- Bruno Fornaroli - 45'+2'
- Nicholas D'Agostino - 90'
- Ola Toivonen - 23'
- Andrew Nabbout - 58'
D'Agostino heroics earn Perth Glory late draw against Melbourne Victory
Nicholas D'Agostino followed up his Olyroos heroics with another brilliant display to help Perth Glory escape with a 2-2 draw against Melbourne Victory at HBF Park.
Victory were on track for all three points on Saturday night after Ola Toivonen opened the scoring in the 23rd minute and Andrew Nabbout made it 2-1 in the 58th minute.
But the 9,435 crowd was sent into a frenzy in the 90th minute when D'Agostino latched onto Ivan Franjic's cross to head home the equaliser.
D'Agostino almost stole the win in stoppage time after soaring high in the box yet again, only for his powerful header to sail over.
His performance came just a week after his brilliant solo effort helped the Olyroos secure an Olympic berth with a 1-0 win over Uzbekistan.
But it wasn't all good news for Glory, with star attacker Chris Ikonomidis destined for another stint on the sidelines after lasting just 15 minutes before re-injuring his left knee.
Ikonomidis, who had missed the previous two matches, was introduced to the action in the 62nd minute, but was forced off after his left knee buckled.
Glory's unbeaten run has now stretched to eight games, while Victory are still a worrying five points adrift of sixth spot.
Both sides entered the match missing a star player.
Glory skipper Diego Castro was a notable absentee from the squad, while Victory attacker Robbie Kruse was forced out with hamstring tightness.
The first half was a feisty affair, with the home fans rabid after Bruno Fornaroli took a series of heavy knocks.
Victory captain Toivonen was also in the wars, with Alex Grant's bump the biggest of the lot.
Toivonen opened the scoring in the 23rd minute with a beautiful curling strike from outside the box.
Fornaroli almost scored a goal for the ages in the 35th minute after latching onto Franjic's lob with a bicycle kick.
But the ball struck the upright, denying him what would have been a special moment.
The star striker levelled the scores in first-half stoppage time with a free kick that found a gap in the wall.
Victory retook the lead when Nabbout ran hard to latch onto a long ball, cut inside to evade Grant, before coolly slotting the goal.
But it was the D'Agostino show in the dying minutes, with the striker everywhere in his first start of the season.
Marco Rojas, who returned to Victory on a two-and-a-half year deal, was introduced in the 75th minute.
Game Information
Australian A-League Men Standings
Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | P |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Auckland FC | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | +6 | 12 |
Wellington Phoenix FC | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | +4 | 10 |
Melbourne Victory | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | +4 | 10 |
Adelaide United | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | +3 | 10 |
Melbourne City FC | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | +5 | 9 |
Sydney FC | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | +2 | 9 |
Macarthur FC | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | +3 | 6 |
Central Coast Mariners | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | -2 | 6 |
Western United | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 |
Western Sydney Wanderers | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | -1 | 4 |
Newcastle Jets | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | -4 | 3 |
Perth Glory | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | -14 | 1 |
Brisbane Roar | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | -6 | 0 |