The AIS have survived a late onslaught to record a second home win of the season in the Foxtel National Youth League with a 5-2 victory over Perth Glory in Canberra.
The AIS have survived a late onslaught to record a second home win of the season in the Foxtel National Youth League with a 5-2 victory over Perth Glory in Canberra.
The Institute proved ruthless in front of goal to build a match-winning advantage before the interval after which the visitors hit back late on to make it a nervy finale.
Drizzling rain that fell throughout the first half made the conditions difficult for the players with the slick surface playing fast and the turf slippery under foot.
As such it was little surprise that it took a large portion of the opening period for both teams to settle.
The match sprung into life in the 11th minute as the hosts took the lead. Anthony Kalik squared a pass to Matthew Schmidt whose miss-hit effort drew a decent one-handed save from Glory goalkeeper Luke Radonich.
Kalik was alive to the rebound but was bundled over by a covering defender leaving referee Luke Withell to award a penalty. Kalik dusted himself off to place the resultant spot-kick firmly into the bottom corner.
It wasn’t long before the AIS doubled their lead. A perfect in-swinging corner was met at the near post by Schmidt who sent a flicked header looping over Radonich and into the far corner of the net.
Chasing the game, Perth went close when Harry O’Brien reacted sharply to head at goal but Jordan Thurtell was more than equal to the task and the AIS were able to extend their advantage further before the half-time break.
Keeping possession the Institute worked an angle out wide and from the cross whipped into the danger zone Ben Warland got the faintest of touches to nod home the third goal.
Leading comfortably, there was a danger that the AIS may take their foot of the gas and allow Glory a way back into the contest and Perth definitely came looking as Thurtell was forced into a couple of blocks early in the second stanza.
But the home team rode out the brief Perth flurry and regained the initiative as Todd Norris went close, prodding wide from close range, after superb approach work from the lively Marc Ochieng.
AIS coach Tony Vidmar made three changes on the hour and it was one of the substitutes, Marc Marino, who made the game safe in the 63rd minute.
Radonich dawdled on a routine clearance and Marino closed the Perth custodian down quickly, and the attempted clearance was blocked by the Institute forward, deflecting the ball into the empty net.
Perth pulled one back six minutes later when the unfortunate Jordan Pudler deflected a corner past his own ‘keeper at the near post, the AIS replacement unable to contort his body enough to get out of the way of a low drilled in set-piece.
Shortly after Glory netted again as substitute Darcy Cosgrove reacted quickest to his own header, which crashed back off the upright, to nod home from close range and give the Western Australians genuine hope of an unlikely recovery.
The AIS rallied though and secured the victory when Marino burst clear in stoppage time to thread a shot through Radonich’s legs for his second of the match.
STATISTICS
Foxtel National Youth League
Round 3
AIS 5 (Anthony Kalik 11′ (pen), Matthew Schmidt 18′, Ben Warland 29′. Marc Marino 63′, 93′)
Perth Glory 2 (Jordan Pudler (og) 69′, Darcy Cosgrove 76′)
AIS: 1. Jordan THURTELL, 2. Darcy MADDEN, 3. Brendan GONANO, 4. Ben WARLAND, 5. Matthew SCHMIDT, 6. Matthew NTOUMENOPOULOS (16. Jordan PUDLER 58′), 9. Todd NORRIS (11. Marc MARINO 56′), 12. Marc OCHIENG, 17. Anthony KALIK (10. Dylan SMITH 58′), 18. Alexander GERSBACH, 22. Liam ROSE
Perth Glory: 1. Luke RADONICH, 2. Joshua TUCKER, 3. David STOKOE (15. Scott ROBERTSON 56′), 4. Mark BARNETT, 5. Riley WOODCOCK, 6. Harry O’BRIEN, 7. Christopher HAROLD, 8. Jacob COLLARD, 9. Ndumba MAKECHE, 10. Aleksander JOVIC (13. Darcy COSGROVE 56′), 11. Borbor SAM (14. Joseph KNOWLES 56′)
YELLOW CARDS: 2. Darcy MADDEN (AIS)
