An unexpected and very welcome 12-day gap between games has left the Glory squad refreshed and revitalised according to Head Coach Richard Garcia.
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Saturday’s rearranged home game against Macarthur FC (kick-off at 1.05pm WST) will see the men in purple back in action for the first time since April 18th after last weekend’s scheduled away trip to Brisbane Roar was postponed.
And Garcia is confident that the hiatus in an otherwise hectic fixture schedule will aid his side’s bid to return to winning ways.
“It’s been a welcome break,” he said.
“The group were very much fatigued mentally and physically and it’s been a good little re-set.
“So for us, it’s a very positive thing that we’ve been able to have a bit of a breather and refresh our minds and bodies and now we’re heading into this last set of games with a fresh approach and it’s going to take everything we’ve got to get through it.”
Garcia is also relishing the prospect of at least some Members and fans being allowed into HBF Park after the game was moved from Friday evening to Saturday afternoon in order to take advantage of a hoped for scaling down of the COVID-19 restrictions.
“We’re excited that we’re going to be playing, hopefully, in front of a crowd,” he said.
“We’re looking forward to the restrictions easing on Friday and then going out there on Saturday afternoon and putting in a performance.
“We love playing in front of our home crowd.
“That support is something the guys feed off and excel in front of and it’s very important to us.
“You really feel the atmosphere when they are behind you and that gives you a lift as a player, as a coach and as a whole club.”
Three points against Macarthur would keep Glory’s Finals hopes very much alive and while not underestimating the A-League new boys, Garcia is quietly confident that his side can secure what would be their fourth home win of the season.
“They’ve had a good start to their entry into the A-League,” he said.
“They’ve got a lot of experienced players, which is something we’ve got to be wary of… but we’re at home this time and the boys are excited by the challenge.
“We always want to be playing for Finals.
“That should be in our mentality always and it is.
“We want to build for the future and build the club to where we feel it should be, so that’s part of the process.
“But Finals is always on that radar and always should be the target.
“We need one run on the board and then all of a sudden we’ll find our feet and we’ll flow from there.
“So that’s probably just the initial hurdle we need to get over and that starts with Macarthur on Saturday.”
In terms of early squad news, the Head Coach went on to reveal that Sebastian Langkamp may not feature this weekend due to a groin problem, but that skipper Diego Castro is back to full fitness.
“Sebastian picked up a bit of a knock yesterday, so we’re waiting to see how he goes today,” he said.
“He pulled up a little bit sore with his groin and we’re trying to figure out if we can get a scan with the regulations that are in place and once we get that scan, we’ll know more.
“Diego is feeling good and firing.
“[Nick] D’Agostino is coming along really well and hopefully within the next week or two, we’ll be able to start bringing him and Daniel Stynes back.
“It’ll be a great boost to the side once they do come back.”
Saturday will mark Glory’s first ever home clash with the Bulls who ran out 2-0 winners when the two sides met at Campbelltown Stadium earlier this month.
Ante Milicic’s side are currently occupying fifth place having picked up eight wins from 19 games, although they have not recorded a victory in any of their last four outings.
The visitors will be without former Glory defender Ivan Franjic who has failed to shake off the calf problem that has ruled him out since Round 15 and fellow-calf-injury victim Aleksandar Jovanovic will also miss out.
Match Details
Saturday, 1 May 2021
Perth Glory v Macarthur FC
HBF Park, Perth
Kick-Off: 1:05pm (Local)(3:05pm (AEST))
Referee: Ben Abraham
Assistant Referee 1: Matthew Southern
Assistant Referee 2: Arvin Shanmuganathan
Fourth Official: Adam Fielding
VAR: Kris Griffiths-Jones
Join the conversation on Twitter using the hash-tag #PERvMAC
Perth Glory squad: 1.Tando VELAPHI (gk), 2.Jason GERIA, 5.Jonathan ASPROPOTAMITIS, 6.Osama MALIK, 7.Chris IKONOMIDIS, 8.Kosuke OTA, 9.Bruno FORNAROLI, 10.Andy KEOGH, 11.Joel CHIANESE, 13.Luke BODNAR, 15.Brandon WILSON, 17.Diego CASTRO, 19.Callum TIMMINS, 20.Carlo ARMIENTO, 22.Josh RAWLINS, 23.Dane INGHAM, 29.Darryl LACHMAN, 33.Liam REDDY (gk), 38.Ciaran BRAMWELL, 88.Neil KILKENNY
**2-4 to be omitted**
Ins: 13.Luke BODNAR (promoted), 15.Brandon WILSON (promoted), 23.Dane INGHAM (promoted)
Outs: 37.Riley WARLAND (quad – 1 week)
Unavailable: 4.Sebastian LANGKAMP (groin 2-4 weeks), 18.Nick D’AGOSTINO (hamstring – 1 week), 24.Daniel STYNES (groin – 1 week),
Macarthur FC squad: 1.Adam FEDERICI (gk),2. Jake MCGING, 3.Antony GOLEC, 4.Benat ETXEBARRIA, 5.Mark MILLIGAN ©, 8.Denis GENREAU, 9.Milislav POPOVIC, 10.Loic PUYO, 12.James MEREDITH, 14. Moudi NAJJAR, 16. Nick SUMAN (gk),19. Michael RUHS 21.Jake HOLLMAN, 22.Liam ROSE, 23. Walter SCOTT, 24.Charles M’MOMBWA, 27.Matt DERBYSHIRE, 29.Antonis MARTIS, 31.Lachlan ROSE, 33. Markel SUSAETA
**2-4 to be omitted**
Ins:, 9. Milislav POPOVIC (promoted), 14. Moudi NAJJAR (promoted), 23. Walter SCOTT (promoted), 33. Markel SUSAETA (promoted)
Outs: 15.Aleksandar SUSNJAR (suspension – 1 match), 11.Tommy OAR (injury – 1-2 weeks)
Unavailable: 7.Ivan FRANJIC (injury calf 1-2 weeks), 6.Aleksandar JOVANOVIC (injury – calf 1-2 weeks)
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