Coach Tony Popovic is cautiously optimistic Western Sydney’s first home A-League win could provide the springboard for a late-season finals push.
The Wanderers, who were eighth and on the verge of crisis after six winless games, clinched a breakthrough 2-0 triumph over Newcastle at Campbelltown Stadium for just their third victory of the campaign.
Not only did last season’s grand finalists again step up in defence – goalkeeper Vedran Janjetovic did not have to make a single save to keep his team’s second clean sheet of the campaign.
But crucially, the goals they’d been crying out for arrived as well-overdue reward for their always-impressive build-up play.
The main positive for Popovic was the way his team closed out the match, Jaushua Sotirio doubling the lead after Lachlan Scott opened the scoring with his maiden A-League goal.
“We haven’t won this year when we’ve been in front,” Popovic said.
“So it was very important that when we hit the lead we could, not to see it out because that’s hoping for the best, but actually play well enough to try and score again and make it difficult for the opponent to get a goal.”
Now seventh and outside the top six only on goal difference, the Wanderers face a difficult assignment against the fourth-placed Roar.
Popovic hoped the momentum would continue at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday night.
“We certainly hope so,” Popovic said.
“We can’t look too far ahead.
“We’ve never been despondent with the results when we know we’re playing well, and we won’t be doing cartwheels now either just because we won a football match.
“We’ll recover well then work as hard as we can in training to give ourselves a chance against a very good Brisbane team.”
Veteran striker Brendon Santalab is a chance of returning to the starting line-up at the expense of 29-year-old Scott.
Santalab was given a 20-minute run off the bench to regain match fitness following his three-week suspension, and the club’s top-scorer this season will be firmly in the frame.
“We’ll see how he recovers, but he was full of energy,” Popovic said.
“He needed that run. It would have been nice if he got a goal but he walked off fit and healthy, and that’s most important.”
marron
Guest
It's all relative... ha
RBBAnnonymous
Guest
A little too generous with your praise of Sotirio. I thought he was poor. Loses possession all the time, absolutely useless footballer. All he does is run.
AZ_RBB
Guest
Define decent
Midfielder
Guest
Agree and with our strikers stocks maybe a future Socceroo
Doc Disnick
Roar Guru
Why is the video at the top of this article of Nottingham Forest FC? I wanted to see some highlights of this match. edit: my video is playing now after the NF highlights — damn Macs. Still the WSW highlights should be played first linked to this article.
Midfielder
Guest
WSW can beat SFC
marron
Guest
dont take me too literally Paul heh. I heard from a bloke in a pub he's got his ticket booked.
Kaks
Roar Guru
How good was Scott's touch to set him up though? Very promising sign from the young man.
Paul
Guest
What's the source for McDonald being here?
Paul
Guest
McDonald was off the bench with a supposed back injury in their Scottish FA Cup loss to Rangers.
Post_hoc
Guest
Sotirio playing 3 decent games in a row is surely one of the signs of the approaching Apocalypse (the orange in the white house is the second sign)
marron
Guest
Scott MacDonald in town. Antonis still to play. Scott breaks his duck. Sotirio has played three decent games in a row. I still don't see it though!