Victory ascend from seventh to third after dismantling Perth in a sensational five-minute surge

Melbourne Victory secured a 2-0 victory over Perth Glory in an impressive display at HBF Park on Saturday night, propelling them to third place on the Isuzu UTE A-League ladder.

Subway Socceroos winger Nishan Velupillay broke the deadlock in the 61st minute after a relentless 15-minute period of pressure from the home side. Despite having several opportunities to score beforehand, they found themselves trailing after a quick exchange of goals – first from Velupillay followed by Clarismario Santos, who sealed the win with a powerful header.

This victory marked back-to-back wins for Melbourne Victory, a feat they hadn’t accomplished since the surprise departure of former head coach Patrick Kisnorbo to J1 League club Yokohama F. Marinos as an assistant in early December.

Interim head coach Arthur Diles faced a challenging start, going without a win in his first six matches before finally clinching a victory against Sydney FC last weekend. Following that triumph, he has been appointed as Victory’s permanent head coach through to the 2025-26 season. Diles celebrated his recent confirmation by guiding his team to a stylish win over Perth, marking a fresh start in his permanent role.

The match commenced with both teams showing determination in front of a vibrant crowd at HBF Park. By the 20-minute mark, the momentum swung back and forth rapidly amidst a flurry of attacking plays.

Velupillay nearly found the net, striking just wide after outpacing Zach Lisolajski in a one-on-one duel on the right flank.

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Shortly after, Adam Taggart showcased his pace, breaking free from his defender to face Victory goalkeeper Mitch Langerak one-on-one. After executing a clever turn around Brendan Hamill, Taggart’s effort was thwarted by a brilliant save from Langerak, marking a strong performance in his second match back in the A-Leagues.

At the opposite end, Victory earned a free-kick in a promising position. Ryan Teague delivered a well-placed ball for Nikos Vergos, whose header was on target but saved brilliantly by Oli Sail, who reacted quickly to tip it over the bar.

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Just before half-time, new Glory loanee Patrick Wood nearly scored his first goal for the club with a cheeky backheel attempt from a low Taggart cross, but once again, Langerak was there to deny the hosts.

Less than 30 seconds after the interval, Taggart was played in behind Victory’s defence by Jaylan Pearman, managing to get the ball past Langerak toward the goal line. However, Hamill was quick to recover, clearing the threat just in time.

The hosts came extremely close to breaking the deadlock just moments later when Lisolajski’s deflected shot from a tight angle agonisingly missed the right post.

Nicholas Pennington then attempted to threaten Victory’s clean sheet. Having scored only twice in 74 Isuzu UTE A-League appearances prior to this match, he was unable to add to that tally with a shot that went wide under the pressure of two Victory defenders.

Although Glory was in control at the start of the second half, their inability to convert that dominance into goals proved costly as Victory struck against the run of play to take a 1-0 lead.

Zinedine Machach initiated the attack with a shot on goal that Sail failed to sufficiently clear. The ball fell conveniently for Velupillay, who calmly slotted it into the bottom-left corner.

Just five minutes later, Victory doubled their lead, effectively snuffing out any hope for the Glory. Santos rounded off a quick counter-attack that started deep in defence, with Machach delivering a reverse pass to Vergos out on the left. He crossed to Santos, who soared to meet it with a well-timed header to seal the visitors’ fate.