PERTH Glory will kick off its 2017-18 A-League campaign against Josh Risdon’s Western Sydney Wanderers at the Sydney Showgrounds on Sunday, October 8.
The defender is likely to make his Western Sydney Wanderers debut against the club he spent seven seasons at after switching from Perth to Parramatta in May.
Emotions will run high as Glory’s new signings Scott Neville and Mitch Nichols are also likely to debut against their old club, with both players entering their second stints in Perth after featuring for the Wanderers last season.
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READ NOWAfter a round 2 trip to Newcastle Jets, Glory hosts their first home game against Central Coast Mariners in round 3 on Sunday 22 October.
That match is scheduled for an early 4pm kickoff, the same opening home fixture which produced a 3-3 goal fest in round 1 at Perth Oval last season.
Only three of Glory’s first nine matches will be played in front of its home crowd.
On the flip side, Glory finishes the season with five of its last seven matches at home, which should improve the club’s prospects of eclipsing last season’s fifth place finish and qualifying for the AFC Asian Champions League for the first time in the club’s history.
Despite the difficulties in scheduling, coach Kenny Lowe was positive about the upcoming season.
“There are always challenges and complexities when putting together a season schedule,” Lowe said.
“However we’re comfortable that while all our requests haven’t been met, the FFA have listened to our concerns and have accommodated us as much as they could.
“It’s not ideal to play our first two games away from home, the positive is that we have the last five of our seven matches of the season at home at (Perth Oval).
“Hopefully we are right in the mix and it gives us the opportunity to come home with a wet sail.”
Glory will also host two games against Melbourne Victory (both 4pm Sunday matches, November 19 and March 25, 2018) and two home matches against Melbourne City (Tuesday 7pm, January 9 and Saturday 7pm,February 24, 2018).
Glory will also travel to New Zealand twice and host its only Long Distance Derby at 7pm on Saturday December 16.
Glory’s trickiest passage of fixtures occurs at the start of the new year, when the team plays four games in 13 days during the height of summer with Adelaide United (home on January 5), Melbourne City (home on January 9), Melbourne Victory (away January 13) and Brisbane Roar (away on January 18).
The season concludes with a home match against John Aloisi’s Brisbane Roar at 8pm Saturday 14 April, 2018.
Key Features of Glory’s 2017-18 schedule
• First two games away • Melbourne Victory and Melbourne City at home twice • Easter Saturday game • Summer of Football : 4 games in 13 days in January • Away in New Zealand twice • The Run Home: 5 of last 7 games at home • Members Game: vs Melbourne Victory, March 25 • Seven Saturday, four Sunday and one Friday and Tuesday home games
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