Adam Le Fondre on target again as Sydney FC beat Perth Glory

Updated: May 17, 2023, 05:23 am

Sydney FC have tightened their grip on second spot in the A-League and ended Perth's unbeaten away record with a 1-0 home win at Jubilee Oval.

Adam Le Fondre's 37th-minute goal decided the cagey contest and put the Sky Blues five points ahead of third-placed Melbourne Victory.

Sydney will clinch second with a round to spare if defending champions Victory don't win at Adelaide on Friday.

Perth coach Tony Popovic made six changes to his starting side following last week's Premiers Plate clinching win.

The Glory didn't have a single shot on target, although they pressed hard in the closing minutes without creating too many clear-cut chances.

Sydney had a few more opportunities, but the league's two meanest defences held sway for most of the match.

Adam Le Fondre celebrates after scoring what proved to be the winner.
Matt King/Getty Images

Le Fondre couldn't miss his chance as he was virtually standing on the line, when Paulo Retre's header from Anthony Caceres' pass flicked off him.

It was the former Premier League striker's 16th of the season, taking him one clear of Wellington's Roy Krishna in the Golden Boot race.

It was Sydney's only shot on goal in a tepid first half, with marquee Siem de Jong's 25-metre shot thudding into the Glory wall.

Veteran striker Brendon Santalab had Perth's only attempts of note in the 45 minutes, heading wide and then firing a strong long range shot just off target.

In the second half, Retre, Rhyan Grant and Brandon O'Neill all had shots for a livelier looking Sydney and half-time substitute Diego Castro added some pep in attack for Perth.

Near the end, Popovic gave his 17-year-old son Kristian his A-League debut off the bench.