Victory, Roar, Adelaide, Wanderers and Sydney FC all recorded wins on the weekend, in a round where the first team to score took home the three points.
Victory, Roar, Adelaide, Wanderers and Sydney FC all recorded wins on the weekend, in a round where the first team to score took home the three points.
Melbourne Victory 2 – 0 Perth Glory
Melbourne Victory returned to the winners list in the opening match of Round 10, the Victory netting in each half to grab the three points in Harvey Norman Friday night football against Glory. Adama Traore fired in a spectacular opener to bring the game to life and Gui Finkler secured the points with a late goal at AAMI Park. The win sees Victory move up to fourth, while Glory have dropped to seventh. Kevin Muscat defended his side against criticism their finishing is lacking. Meanwhile Glory have their own problems with confirmation coach Alistair Edwards and captain Jacob Burns have had a falling out.
Wellington Phoenix 1 – 2 Brisbane Roar
Wellington Phoenix are still chasing their first win of the season as Brisbane Roar once again found a way to win to maintain their five point lead at the league-s summit. Defender Matt Smith opened the scoring and notched his third goal of the campaign late in the first half. The Phoenix were given an opportunity to draw level when a penalty decision was awarded in their favour. Carlos Hernandez made no mistake from the spot to register his first goal for the Nix. The Roar received a penalty of their own, however Moss was able to save Berisha-s tame attempt. However Ivan Franjic produced another stunner to give Roar their fourth win in a row.
Adelaide United 4 – 0 Central Coast Mariners
Adelaide United finally got the result to match the flair they’ve introduced this season when they put four past the Champions to break a two-month winless streak. The Reds hadn’t recorded a win since the opening round of the season, their emphatic result easing pressure on coach Josep Gombau. Djite, Ferreira, Cirio and Neumann all found their way onto the scorers list, while the Mariners were wasteful in front of goal. It was an emotional win for United, who embraced their coach at full time. Gombau declaring the club had become his new “family”. The Mariners will be keen to put this result behind them and they won-t have to wait long when they host the Phoenix at North Sydney Oval on Thursday.
Newcastle Jets 0 – 1 Western Sydney Wanderers
Western Sydney returned to the scene where they wrapped up last season-s Premiers Plate when they travelled to Hunter Stadium on Saturday night. The Jets were unbeaten at home this season but Labinot Haliti and Mark Bridge came back to haunt their former club when they combined to score the game-s solitary goal. Shinji Ono whipped in a superb cross Haliti headed across goal, Bridge adding the finish with a header of his own. It was the Wanderers striker-s sixth goal against the Jets and ensured Western Sydney kept pace with the Roar at the top of the table. The Jets were always in the contest but just couldn’t find a way to penetrate a stubborn Wanderers defence.
Sydney FC 2 – 1 Melbourne Heart
Sydney FC recorded their sixth win of the season on the back of a bit of ADP brilliance and another goal from Serbian import Ranko Despotovic. After a lacklustre opening to the match Alessandro Del Piero brought the Sky Blues fans to their feet with a weaving run, some fleet-footed trickery and a finish to match. The home side doubled their advantage just before the break when Despotovic applied a neat turn and finish to send the ball into the back of the net. Heart had a chance to get back in the contest from the spot but Harry Kewell skewed his effort wide. Heart were on the board shortly after when Michael Mifsud opened his goal tally but they couldn’t find an equaliser, spurning several late chances to remain anchored to the foot of the ladder.
