Brisbane Roar produced the most scintillating 45 minutes seen in the Y-League this season to dismantle Melbourne Victory in Round 7.
Melbourne City are hot on their trail following a five-goal thriller against Adelaide United, while Central Coast Mariners gained some good news in the F3 Derby.
Read on for all the latest from Australia’s premier youth competition.
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Leck leaves Victory in the doldrums
Brisbane Roar are on course to top Conference A after cruising to a 6-0 hammering of Melbourne Victory on Sunday.
Daniel Leck starred with a hat-trick as the Queenslanders incredibly scored each of their six goals before half-time to exact a measure of revenge for the club’s recent 4-2 loss to Victory in the Hyundai A-League.
Oliver Duncan, Lleyton Brooks and Mirza Muratovic were the other scorers in a win that extended Roar’s buffer to four points.
6️⃣ of the best from the Young Roar in our final #BRFC home match for 2018!#RoarAsOne #BRIvMVC pic.twitter.com/UJNmzCvyne
— Brisbane Roar (@brisbaneroar) December 23, 2018
City keep up the chase with stirring fightback
Melbourne City have emerged as Roar’s nearest rivals following their impressive come-from-behind 3-2 win over Adelaide United.
Carlo Armiento netted twice in two first-half minutes to give the Reds what appeared a match-winning lead, but Dylan Pierias halved the deficit before the break and set up up a thrilling second half.
Stefan Colakovski equalised eight minutes after the interval and, even though Joshua Varga was dismissed moments later, City found a winner through Moudi Najjar to leapfrog their opponents into second.
REACTION | @pala_joe gives his thoughts following @MelbCityYouth's come from behind 3-2 win over @aufc_YouthTeam #YLeague #MCYvADL pic.twitter.com/GVSrvnATQx
— Melbourne City Youth – LIVE (@MelbCityYouth) December 23, 2018
Fast-finishing Mariners claim derby bragging rights
Beaten by Newcastle Jets in the Hyundai A-League, Central Coast Mariners had reason to celebrate in the Y-League with a dramatic 3-1 triumph in the F3 Derby.
Cai Tipaldo’s 75th-minute equaliser looked to have given Newcastle a share of the spoils at Adamstown Oval, but Jordan Smylie struck for the second time in the 91st minute to restore the visitors’ lead.
Charles M’Mombwa made the points safe deeper into added time as the Mariners opened a three-point gap to their fourth-placed Jets in Conference B.
https://players.brightcove.net/5519514571001/default_default/index.html?videoId=5982972396001
In-form Wanderers cruise past Canberra
Central Coast still sit six points shy of Conference B leaders Western Sydney Wanderers, who comfortably accounted for Canberra United 4-0.
Andrea Agamemnonos and Fabian Monge scored either side of Mohamed Adam’s brace as Wanderers eased to a fourth straight victory.
They have now scored 12 and conceded just twice this season, the latest result leaving Canberra rock bottom after five fixtures.
Our Foxtel Y-League boys continue their red hot form ? https://t.co/7IceWmywxh #WSW pic.twitter.com/b9eOUgIGxg
— WS Wanderers FC (@wswanderersfc) December 23, 2018
Round 8 fixtures
Newcastle Jets v Western Sydney Wanderers
Date: Thursday, January 3
Venue: No.2 Sportsground
KO: 4:30pm AEDT
Melbourne Victory v Melbourne City
Date: Friday, January 4
Venue: Epping Stadium
KO: 4:00pm AEDT
Perth Glory v Adelaide United
Date: Saturday, January 5
Venue: Dorrien Gardens
KO: 1:30pm AEDT (local 10:30am)
Sydney FC v Central Coast Mariners
Date: Saturday, January 5
Venue: Lambert Park
KO: 4:30pm AEDT
Image: Brisbane Roar