Sydney FC loses top spot after a two nil defeat to Perth.
Perth Glory has defeated Sydney FC two nil after withstanding some first half pressure in the Hyundai A League match in Perth.
A Scott Bulloch header 17 minutes into the second half gave Perth a one nil scoreline, before a Mile Sterjovski pass was nailed by Glory-s leading goal scorer Branko Jelic to seal the result.
The loss for Sydney means they surrender the competition lead to Melbourne.
Bulloch scored with perfect timing in the 57th minute just before he was about to be replaced when a Jamie Coyne cross took a deflection and presented Bulloch with a comfortable header.
The replacement was still made but Bulloch left the field well satisfied with his afternoon.
Jelic proved why he is Perth-s leading scorer when he neatly finished after excellent lead up work from Andy Todd and Sterjovski in the 89th minute.
Sydney FC dominated the opening exchanges, entering Perth-s penalty area six times in the first 15 minutes.
One of the best of the early chances was through a stylish pass from returning Socceroo Alex Brosque to Karol Kisel but Kisel-s shot was blocked by Glory-s Chris Coyne. Kisel was fluent again down the right two minutes later, with a powerful left foot strike just sailing over the bar.
Simon Colosimo had some good early touches, shrugging off the jeers of his former home fans in Perth and Stuart Musialik organised well, backed by strong defence from Stephan Keller who made his return to the starting side.
Just before half-time Brosque burst clear but his direction was off as the ball flew past the left post.
Sydney FC had dominated the first half with six shots on goal and 59% of time spent in the opposition half, but the scoreboard didn-t reflect the dominance.
Perth were a much improved outfit in the second half and converted their opportunities which lifted the home crowd and led to a more polished display from the Glory with further chances on goal.
Sydney FC Coach Vitezslav Lavicka was left to rue his side-s inability to take one or two first half chances.
“Very disappointed with that. We were good in the first half and in control of possession and the game.
“But in the second half Perth made some changes and when they scored their first goal they lifted. It is a bit of a problem for us but when we were behind once again we couldn-t come back.”
The Sky Blues have now lost the past two away matches to the Gold Coast and Perth and will be desperate for a win when they return home to the SFS on Sunday to face Newcastle.
Match Detail
Perth Glory 2 (BULLOCH 57′, JELIC 89′)
Sydney FC 0
Sydney FC Squad: 1.Clint BOLTON (gk), 2.Sebastian RYALL, 3.Stephan KELLER, 4.Simon COLOSIMO, 6.Karol KISEL, 7.Brendan GAN, 8.Stuart MUSIALIK, 9.John ALOISI (c), 12.Shannon COLE, 14.Alex BROSQUE, 15.Terry MCFLYNN, 18.Adam CASEY, 19.Mark BRIDGE, 20.Ivan NECEVSKI (gk), 22.Sung Hwan BYUN
Substitutes: 9.ALOISI (MCFLYNN 63′), CASEY (GAN 72′), COLE ( BYUN 82′)
Substitutes Not Used: 20. Ivan Necevski (gk).
Yellow Cards: RYALL 47′, COLOSIMO 66′
Red Cards: Nil.
Goals:
Perth Glory squad: 1.Tando VELAPHI (gk), 3.Jamie COYNE, 4.Andy TODD, 6.Chris COYNE, 7.Jacob BURNS (c), 11.Branko JELIC, 12.Scott NEVILLE, 13.Scott BULLOCH, 16.Adriano PELLEGRINO, 17.Todd HOWARTH, 19.Naum SEKULOVSKI, , 8.Victor SIKORA, 20.Aleks VRTESKI (gk), 21.Mile STERJOVSKI, 28.Tommy Amphlett.
Substitutes: 21.Mile STERJOVSKI (46′ HOWARTH), 8.Victor SIKORA (58′ BULLOCK), 28.Amphlett (SEKULOVSKI 82′)
Substitutes Not Used: 20.Aleks VRTESKI (gk)
Yellow Cards: 8.Victor SIKORA (69′)
Red Cards:
Goals: (BULLOCH 57′, JELIC 89′)
Referee: Strebre Delovski.
Crowd: 8932 at ME Bank Stadium.
