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Opinion
There was a red card, 11 goals and plenty of points to discuss following Round 3 of the A-League, with Wellington Phoenix the only team without a point despite not playing bad football this weekend.
At the other end of the table Western Sydney Wanderers are the only team to have won all three games, while Melbourne City and Perth Glory remain unbeaten.
For the first time this season there were no draws. Round 3 was an intriguing weekend of football and a pretty entertaining one at that. Jamie Maclaren was the standout with two world-class goals. He appeared unstoppable and destined for a move sometime to Manchester City.
What stood out most was the high standard of goalkeeping in the A-League this week – apart from a Glen Moss howler. Hopefully every round of football is like this one, as there was so much action and excitement that will surely help the game grow in Australia.
In the first three rounds there hasn’t been a margin of more than a goal, which illustrates how tight the competition is.
1. Erick Mombaerts (Melbourne City)
Melbourne City won the game against Western United despite going down to ten men. If not for Western United goalkeeper Filip Kurto, Western United would have been obliterated.
2. Gertjan Verbeek (Adelaide United)
Gertjan Verbeek turned the game around with two astute substitutions at half-time that helped his team to a come-from-behind win, coming back from a one-goal deficit to claim all three points.
It’s difficult to say any coach is under pressure at this early point in time considering the football that’s been played has been of such a high standard.
Victory claim an all-important first victory
Melbourne Victory took a deserved lead just before the halfway point of the opening half thanks to Andrew Nabbout and Elvis Kamsoba should’ve made it 2-0. Migjen Basha prevented Brisbane from equalising. The Roar deserved at least a point but left the game empty-handed.
Magic moment: Jay O’Shea had a free kick well saved by Lawrence Thomas.
Who Stood out from the pack? Ola Toivonen had some exquisite touches that displayed why he is Melbourne Victory’s best player.
What went right? Max Crocombe prevented a second goal with some astute work. Crocombe also prevented a Melbourne Victory goal by Elvis Kamsoba in the second half.
What went wrong? Andrew Nabbout wasted a chance to score early in the game and then Storm Roux missed a header opportunity. Brisbane missed an unmissable goal near half-time. Nabbout suffered an injury in the first half. Roy O’Donovan missed a sitter near the midway point of the second half. Ola Toivonen took an outstanding free kick but hit the post.
(Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)
A tale of two halves
Newcastle made many marauding runs forward down the wings. There was a total of 12 first-half shots for the Jets to Adelaide four. Gertjan Verbeek made two changes at half-time, which showed he wasn’t content with his team’s first-half performance.
Matthew Ridenton took a good free kick that was saved by Paul Izzo. Newcastle lost the game due to a capitulation in the second half – they conceded two goals within the space of 12 minutes.
Magic moment: Abdiel Arroyo broke the deadlock with a brilliant volley that was a great way to open his A-League account.
Who stood out from the pack? Riley McGree was probably the reason Adelaide claimed all three points. He finished with a brace, both goals coming in the second half.
What went right? Al Hassan Toure made a couple of good runs down the left wing. Newcastle Jets took a deserved one-goal lead into the half-time break. They only had themselves to blame for not taking their opportunities, as United fought their way back into the contest and claimed all three points.
What went wrong? Jason Hoffman missed a straightforward opportunity to score, as did Arroyo shortly after and Nick Fitzgerald. Riley McGree scored straight from a corner. Ben Halloran should’ve made the score 3-1 in Adelaide’s favour. Matthew Ridenton had a goal ruled out due to a handball by Arroyo. Nikolai Topor-Stanley could’ve made it 2-2. Newcastle finished with more possession and eight shots on target to Adelaide’s four, but that’s football.
(Speed Media/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Have to wonder how the Wanderers won
Sydney FC controlled the game until Western Sydney opened the scoring through Mitchell Duke. Kosta Barbarouses squandered a good chance to score.
Sydney FC played some of their best football in the first half, but they were down 1-0 at half-time. Sydney FC was up 13 shots to three at half-time. The same theme continued in the second half, with the Sky Blues dominating the game, but they lost the 1-0 at full time.
Magic moments Daniel Lopar made a good save from an Adam le Fondre effort on goal. Daniel Georgievski played an outstanding cross that was headered into the back of the net by Mitchell Duke. Kosta Babarouses had a one-on-one opportunity that was brilliantly saved by Daniel Lopar.
Who stood out from the pack? Daniel Lopar was a standout as he somehow managed to keep a clean sheet.
What went right? The Wanderers had just one shot on target and they scored from it.
What went wrong? Alexander Baumjohann wasted a corner as his cross went straight out for a goal kick. Rhyan Grant wasted a good chance with a poor shot. Milos Ninkovic hit the bar with an opportunity to score. What appeared to be a certain goal to Sydney FC that wasn’t given, wasn’t overturned by VAR to stand as a goal somehow. A hand ball, which would have led to a penalty to Sydney FC, wasn’t given.
(Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)
Glory grab three points in distance derby
Wellington controlled the tempo of the game early on, with Perth barely getting out of their half. Diego Castro played a clever pass to Bruno Fornaroli, who did well to break the deadlock. The goal gave the Glory the ascendancy – they went into the half-time break with a 2-0 lead thanks to Chris Ikonomidis scoring the second goal.
The second half wasn’t as exciting as the first as there weren’t any goals until the Phoenix were awarded a penalty they duly converted. Wellington can consider themselves unlucky not to claim at least a point.
Magic moments Kim had a shot that appeared destined for the far post but was superbly saved by Stefan Marinovic. Bruno Fornaroli also had a header brilliantly saved by Marinovic. Fornaroli cleverly set up the second goal for Glory that was finished off by Chris Ikonomidis.
Who stood out from the pack? Diego Castro played an outstanding game. The skill he displayed meant he was in a class of his own. Fornaroli finished with a goal and an assist.
What went right? The two goals scored by Perth were top class. Wellington were probably worthy of their late consolation goal scored from the penalty spot by Ulises Davila.
What went wrong? Bruno Fornaroli squandered a chance to score and make it 2-0. Gregory Wuthrich was fortunate not to receive a red card for a poor two-footed challenge. Ulises Davila missed an opportunity to make the deficit one goal. Substitute Dino Djulbic conceded a late penalty that was converted by the home side, but it was merely a consolation goal.
City show character thanks to – who else? – Maclaren
Western United predominantly attacked through Connor Pain, which was too predictable. The game came to life when Jamie Maclaren broke the deadlock in the second part of the first half. Melbourne City dominated the first half, but the score was only 1-0 in their favour thanks to plenty of good saves from Filip Kurto.
Besart Berisha made it 1-1 from the penalty spot in the second half. Unfortunately for Western United Jamie Maclaren was unbelievable in the final third, scoring a freakish second goal.
Magic moment: Filip Kurto did well to prevent Rostyn Griffiths from scoring a long goal. Craig Noone had a good shot well saved by Kurto. Scott McDonald had a header well saved by Dean Bouzanis. Maclaren scored a freakish goal to win the game for City.
Who stood out from the pack? Jamie Maclaren was the difference between the two sides with a brace, while Kurto kept Western United in the game with some outstanding saves.
What went right? The game was an extremely open and attacking contest. Kurto kept Western United in the game – somehow he made a string of world-class saves, predominantly in the first half.
What went wrong? McDonald missed a golden opportunity to equalise late in the first half. Berisha hit the post in the second half. McDonald missed a fairly elementary chance to equalise. Harrison Delbridge was sent off after receiving a second yellow card and giving away a penalty.
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