The business end of the A-League season is approaching, and the Glory couldn’t have entered it in worse form.
Seven games remaining, and the winless run was extended to six after defeat to Western United in an almost identical manner to the loss against Brisbane the week prior.
The week of preparation in Victoria wasn’t enough to change our momentum or teach this team how to defend a lead. Last Saturday was the fourth time in five matches we’ve dropped points from a winning position, and it is the difference between sitting second from bottom and being in the top six.
Three changes were made to the starting side; Darryl Lachman’s injury and Ryan Williams’ suspension opened the door for Johnny Koutroumbis and David Williams, while Aaron McEneff made his first start since December, replacing Luke Bodnar in midfield.
In an opening period where both teams found it difficult to break down the other, it was the Glory who had the best opportunities. Williams stung the gloves of Jamie Young from a tight angle after being set up nicely by Keegan Jelacic and it was the same man again who wasn’t too far off with a volley not long after.
For the second game in a row, it was a defender who found the back of the net and surprisingly it wasn’t Jack Clisby. He was the one who set it up; a looping corner which was headed goalwards by an unmarked Jordan Elsey. Young palmed it down and in the scramble to get it clear, the ball came back to Elsey who fired the rebound home to open his Glory account.
It took Western United until the final minutes of the half to take control and build pressure, but by that point the lead should have been doubled. Jelacic was the creator, playing through Adam Taggart. He held off Tomoki Imai well but blazed his shot over and wide, one of the few looks at goal he got for the day.
The equaliser came from a corner again. Neil Kilkenny swung the ball into a dangerous area, right onto the head of his midfield partner Tongo Doumbia. Outmuscling Koutroumbis, the Malian international headed home powerfully past Cameron Cook to score for the second consecutive game.
I find it worrying that we’re conceding from set pieces with the tall timber at our disposal. Mark Beevers was marking the much smaller Noah Botic and didn’t have any impact on the play. I feel Koutroumbis should have done better at making it difficult for Doumbia to get a clear header on goal as well.
Just as it looked like the teams would be heading into the break all square, a lovely pass from Alessandro Diamanti opened the door for the hosts to take full advantage. Lachie Wales got on the end of it and managed to cross it off balance into the box. Botic chested it down and volleyed it in at the near post. Elsey was closest to him as the cross came in and decided to get back on the line rather than putting Botic under pressure. By the time another defender went to close, it was too late. Two shots on target and two goals conceded.
Now with the lead, Western United were able to sit tight and sit back a little more. Needless to say, we found it very hard to find an opening. Salim Khelifi had the best opportunity of the lot, linking up with Taggart and getting through on goal, hitting the post from close range. The rebound came out to Clisby who forced a good stop out of Young.
The only other half chance was a Taggart header from a Clisby cross, not generating enough power to beat the keeper. Jamie Young did his fair share with six saves, but none of them were outrageous or really difficult.
It comes back to not creating enough good chances. In the final 20 minutes when we had made our subs, we did not look like getting another goal. Every ball into the box was dealt with comfortably by Leo Lacroix, who made 11 headed clearances. More play needs to come centrally, and Jelacic needs support since he’s the only one in that position creating opportunities for others consistently.
John Aloisi just signed an extension as he looks to guide the reigning champions back into top six contention. They moved up to ninth but are still five points away from Sydney in sixth. Lacroix and Young were two of their key players from last season and having them play well increases their chance of making finals exponentially, both were good on the weekend. Doumbia has also found his feet and is starting to show the rest of the league how good he is, adding another goal to his tally in another fine performance.
Ruben Zadkovich is adamant finals is still on the cards for his side but he hasn’t got much time to turn it around. Wins need to start coming otherwise a third year without finals football is all but guaranteed. A return to home couldn’t have come at a better time and it’s a special occasion as HBF Park gets its first taste of Glory in 310 days.
Last time we played there, we got a win against top of the table City. Friday night sees us up against the second placed Wanderers, who haven’t got a great record in Perth and are missing key players through suspension. Gabriel Cleur and Marcelo miss out for the visitors, Amini misses out for us as does Khelifi, out for the season after undergoing surgery on his foot. We defeated them at Macedonia Park in January, a similar result is crucial if our faint finals hopes are to stay alive.
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