Western Sydney joined Brisbane at the top of the A-League table but missed a golden opportunity to bump up their goal difference in a 1-0 win over Newcastle at Hunter Stadium on Sunday.
The Wanderers won the round 23 match through a 17th-minute goal to Jaushua Sotirio in a game they dominated for large periods.
The victory lifted the Wanderers to 41 points alongside Brisbane, who hold a one-goal advantage on for and against.
Eighth-placed Newcastle finished strongly and went close to an equaliser when captain Nigel Boogaard hit the crossbar with a header off a Leonardo free kick in the 81st minute.
Jets goalkeeper Mark Birighitti added to the drama when his shot, the last kick of the game, was blocked, but the Wanderers had the lion’s share of chances.
In the first half, Wanderers threatened twice with headers from Nikolai Topor-Stanley before Sotirio converted the visitors’ early pressure.
Sotirio was rewarded for his late run to the far post when Mark Bridge’s cut-back left him one-on-one with Birighitti, and he buried his shot.
Sotirio went close to a double in the 21st minute but his strike was knocked wide.
Bridge had a shot blocked in the 25th minute and Romeo Castelen was wide with a one-on-one chance in the 31st for the Wanderers.
The Jets rarely threatened and only twice had shots on target, both times firing straight at goalkeeper Liam Reddy.
Wanderers threatened time and time again without scoring in the second half, although the Jets were better.
Birighitti made fingertip saves off strikes from Scott Neville and Andreu in the 51st and 52nd minutes, while Bridge turned and shot over the crossbar in the 57th.
For the Jets, Milos Trifunovic hit the side-netting in the 48th minute, while Mateo Poljak (59th) and Leonardo (66th) forced Reddy into low saves before the late threats from Boogaard and Birighitti.
The loss was a huge blow to the fading finals hopes of Newcastle, who are seven points off the top six with four rounds remaining.
AZ_RBB
Guest
His problem lies in his inability to control and protect the ball. His small stature makes it difficult for him to better his bigger opponents. ALeague is a technical and physical league. A small player with poor ball skills is going to struggle. He is good when he receives the ball in acres of space. But that's much too niche. I'll admit he is quite strong defensively and presses very well. But who has ever heard of a winger lauded for his defensive skills? Then again, maybe he just needs to work under a different system.
BtoPower3
Guest
I said 15% because I did not want to upset someone. By calculation, the chance is even small. So, I just make a guess to say 15%. Buy calculation: 1/2 chance for Glory to get 4th rank as there are other competitors. 1/2 chance for Glory to win the first final vs the 5th 1/2 chance for Glory to win the second final match 1/2 chance for Glory to win the finale. So, (1/2)^4 = 1/16 = 0.0625 = 6.25%. I have just make a guess to say 15%. Can Glory get to the 2nd rank? The second is at equal 41 points now. It is the same to ask if Glory can get the premiership. That is zero.
BtoPower3
Guest
wait
SVB
Guest
Everyone from 3rd to 6th is in exactly the same position (have to win 3 games). Therefore only the top two teams have a real advantage (have to win two). Even then some would say missing out on a week of playing is a disadvantage. Don't know where you got your 15% from either?
BtoPower3
Guest
Perth has no chance of winning the premiership in this season. If Perth ends at the 4th place, the team has to win 3 times to get the "seat". So, the chance of Glory winning the championship (at the moment now) is around just 15%.
Bondy
Guest
The two worst clubs in the HAL live 55 km's from one another ,that's disappointing ...
Ian
Guest
You brought up referees again and apparently WSW got the rough of the stick. Again.
Ian
Guest
Yes - this season is going down to the last round. This Friday is a huge game against City and another blockbuster of WSW vs Adelaide. There are a couple of huge games in each of the last 4 rounds.
SVB
Guest
I actually think he has a decent shot on him. Just needs more opportunities. He really could have had a second yesterday with a shot which the Newcastle keeper only just got his fingertips to and saved in the end. I don't think he is a visionary player, and I don't think that is his role. He is just a machine who gets forward and chases back hard to win balls. I just think he needs to get a bit more understanding with Bridgey and Nichols and he will cause a few more problems for opposing teams.
Kaks
Roar Guru
I'm sorry but he is a headless chicken on the field. Yesterday was one of his better performances but all season he has been nothing but an energiser bunny with no end product. I will be extremely happy to see him become a better player, he has pace and energy which is great - however his touch, poor vision, poor distribution, poor finishing (on a consistent basis) is currently letting him and the team down.
Passionate_Aussie
Roar Rookie
Remember the saying "There are many a slip between a cup and a lip" ? Only just two rounds ago, Roar were lambasted by the fans for playing horrible and insipid football. A week before that that conceded 6 goals against Perth Glory. The point is this season is far from over and I wouldn't be counting your chickens before they hatch. I'm watching Perth and City with a lot of interest at the moment.
