The Central Coast Mariners have finally secured their first victory in 11 outings across all competitions, triumphing over bottom-placed Perth Glory with a scoreline of 3-1 at Industree Group Stadium.
They opened the scoring impressively within just five minutes, as striker Alou Kuol netted his fourth goal of the season, steering a header from an in-swinging cross past keeper Oli Sail and into the far corner.
Perth swiftly equalised in the 10th minute when midfielder Nicholas Pennington powered a header home from a corner, bringing the score to 1-1.
However, the reigning Isuzu UTE A-League champions soon regained their advantage in the 21st minute, thanks to Mikael Doka converting a penalty after being fouled inside the area.
Although Perth had opportunities to level the score, the Mariners extended their lead to 3-1 in the 58th minute. Winger Christian Theoharous unleashed a fierce low shot from the edge of the box that struck the upright before finding the net.
This victory marks the Mariners’ first win in 11 matches across all competitions. They currently remain in 10th position on the ladder, sitting eight points from the top six with just four games remaining in the season.
Meanwhile, Perth Glory’s chances of evading a second consecutive wooden spoon are dwindling with this result, leaving them at the bottom of the Isuzu UTE A-League standings with four matches left to play.
Despite early threats from the Glory, it took only five minutes for the Mariners to penetrate the league’s most fragile defence.
Midfielder Alfie McCalmont collected the ball on the Mariners’ left flank and delivered a right-footed cross into the box, which was deftly glanced into the far corner by Kuol, forcing Sail to retrieve the ball from the back of the net after just five minutes.
The visiting side made a strong comeback, equalising in the 10th minute.
After slipping free from Mariners winger Vitor Feijao at a corner, Pennington once again made his mark, thundering a header past the diving Dylan Peraic-Cullen to score and level the match at 1-1.
However, the parity was short-lived as the home side claimed the lead once more from the penalty spot in the 21st minute.
Brazilian midfielder Doka was fouled by Glory’s Jaylan Pearman inside the box, and he confidently dispatched the penalty, sending Sail the wrong way to restore the Mariners’ lead at 2-1.
Perth nearly equalised just before half-time, but on-loan Sydney FC striker Patrick Wood was thwarted in his attempt to score his first Glory goal, thanks to a spectacular one-handed save from Mariners keeper Peraic-Cullen.
Perth began the second half energetically, aiming to lift themselves off the bottom of the ladder and almost managed to equalise.
Socceroos striker Adam Taggart, receiving a clever cut-back from Trent Ostler, could only send his header wide of the far post, nearly catching the Mariners off-guard at the start of the second half.
While the away side struggled to capitalise on their chances, the home team did not falter, securing their third goal of the afternoon through Theoharous.
Receiving a pass from Feijao at the edge of the box, Theoharous picked his target and unleashed a powerful left-footed strike that flew past goalkeeper Sail into the far corner, having ricocheted off the left upright.
In a rare highlight for Perth Glory, defender Josh Risdon came on in the second half to become the club’s all-time leading appearance maker in the Isuzu UTE A-League, marking his 157th game for the Glory.
In an effort to commemorate a significant personal achievement, Risdon nearly scored for the first time in over a decade, but his left-footed shot clipped the crossbar and bounced over.
Compiled by SportArena.com.au.
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