Floreat edge close Glory encounter
Report by Matthew Corvi
Floreat Athena have continued their winning start to the PS4 NPLWA season after beating Perth Glory 1-0 at E&D Litis Stadium on a sweltering Saturday night.
Floreat defender Christopher Saldaris claimed all three points for his side with a 67th-minute winner after Glory conceded a weak corner.
Glory started off the stronger of the two sides, with three chances coming in the first quarter of the game.
After taking a short corner in the eighth minute, the ball fell to Jack Iredale, whose shot cannoned into the defender and out.
Despite the strong start, Floreat started to take control of the match after the first drinks break.
With the pressure piling on, Floreat should have taken the lead in the 31st minute after Daniel Stynes gave away a free kick with a poor challenge.
The free kick was then knocked in by Dean Evans onto the head of Jack Leech, who sent the ball back across the face of the goal.
Glory’s Jordan Thurtell didn’t allow Floreat to go ahead, pulling off a last ditch save to prevent his side from going behind.
With Glory dominating possession in the first half, Floreat coach Glen Grostate changed formation going into the second half to a 4-4-2, and this would prove to be vital.
Within the first fifteen minutes of the half Floreat had threatened the Glory goal numerous times, having six corners alone, with Thurtell preventing Floreat on numerous occasions.
Floreat thought they had taken the lead in the 62nd minute, with a goal being disallowed for offside after another Floreat corner.
Despite Floreat having numerous chances from corners, Glory failed to adapt. Evans would find Saldaris in the box from his ninth corner, and the defender drilled a header into the back of the net.
Floreat ended the game with 10 men, with Dean Evan being sent off for two yellow cards in the 95th and 96th minute.
Grostate was delighted with his sides’ victory, especially over a strong Glory team.
“We got our result; I knew there was a goal in this team and we knew we could keep a clean sheet,” he said.
“They’re a very hard team to beat. Any team taking points off them is going to have to do a good job.”
Glory Coach John Gibson was disappointed with his team’s performance.
"We constantly throughout the whole game turned over the ball way too easily and had no consistency to our game,” he said.
“We defended pretty well for the majority of the time, but one set piece cost us, especially in tough conditions.”
Floreat Athena 1 (Saldaris 67min)
Perth 0
Saturday, February 25, 2017
E&D Litis Stadium
Kick-off: 6:00pm
Referee: John Taran
Assistant Referees: Stuart Muldoon, Sorousha Moayer
Perth Glory: 1. Jordan THURTELL (GK), 2. Walter SCOTT (14. Callum DOBBS 45), 3. Luca BODNAR, 4. Jack IREDALE, 5. Ollie ANNIS, 6. Sam RIAK, 7. Yacoub MUSTAFA (12. Michael MCDOUGAL 73) 8. Jack LEECH (13. Callum TIMMINS 64), 9. Bayley MONTGOMERY-BROWN 10. Daniel STYNES (C), 11. Kosta PETRATOS
Substitutes not used: 15. Sasa NJEGIC, 20. Stef KING
Yellow Cards: Bodnar 23, Thurtell 95
Red Cards: nil
Floreat Athena: 1. Jason SALDARIS, 3. Clayton ARNEZ (2. Shaun TIMMINS 89) 6. Jesse FULLER, 8. Jonathan STYNES, 9. Denis GALAN, 10. Kristopher GATE, 12. Jackson MORGAN, 13. Zelfy NAZARY, 16. Christopher SALDARIS, 17. Dean EVANS (C), 18. Phillip ARNOLD (4. Andrew SCALDAFERRO 58)
Substitutes not used: 5. Bobby WILSON, 20. Joe TWEETS, 23. Jordan BARBAS
Yellow Cards: Evans 95, 96
Red Cards: Evans 96
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