Report by Jayden Lihou

Subiaco's chances of remaining in the NPL WA took a hit after they went down 3-2 to Floreat Athena at E&D Litis Stadium on Saturday.

The defeat means Subiaco go into their final match against title-chasing Perth Glory knowing they have to at least match Forrestfield's result against Stirling to have a chance of staying up.

Subiaco assistant coach Basil Lenzo praised the "fantastic effort" his side put in against the in-form team of the competition.

“Although I’m not happy with the result I can’t fault the application and endeavour shown today,” he said.

“We went into the game with the plan to allow them to have the ball and we genuinely thought we could get a result today but now the situation is what it is.

“We can expect Glory to be really disciplined next week, so we’re going to have to put it all on the line because at the end of the day we’ve got to get a result.”

After dominating much of the possession, Floreat's first chance came in the 21st minute when the ball was crossed to Robert Petkov whose overhead kick was kept out by goalkeeper Ryan Montgomery.

Subiaco created their first opportunity in the 33rd minute when Alex Castiello laid the ball off to Manase Abandelwa but his shot was diverted for a corner by home keeper Jason Saldaris. From the set-piece Anthony Topini found David Perich, whose header was cleared off the line.

Subiaco did not have to wait much longer to find the breakthrough though. Three minutes later Mark Pritchard's free-kick picked out Ian McMurray, who got behind Floreat's defence and headed the ball into the back of the net.

After piling on the pressure in the second half, Floreat finally broke down the Subiaco defence in the 55th minute when a Ludovic Boi cross found captain Dean Evans at the far post and he headed the ball home.

The home side then took the lead when substitute Phillip Arnold received the ball in the box and he cannoned an effort into the top corner.

Chris Saldaris gave his side some breathing space in the 76th minute when his effort from distance dipped just under the crossbar and went through the fingertips of Montgomery.

Subiaco made it a nervous end to the match for the hosts when substitute Robert Harding flicked the ball past Jason Saldaris but Floreat held on.

Athena coach Garrett McDuling said his side had to do it the hard way to secure a fourth consecutive win.

“We showed again that we have the character and resolve to come from a goal down and still get the job done,” he said.

“When you are on a role it’s easy to take winning for granted but I had to remind my boys at half-time that games don’t win themselves.

“And at this level points are hard to come by, so we have to continue to make sure that we work hard in every game we play.”

Floreat Athena 3 (Evans 56min, Arnold 68, Saldaris 76)
Subiaco 2 (McMurray 38, Harding 87)
Saturday, August 18
E&D Litis Stadium
Kick-off: 3pm
Referee: Matthew Southern
Assistant referees: Liviu Katona, Jamie West

Floreat Athena: 1. Jason SALDARIS (GK), 2. Marco SANTA LUCIA, 6. Jesse FULLER, 8. Jonathan STYNES (4. Harrison GEORGE 81), 9. Robert PETKOV, 11. Dennis GALAN, 14. Ludovic BOI, 15. Chris SALDARIS, 16. Ryan MALTON (18. Phillip ARNOLD 60), 17. Dean EVANS (C), 21. Keylun POLLARD (13. Hamza HINA 78)
Substitutes not used: 12. Laurie TODD, 23. Jordan BARBAS
Yellow cards: Pollard 62
Red cards: Nil

Subiaco: 1. Ryan MONTGOMERY (GK), 3. Vasco DA SILVA (8. Jack PAINTER-ANDREWS 65), 5. Manase ABANDELWA (4. Robert HARDING 76), 10. Alex CASTIELLO, 12. Nathan Smith, 13. Jonas DORLING, 14. Ross JARMAN, 15. Anthony TOPINI, 17. Mark PRITCHARD, 18. David PERICH, 19. Ian MCMURRAY (9. Adam CARLINO 74)
Unused substitutes: 11. Matt LENZO, 21. Josiah GODFREY
Yellow cards: Topini 79
Red cards: Nil