Only one striker could prevail in the battle between Apostolos Stamatelopoulos of the Jets and Adam Taggart of the Glory. With Graham Arnold looking on, Perth’s main man delivered yet again to rescue a point in the 90th minute.
Inclusion in the 25-man squad to face Lebanon doesn’t necessarily mean game time for the 30-year-old, but his call up is well deserved in what is already his highest scoring season for his hometown club.
Both goals against the Jets emphasised his qualities as a no. 9; the first a showcase of control, composure and poise. The second, determination and strength to evade his marker and then a well-placed header which Ryan Scott didn’t have a chance of saving.
With seven games remaining, Taggart sits equal second in the golden boot race, now only one goal behind Bruno Fornaroli. In his current form and with a slim chance of finals still remaining, you wouldn’t bet against him claiming the award for the second time in his career.
For the Glory to have any chance of a late finals push, the first half efforts need to be much stronger.
The Jets had it all their way, dominating the territory and the ball while also being able to deny Perth any opportunities on the break.
They were able to navigate around the Glory’s press, keeping them on the back foot for long periods, waiting for an opening to arrive.
Eventually it did, as Clayton Taylor cut back onto his left foot and managed to score five minutes before the interval.
Despite conceding two, Oli Sail continued his resurgence in form with some crucial saves, keeping the Jets from cruising to an easy win.
Early in the second half he denied Stamatelopoulos twice in one-on-one situations, although the second time Lucas Mauragis was able to put away the rebound, helped by a deflection off Josh Rawlins.
Alen Stajcic called on his bench straight after going two goals down, and once again they were the players who sparked the turnaround.
David Williams’ perfect ball over the top to Taggart set up the first goal, and then minutes later Kaelan Majekodunmi buried a header from Gio Colli’s free kick.
Joel Anasmo was adjudged to have fouled Stamatelopoulos in the build-up, ruling out the goal for the slightest bit of contact in the box.
Nevertheless, the Glory persisted and got their reward when another set-piece delivery from Colli undid the Newcastle defence, with Taggart benefitting again from a lovely pass.
Williams hit the crossbar with a header from Johnny Koutroumbis’ cross in the final moments, the last chance in an entertaining encounter.
ALW season hanging by a thread
The 2024 horror show for Alex Epakis and the women’s side continued with a 3-1 home defeat to Wellington last Friday night.
The Glory’s penultimate match at Macedonia Park was a frustrating watch; outworked and outplayed by a team below them on the table and after making the long flight over from New Zealand.
Alyssa Whinham opened the scoring with a point blank header, positioned all by herself in the box after Mariana Speckmaier’s interception set up a quick counterattack.
Hana Lowry’s free kick managed to find its way into the net on the stroke of half time, giving the Glory something to work with in the second half.
The Phoenix regained the lead 10 minutes in, as Whinham turned provider for Michaela Robertson.
Liz Anton made a clearance on the line and Morgan Aquino denied Whinham and Isabel Cox to keep Wellington’s lead at one.
Any hopes of a comeback were put to rest by substitute Macey Fraser, who scored a stunner from distance to guarantee the three points for her side.
The Wrap Up
An important fortnight against the bottom two sides yielded a single point, leaving eight more to catch Melbourne City with a game in hand.
This weekend sees a Perth vs Western Sydney double up, both games super important for different reasons.
The Wanderers women sit in the elusive sixth position with three games remaining. A win for the Glory would see them go level on points heading into the last two rounds.
A loss would practically guarantee missing out on a finals berth for Alex Epakis, which would be a disappointing result after the fantastic start to the season.
For the men, the Wanderers are reeling from a 7-0 thrashing at the hands of Melbourne City and with mounting pressure on Marko Rudan.
There aren’t a huge chunk of games left. With two trips to Melbourne and two matches to come against Sydney FC, beating a low confidence Western Sydney at home presents one of the best opportunities to close the gap on the teams above.
Starting fast will be of the utmost importance. Chasing the game late on doesn’t often result in wins, and that is exactly what is needed at HBF Park on Saturday.
About the Author
