Can Perth complete a Melbourne double with Victory over their ladder rivals? Grab a ticket today and go for Glory!
Can Perth complete a Melbourne double with Victory over their ladder rivals? Grab a ticket today and go for Glory!
Get along to nib Stadium on Sunday afternoon to see if Perth can find more Glory in a match-up with Melbourne opposition! Before Wednesday’s trip to New South Wales, the side from WA travelled to Victoria and, for the third time out of three visits in the Hyundai A-League season, came away without defeat.
Indeed, it was surely one of their best performances of the campaign as they beat high-flying Heart 2-1 at AAMI Park for the second time this season.
Goals in each half from Shane Smeltz and Steven McGarry did the damage and, so good was the performance, that it took some great keeping from Clint Bolton in the home goal to prevent Smeltz from scoring more. The win was their second in succession on the road, something they hadn’t previously managed since September 2009. Glory will hope that such success against Heart will stand them in good stead for the match up with their neighbours this weekend.
Perth take on a Victory side playing their first away game under the leadership of new coach Jim Magilton. Last week, in his debut match in charge, his players picked up a 1-1 draw against Adelaide United at AAMI Park. Magilton’s tenure looked like getting off to the perfect start as Archie Thompson struck early on, however, Sergio van Dijk’s second-half goal meant that the Melbourne side had to settle for yet another stalemate.
It was an all-too familiar story for Victory, who dominated proceedings – with Thompson and Kewell terrorising the Adelaide defence – but couldn’t put the game to bed. If they are to mount a serious challenge in the back-end of the season, then their new man at the helm will quickly have to teach them to turn draws into wins.
Another example of how Victory seem adverse to winning games came when Glory made the trip to Etihad Stadium in November. The home side seemed to be cruising to three points thanks to a massively dubious penalty which was converted by Carlos Hernandez and then a Danny Allsopp finish around the hour mark.
The visitors – despite being reduced to ten men in the first-half after Liam Miller’s red card – made a remarkable comeback though. After a brilliant set-piece goal from substitute Andrezinho, Glory grabbed a point when Todd Howarth picked out Shane Smeltz on 87 minutes and the striker made no mistake. Smeltz almost went on to win it in injury-time but, in the end, Perth were delighted with a draw that showed exactly the kind of guts that their loyal fans demand from their players.
Can Glory make it a miserable first away trip for Jim Magilton and, in doing so, give themselves a boost in their bid for a top six finish? Or will Victory finally begin to fire on all cylinders under their new coach?
Whatever happens, nib Stadium is sure to offer Hyundai A-League action at its very best – especially if the last meeting between these sides is anything to go by. After four goals, a dodgy penalty, a red card, a cracking free-kick and a stunning fightback from the Glory, what does this rematch have in store? Get yourself a ticket today and get ready to find out!
