Soccer: mixed weekend for Glory as women draw and men suffer heavy defeat

PERTH Glory remains in fifth spot on the A-League ladder despite a comprehensive 4-1 loss against Sydney FC yesterday afternoon.

Glory carved open Sydney’s defence several times in the opening 15 minutes, and almost netted a goal but the West Australians were unable to hit the target.

A defensive mistake in the 14th minute saw Sydney’s Milos Ninkovic open the scoring after Perth’s Dino Djulbic and keeper Liam Reddy did not deal with a seemingly simple clearance.

Seven minutes from the half-time break, Glory coughed up the ball in midfield which allowed Sydney to break leaving the Blues’ foreign legion of Ninkovic and Bobo to combine and double Sydney’s lead.

In the second half Glory lifted and launched multiple waves of attack looking for a spark to claw its way back into the match.

A goal came after Joe Mills made a dashing run forward and struck the ball on goal, which took a deflection off Sydney defender Rhyan Grant and zoomed past a stunned Danny Vukovic in the Sydney goal and into the back of the net.

But Glory’s attack-minded efforts were undermined after Ninkovic got his second and Sydney’s third in the 78th minute.

Two minutes from time, as Glory threw everything forward, Sydney captain Alex Brosque finished off a team move to end the match 4-1 and secure a sixth straight win for the hosts.

Glory will be looking for three points when it hosts reigning champions Adelaide United, who sit at the foot of the A-League table at Perth Oval on Friday night from  7pm.

Glory women remain undefeated

Perth Glory’s women and Brisbane Roar could not be separated during an entertaining 0-0 draw at Dorrien Gardens on Saturday afternoon in the second round of the W-League.

Roar substitute Allira Tobey looked set to score the winner in the 90th minute after Glory’s Mexican international Arianna Romero uncharacteristically turned the ball over at the top of the box, but veteran defender Kim Carroll swiftly snuffed out the chance to ensure the points were shared.

Opposing goalkeepers Melissa Maizels and Mackenzie Arnold were kept busy throughout the match, with both teams creating multiple chances to break the deadlock.

Maizels was called into action in the 20th minute, throwing her body on the line to punch clear a dangerous cross from Brisbane winger Emily Gielnik.

Glory skipper Sam Kerr had three one-on-one chances in the opening 30 minutes, however, Arnold was equal to the task on each occasion.

Gielnik put the ball in the back of the net in the 12th minute after being brilliantly fed by Katrina Gorry, but was ruled offside.

Roar midfielder Sunny Franco appeared to have given her team the edge on the stroke of half time after heading the ball home, only to be thwarted by the assistant referee and his offside flag.

Gielnik and Gorry continued to cause headaches for the Glory defence in the second half, with Maizels forced to tap the ball over the crossbar to deny Gorry from scoring from outside the box on one occasions.

Kerr, Nikki Stanton and Alyssa Mautz were equally dangerous for the home side at the other end of the pitch.

Maizels, who joined Perth this season from Canberra United, said the relationship with her new teammates in the back half was crucial to the final result.

“You need to have a connection between the defensive four and the keeper to ensure everything is in sync, everything’s moving as it should,” Maizels said.

“We knew a win would get us back to the top of the ladder, but a hard-fought draw we’ll take it.

“The plan is to go unbeaten at home. We should really have a fortress here and no team should be able to travel out west and take points off us.”

Arnold, who played in Glory colours for two seasons, was determined not to let her good friend and Matildas teammate Kerr claim bragging rights.

“I’ve got a bit of a history with Sammy, playing on the same team with her, so I couldn’t let her score,” Arnold said.

“I sort of just stood there and hoped for the best.” Arnold was also full of praise for Glory’s emerging group of youngsters, including Caitlin Doeglas, Carla Bennett and Sarah Carroll.

“I played with a lot of Perth’s young players coming through and to see them step up today like they did was a real step forward for them,” she said.

The women play away against Newcastle on Sunday November 20.