Sydney FC extended their lead at the top of the Hyundai A-League as away teams dominated an entertaining Round 9 in the Hyundai A-League.
Catch up on all the weekend’s action with our Monday morning wrap.
CLINICAL SKY BLUES EDGE REDS
Bobo bagged the winner against Adelaide United for the second time in 10 days as Sydney FC battled to a 1-0 victory at Coopers Stadium on Friday night.
Just over a week on from his extra-time heroics in the Westfield FFA Cup Final, Bobo denied the Reds any sense of revenge with the game’s only goal just prior to half-time.
Adelaide did enjoy long stretches of superiority – particularly in the first half – but they managed only a single shot on target in slipping to their first loss in three Hyundai A-League matches.
ROAR DOWN INJURY-HIT WANDERERS
Brisbane Roar breathed fresh life into their campaign with a morale-boosting 2-0 win over Western Sydney Wanderers at ANZ Stadium on Saturday.
Massimo Maccarone and substitute Ivan Franjic combined for a pair of fabulous left-footed goals either side of half-time to secure Roar’s second win of the campaign and first in eight road trips.
The two fine finishes compounded a worrying afternoon for Josep Gombau, who lost Oriol Riera and Jaushua Sotirio to injury in Wanderers’ seventh straight match without a win.
CITY STRIKE LATE TO STUN JETS
Manny Muscat was the unlikely hero for Melbourne City as they came from behind to beat Newcastle Jets 2-1 at a wet McDonald Jones Stadium on Saturday night.
Ernie Merrick’s men had seemed likely to claim another vital victory when Andrew Nabbout capped a dominant first half hour with his fifth of the season.
But Ross McCormack squared the ledger from the spot before half-time and City were rewarded for an improved second half with Manny Muscat’s thumping winner.
VICTORY WIN FIVE-GOAL THRILLER
Melbourne Victory came back from 2-0 down at half time to win 3-2 with Wellington Phoenix in a hugely entertaining encounter on Sunday in the NZ capital.
Victory dominated large periods of the first half but remarkably found themselves behind with Andrija Kaluderovic netting twice in as many minutes to give Phoenix a comfortable lead.
The visitors hit back twice in quick succession after the break through Besart Berisha and a Phoenix own goal, before James Troisi stole all three points with a classy finish late on thanks to Berisha’s super assist.
MARINERS GO BACK-TO-BACK
Blake Powell scored barely a minute after coming on to fire Central Coast Mariners to a valuable 1-0 win over Perth Glory at Central Coast Stadium on Sunday.
Paul Okon’s side appeared set to be frustrated in their attempts to leapfrog Perth as they struggled to put away a series of promising first half opportunities.
But striker Powell made an immediate impact by turning in the goal that sends the Gosford outfit into an impressive fourth on the Hyundai A-League ladder.
