Perth Glory enjoyed a positive opening to their first competitive outing of the pre-season with a 1-0 victory against Inglewood United on a chilly night at Clipsal Stadium.
Perth Glory enjoyed a positive opening to their first competitive outing of the pre-season with a 1-0 victory against Inglewood United on a chilly night at Clipsal Stadium.
In a positive sign of things to come for the Glory, first year player Andrija Jukic scored the winner in the 39th minute with a well taken shot from 15 yards.
Jukic was one of several young Glory recruits thrust into the starting line-up and all showcased their potential with strong performances across the park. Brent Griffiths was great in central defence while Howard Fondyke clearly enjoyed his midfield role and played out the 90 minutes.
Experienced campaigners Jamie Harnwell, Jamie Coyne and Adriano Pellegrino were on the pitch from whistle to whistle while others including Eugene Dadi, Scott Bulloch and Naum Sekulovski played pre-determined minutes.
There were no significant injury concerns for the Glory, midfielder Wayne Srhoj was substituted in the second half after copping a knock on his shoulder but is expected to play against Adelaide next weekend while goal keeper Aleks Vrteski received a slight cork.
Assistant Coach Kenny Lowe, who managed the team in the absence of Coach Dave Mitchell, said he was pleased with the squad-s first up performance.
“It was a good workout,” Lowe said.
“Its pleasing that we came out with no major injuries, the physical preparation work we-ve done so far is paying dividends with the lads looking fit and strong out there.
“There were some aspects that we can improve and we will be looking at that at training but overall it was a good opening to our match practice ahead of the season.”
Several of the club-s Youth Team players were also given an opportunity in the match and for much of the second half there were just four Hyundai A-League squad members on the pitch. With five of last seasons Glory Youth Team players making the jump to the senior team this year Lowe said it was terrific to see another batch of quality youngsters coming through the system.
“The young boys were terrific, they-re enthusiastic and performed really well. There is a great culture within the club with the older guys embracing these youngsters and helping them to develop as players and that is great to see.”
Perth will play several intra-club matches as they continue to prepare for a pre-season clash against Adelaide at Hindmarsh Stadium on Friday 26 June.
Perth Glory 1 (Andrija Jukic 39-)
Inglewood United 0
Tuesday, 16 June 2009 at Clipsal Stadium
Participating players: Aleks Vrteski (gk), Jamie Coyne, Jamie Harnwell, Brent Griffiths, Naum Sekulovski, Adriano Pellegrino, Wayne Srhoj, Howard Fondyke, Scott Bulloch, Eugene Dadi, Andrija Jukic, Alex Pearson (gk) (NYL), Cameron Edwards (NYL), Milljon Butshiire (NYL), Ryan Pearson (NYL), Sam Mitchinson (NTC), Adam Taggart (NTC), Todd Howarth (Perth SC)
Unavailable: Mile Sterjovski (Socceroos), Jacob Burns (Socceroos), Andy Todd (pending arrival), Branko Jelic (pending arrival), Scott Neville (groin), Anthony Skorich (ankle), Victor Sikora (knee), Tando Velaphi (hamstring), Jimmy Downey (ankle)
STARLIGHT FOUNDATION
Perth Glory weren-t the only winners on the night with the Starlight Foundation receiving the proceeds from gold coin entry to the match.
Thanks to everyone who attended and contributed to the wonderful work of the Starlight Foundation.
