Hana Lowry’s second-half brace proved in vain as Glory went down to a 6-2 defeat in Thursday’s Westfield W-League clash with Sydney FC at Dorrien Gardens.
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Trailing to a double from Remy Siemsen and strikes from Princess Ibini-Isei and Clare Wheeler with an hour played, Lowry scored twice in as many minutes to halve the arrears and prompt hopes among the home faithful of a remarkable comeback.
Wheeler swiftly added a fifth for the visitors, however and they completed the scoring in stoppage-time when Ibini-Isei’s deflected effort crept in at the near post.
The result leaves Glory still searching for a first win of the season and Head Coach Alex Epakis pulled no punches in his post-match reflections.
“I’m devastated and they [the players] are devastated,” he said.
“The effort and attitude in our preparation wasn’t reflected in the game against Brisbane and it certainly wasn’t reflected in the game we just had here.
“There are disappointed players in there because it’s not what we want to be about.
“Unfortunately, conceding another late goal in the first half and an early one in the second half destroyed any momentum we were looking to build.
“Hana Lowry then scores two goals, but instead of it being 2-2, it’s 2-4 because of the goals we conceded just before and just after the break.
“This is another steep learning curve for this young group and all we can do is face up, front it, look in the mirror and see where we can be better as individuals.
“There are so many disappointments right now in terms of the feeling, but there is a good character in the group and we’ll respond as best as we possibly can going into the run of games that we now have coming up.”
There was little to choose between the two sides in the early stages, with Caitlin Doeglas and Ibini-Isei both seeing shots saved and Taneesha Baker almost celebrating her 18th birthday with a goal after intricate approach work from Lowry and Lexie Moreno.
The hosts continued to look the more likely as the half wore on and yet it was the Sky Blues who hit the front just before the break.
There seemed little danger when a loose ball fell kindly for Siemsen some 25 metres out, but the Young Matildas representative proceeded to drive goalward and unleash a stunning left-foot strike which arrowed its way into the bottom corner.
It was a cruel blow after a promising 45 minutes from the hosts and they suffered another just after the restart when Ibini-Isei found a pocket of space in the box and lashed a fierce shot past Lily Alfeld.
Siemsen then grabbed her second and Sydney’s third, applying a composed finish having been teed up by Rachel Lowe and seven minutes later, Wheeler made it 4-0 by forcing home Ally Green’s low cross from the left.
At that stage Glory looked to be on the ropes, but Lowry gave the home fans something to shout about by helping herself to a quickfire brace which briefly pulled her side right back into the contest.
Her first was a superb angled drive and the second a crisp, side-footed finish from a neat cut-back provided by substitute Jamie-Lee Gale.
But Wheeler almost immediately restored the visitors’ three-goal advantage with a close-range effort, dispelling any notion of the ladder leaders slipping up.
Alfeld then produced a superb save to block Wheeler’s penalty after Liz Anton had brought Ibini-Isei down in the box, but the latter became the fourth player to claim a brace on the night when she squeezed home a low shot right at the death.
Match Details
Perth Glory 2 (Lowry 63′, 65′) Sydney FC 6 (Siemsen 44′, 53′), Ibini-Isei 48′, 90+5′, Wheeler 61′, 71′)
Half-time: 0-1
Dorrien Gardens, Perth
Referee: Isabella Libri
Perth Glory: 1.Lily ALFELD (gk), 2.Sarah CARROLL, 4.Natasha RIGBY (c), 5.Deborah-Anne DE LA HARPE, 7.Elizabeth ANTON, 8.Hana LOWRY, 9.Malia STEINMETZ (6.Tijan MCKENNA 46′), 10.Alexia MORENO (23.Katarina JUKIC 59′), 14.Caitlin DOEGLAS (13.Jamie-Lee GALE 58′), 17.Marianna TABAIN (16.Isabella WALLHEAD 69′), 18.Taneesha BAKER
Substitutes not used: 20.Rebecca BENNETT (gk)
Yellow Cards: None
Red Cards: None
Sydney FC: 1.Jada WHYMAN (gk), 3.Charlotte McLEAN, 5.Ally GREEN (17.Angelique HRISTODOULOU 79′), 6.Clare WHEELER, 7.Ellie BRUSH, 8.Rachel LOWE (9.Allira TOBY 68′), 10.Remy SIEMSEN (15.Mackenzie HAWKESBY 68′), 11.Cortnee VINE (19.Charlie RULE 84′), 12.Natalie TOBIN, 18.Taylor RAY, 20.Princess IBINI,
Substitutes not used: 40.Eliza CAMPBELL (gk)
Yellow Cards: None
Red Cards: None
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