SVB
Guest
Have to disagree about Sotirio. I like him as a player as he is always pressing and hounding the opposition. A lot of the reason we had so much domination in the first 60 mins was because of his pressing and ability to get forward into dangerous positions. He is very machine like in his duties. Now his shooting seems to be improving. He was definitely one of our better players yesterday. He is still young and will learn more in years to come. Really don't think he deserves to cop it so much.
Kaks
Roar Guru
Only time I ever felt a bit of comfort up top was when we had big Tomi Juric. Those were the days :')
Kaks
Roar Guru
Agree with your sentiments on Sotirio, he is all pace and nothing else. Even then, he doesnt utilise his pace as much as he should be doing so. Has anyone seen him put a cross in the box all season? Or link up play Dimas/Andreu and our strikers? Looking forward to next weekend already
marron
Guest
Imagine Middy! I still think the problem runs a little deeper. Season 1 aside, when we played a fully fledged counter attacking game beautifully set up, I have never ever felt confident about our ability to score goals. Our frontmen just aren't clinical and often don't make the right decisions up there.
Lionheart
Guest
I wouldn't like to think of any game as easy, or certain points. Mariners can cause problems on their day, as much as Sydney or any other team can too. It's going to be tight at the top, great finish to a season that's about six game too short imo.
Paul
Guest
Thought that Castelen had his quietest game for a while. I don't Bridge was fully fit and neither is Nichols. Vidosic would have started if fully fit instead of Sotorio. On the Jets, Birighitti has a great game. Boogaard not getting any sort of card was beyond belief. And thought the Japanese referee missed a penalty when Santalab was brought down in the box, I was sitting in the Western grandstand above 30 metres away. And well played Jets fans for the cheering both sides good plays.
Midfielder
Guest
AZ Imagine if your striker had worked out...
BtoPower3
Guest
Absolutely. Should Jets won or draw hours ago, Roars thank them for taking away points from WSW. Now, that Jets have lost. That means the match of them (Jets) vs the Roars in round 26 is a dead rubber to them. Jets is practically out of the top 6 now. 1) The next match that Roars play City in Melbourne is the decider. Should Roars win, they are likely to have a total of 53 points at the end, winning the premiership. The reason being that (after winning City) they are facing merely Sydney FC, Jets and MV. Sydney is struggling. They need to play open game, in the hope of getting higher rank in the top 6. They cannot match BR in Suncorp if they play a open game. Jets is a dead rubber. So, they may let the team B to play to get experience for the next season. As for the last match that BR faces MV, it is simple to draw the conclusion as MV has a match with SUWON in Korea 3 days in prior. BTW, ACL is crazy in scheduling. As for the WSW, they faces (in the last 4 weeks) AU, MV, Mariners and Phoenix. I wonder WSW can lose no points and can have a better goal difference than BR. If AU wins WSW next week, then they may have one point higher than BR (if BR loses to City). However, AU faces Sydney FC and City in the last two rounds. How can they do not lose points? If they lose points, that means they have one draw match. Therefore, BR is one point above them again. Still, it is possible if they win all the remaining matches to win the premiership if BR lose the next match against City. That is the point here; the next match that BR faces City in Melbourne is the decider to BR (to win the premiership). How about City? After the match with BR next week, they face Phoenix, Glory and AU. All are difficult matches. They are 3 points away from the top. So, if they lose the next match, they can only hope for the championship. Fifty three points (53), is good enough to win the premiership. Melbourne won the premiership with 53 points last year. BR won it with 52 points in the 2013 to 14 season. CCM won it with 51 points in the 2011-12 season. 2) If BR draw with City in the next match, then only there are 3 contenders to the premiership. They are WSW, BR and AU. It would be difficult to predict. Still, BR has a better path in the final straight as BR only faces Sydney, Jets and MV. 3) How about if BR lose to City in the next match? Then, City may have the same 50 points as BR does at the end and win the premiership with a higher goal difference. As for now they have 8 more goals than BR already. Then, can WSW have 50 points? Maybe! Still, they need to play AU (the contender), Victory in Melbourne and Phoenix in Wellington. Can they not drop 3 points? Maybe! 4) In conclusion, to the Roar, the next match against City next week is the decider to their premiership of this season. PS) How many can fly t Melbourne to support BR?
AZ_RBB
Guest
Interesting afternoon of football. How we weren't 3-0 up after an hour is beyond me. But after that we were quite lucky to hold on. I thought our midfield had one of its best games of the season. It was pure dominance. The only weak link at the moment is Sotirio. He remains that weak link despite his goal today. Yet to see him do anything which justifies his selection over Golgol. Neville had a mixed game as well but had some of his best moments of the season. The game vs Adelaide next week just got bigger. At the moment it feels like we're trying to fit 4 teams into two spots. I'm sure there will be plenty of discussion in the coming days but just looking ahead to next round. City v Brisbane is shaping up to be the biggest game of the season. Only to be rivaled by WSW v Adelaide. The game between the wonderfully unpredictable Wellington and the rapidly rising Perth should be another cracker.