Last season’s FFA Cup finalists Perth Glory have advanced to the last 16 of this year’s competition, knocking out the Newcastle Jets 5-4 on penalties at Magic Park last night following a 2-2 draw after extra time.
Having taken a first half lead through David Carney, the Jets were looking odds-on to seal a spot in the next round until a late equaliser from Sidnei sent the match into extra time on a bumpy surface at the home of fellow FFA Cup side Broadmeadow Magic.
It was Perth who then struck first in extra time with a coolly taken penalty from Nebojsa Marinkovic putting the Glory ahead before the Jets equalised late in the second period with returning midfielder Labinot Haliti striking home to take the match to penalties.
The drama did not end there as both sides faltered in the shootout with Dino Djulbic striking an effort against the crossbar on what could have been a match-winning spot kick before Jerrard Tyson stepped up to make a crucial save, allowing new signing György Sándor to slot home the winner, silencing the home crowd.
The result comes as a welcomed boost to what has been a difficult preseason for the Glory who have lost a number of key players including Danny Vukovic and Andy Keogh following last season’s salary cap scandal.
The draw for the Round of 16 will be made later this afternoon with the Glory the only remaining survivor from Western Australia in the hat with both Sorrento FC and Perth SC knocked out in the first round.
New signings looking good at the Glory
Having seen a great number of key players leave the side over the offseason, Perth coach Kenny Lowe has been busy in the transfer market in recent months in order to rebuild his side for the upcoming campaign.
Last night alone, seven players made their first team debuts for the club including the likes of Hagi Gligor and Marc Warren, both formerly of Sydney FC, goalkeeper Tyson from the Wanderers and Hungarian playmaker Sandor, who showed his class in slotting home the decisive spot kick in the shootout.
What is even more promising for the Glory is that marquee signings Diego Castro and Guyon Fernandez are both still yet to join the first team squad whilst fellow former Wanderers goalkeeper Ante Covic is also not joining the side until September.
Where are the Jets at in 2015?
If the Glory’s offseason was tough then the Jets have just returned from an offseason war.
With the controversial removal of former club owner Nathan Tinkler by the FFA along with last season’s head coach Phil Stubbins a few weeks later, there has been a number of major issues which the embattled club has had to deal with in recent months.
New coach Scott Miller, who, at just 33 years old, is the league’s youngest ever coach, has put together a strong squad under the circumstances with new signings Cameron Watson, Mateo Poljak, Jason Hoffman and Nigel Boogaard making their debuts for the club along with returning foundation player Haliti who scored on his ‘third debut’ for the club after leaving the Wanderers at the end of last season.
Another man who impressed was Carney, scoring and provided the assist for Haliti with a wonderful cross following on from a difficult year last season after regular run-ins with then coach Stubbins.
Despite the disappointment of being eliminated from the competition at the first hurdle, the Jets will take some positives from the match both on and off the field with an encouraging crowd attending the match at Magic Park.
Another cup run for the Glory?
Despite the club’s dominance of the old NSL in the former national competition’s last few seasons, the Glory have not been able to replicate that success in the A-League, having made just one grand final in 2012 since the league’s inception in 2005.
With league success hard to come by, the Glory may well be best served as one of those ‘cup teams’ who, in one off fixtures, seem to always make an impact and perhaps pick up some silverware along the way.
Last season the Glory went all the way to the FFA Cup final before losing out to Adelaide United in the final at Hindmarsh Stadium and should the club go on another run again this season, that experience of losing in a cup final may be important for Lowe in his quest to win his first trophy at the club.
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