Round 29, the last one of the A-League regular season, produced 23 goals in six games, with at least two goals in each. Perth Glory were the only team to keep a clean sheet., while the last game of the round between Melbourne Victory and Newcastle Jets was the only draw.
In four out of five matches where a team claimed three points, the winning team had less possession than their opponent.
Let’s take a look at who made difference for each team.
Central Coast Mariners
Arthur De Lima gave the Mariners the lead in the third minute, with a clinical header from a good cross by Bailey Brandtman. The 18-year-old gave his team the perfect start, but it wasn’t enough for his team to claim a point.
Brisbane Roar
Sam Klein scored a brace. He grabbed the second goal of the game, which made the score 1-1 in the 17th minute, from a clinical header off a great cross by Antonee Burke-Gilroy. The 21-year-old scored his second goal of the game in the 50th minute when he headed home Henry Hore’s corner.
The Roar’s top scorer for the season said: “I believed in me and I had a coaching staff that believed in me.”
He appreciates being in the same team as his captain Jay O’Shea: “Playing with him is extremely beneficial,” he said.
Melbourne City
Marco Tilio was at his best. The 23-year-old provided an assist for the second goal of the game scored by Max Caputo and scored the all-important third goal for City with a tidy finish, with it set up by Nathaniel Atkinson who glided down the pitch and produced a pinpoint pass.
With every game Tilio gets better, and has done everything conceivable to warrant game time in the Socceroos team.
Sydney FC
Patryk Klimala was brought off the bench following the half time break and gave the Sky Blues a glimmer of hope in the 66th minute, which made the deficit for his team three goals, in what was a disappointing display from Sydney FC.
Western United
Noah Botic provided the assist for the opening goal of the game with a good pass to Michael Ruhs who scored in the 18th minute. The second goal scored by Western United came from a well taken corner by Ben Garuccio, headed into the back of the net by Botic, just five minutes after the first goal.
Auckland FC
Neyder Moreno came on after the half time break and got his team back into the match; the Colombian import took a corner which was headed back to him by Hiroki Sakai, that led to a first time shot by Moreno that caught Western United goalkeeper Matthew Sutton off guard, with the goal making the deficit two goals in the 62nd minute.
The 28-year-old then played a perfectly weighted pass over the top of the Western United defence that caught Sutton in no man’s land, that led to a goal scored by fellow substitute Jesse Randall.
Macarthur FC
Marin Jakolis put in a solid performance; the Croatian import scored the opening goal of the game, which was created due to a well-played pass from Harrison Sawyer, in the fourth minute.
The 28-year-old created the most chances of any player in the match, with three.
Marin Jakolis celebrates. (Photo by Josh Chadwick/Getty Images)
Western Sydney Wanderers
Anthony Pantazopoulos performed admirably and got rewarded; the centre-back gave the Wanderers the lead with a headed goal from a corner taken by Joshua Brillante, in the 55th minute.
The 22-year-old made two tackles and won seven duels.
His comments were fascinating: “These fans are so special. How can you not perform to your full capabilities when they’re here backing us like this. Cherishing this moment. We’ve achieved nothing this year. We’ve got the confidence; we play our way we can beat anyone.”
Wellington Phoenix
Josh Oluwayemi made seven saves and was the reason why the scoreboard was a respectable 2-0, which flattered the Phoenix.
The Nigerian import did well to save a shot from Glory youngster Jaylan Pearman in the 10th minute and again in the 19th minute. Along with that, the Phoenix shot-stopper made two saves from Adam Taggart, one in the 57th minute and a great save one on one with Taggart in the 78th minute.
Perth Glory
Adam Taggart finished with a brace against a Wellington Phoenix; the Glory captain’s first goal came in the 34th minute, which resulted from some good work following a pass by Yuto Misao.
The second goal of the game, that sealed victory for Glory in the 92nd minute, with substitute Khoa Ngo providing the assist.
There was a moment in the 83rd minute, which epitomised Taggart’s value to the team; the number nine willed himself to keep the ball in play, which led to a chance missed by Jaylan Pearman.
Adam Taggart celebrates a goal for Perth Glory. (Photo by James Worsfold/Getty Images)
Melbourne Victory
Kasey Bos broke the deadlock shortly after half time, clinically finishing, following a good pass from Zinedine Machach.
The 20-year-old created two chances and worked tirelessly on the left-hand side of defence.
The left-back made some interesting comments: “Being able to score some goals for the club means a lot. I feel we need to up the intensity a bit. I feel like we have to keep composure and not get too complacent.”
Newcastle Jets
Clayton Taylor scored his seventh goal of the season, in the 83rd minute due to a mix up from Victory playing out from the back; this meant that Robbie Stanton’s last game as Jets coach, ended all square.
Taylor was a player that Stanton knew from the Sydney FC youth system, so hopefully he has a bright future.
Are you the ultimate team manager? Pick your own superstar team and go head to head with other football fans for glory and cash prizes on Draftstars. Imagine what you could be buying instead. Set a deposit limit.
Arsenal and Newcastle have set up a Premier League showdown next weekend as the race for the remaining Champions League spots intensified. After a…
The stage was set, the script was written, and we all awaited the glorious return of Western Sydney Wanderers to finals football. Unfortunately, no…
Melbourne Victory won 2-1 to eliminate Western Sydney Wanderers, and there was no love lost between Arthur Diles and Alen Stajcic.
The long-awaited return of Erling Haaland hasn't stopped Manchester City from tumbling to another poor result in a season to forget for the deposed…
Daniel Arzani was the star of the show as Melbourne Victory edged past Western Sydney Wanderers to claim a 2-1 A-League Men elimination final…
Former Socceroos' boss Graham Arnold will seek to reach the finals of another World Cup after taking the reins as coach of Iraq. The…
