Sydney Wanderers last Sunday.
There were a number of senior-listed young players in the side as they looked to push the senior players above them, most notably Paulo Retre and Brown.
Like last week, Melbourne City FC went on the front foot early with much of its success coming down the right wing.
A string of half chances lead to the home side’s first goal, as Marino, Brown and Retre were close to opening the scoring.
It was Dekker however who found the back of the net in the 16th minute from a flat Jacob Melling corner to give Melbourne City FC the lead.
The FFA CoE looked dangerous on the counter however it was a marauding run from the midfield by Arzani that saw him find his way into the penalty area and brought down by Ross Archibald.
The danger man stepped up to the spot and confidently struck his penalty down the middle to restore parity.
Melbourne City FC went back on the offensive immediately, going close a number of times, but were unable to take back the lead before half time.
The conditions worsened after the break as a hail storm welcomed the players back for the second half.
Melbourne City FC went agonisingly close in the 57th minute as Retre’s cutback deflected past Delianov, trickling across the goal line and away from danger.
Marino had a string of chances to restore the lead for the home side however the striker missed two guilt-edge opportunities from inside the area.
Melbourne City FC pushed hard for the three points and were rewarded when Brown finished off Marino’s brilliant cutback to give the home side a deserved three points.
Match Details
Saturday 1 November
Broadmeadows Valley Park
Melbourne City FC 2 (Wade DEKKER 16’, James BROWN 90’+1)
FFA Centre of Excellence 1 (Daniel ARZANI 39’)
Melbourne City FC lineup:
Marko STEVANJA (GK), 2. Phil PETRESKI, 3. Andrew MULLET, 4. Ross ARCHIBALD (C), 5. Paulo RETRE (10. Luka PRELEVIC 58’), 6. Stefan MAUK, 7. Nicholas SYMEOY, 8. Jacob MELLING, 9. Marc MARINO, 11. James BROWN, 14. Wade DEKKER (15. Anthony RIZK 74’)
Subs not used: 20. Yaren SOZER (GK), 12. Leo ATHANASIOU,
