Points shared by Victory and Glory

The Perth Glory have escaped from Olympic Park in Melbourne with a vital away point by securing a 2-all draw with the Melbourne Victory tonight.

The Victory looked destined to join Perth in a tie for fourth spot on the A-League ladder after recovering from an early deficit to storm to a 2-1 half-time lead. But a second-half equaliser awarded to Glory veteran Bobby Despotovski, along with a string of missed chances from the home side, ensured the visitors a share of the points and maintains its three point gap over Melbourne with five rounds left to play.

After a scrappy start, Melbourne excited the strong crowd of 14,754 with a dominant midfield display that produced many dangerous attacking moves with sharp foot passing and player movement. Stand-in skipper Archie Thompson led the way with a dynamic display, scoring the opener for his side and creating havoc with every touch.

Teenager Kristian Sarkies also stood out for the home side, providing the final pass for both Victory goals, while Richard Kitzbichler again proved a handful out wide for the Glory defence.

In contrast, the evergreen Glory strike partnership of Damien Mori and Bobby Despotovski looked lively at times but for the most part were denied opportunities to sustain any pressure on the Victory defence.

New Perth Glory coach Alan Vest found himself ahead early in his A-League coaching debut when young Melbourne defender Adrian Leijer hesitated over a high-ball, allowing Mori to pounce in only the fifth minute. The veteran striker out-muscled his opponent and fired home with his left foot to shock the home side.

Melbourne eventually settled and the search for an equaliser ended after 24 minutes when a short pass from Sarkies found Thompson cutting into the box. His first touch sat up for him to crunch a left-footed shot past Jason Petkovic and into the top left corner of the net. The strike was Thompson's seventh for the season and his first since Melbourne's visit to Perth on October 23rd, a 2-1 win to the home side.

The Victory continued to dominate proceedings after drawing level, a fortuitous rebound to Mori in front of goal the only other opportunity of note for Perth in the half, his header just looping over the bar. After plenty of sustained pressure, Daniell Allsop scored his first goal at Olympic Park to give Melbourne a deserved lead on the stroke of half-time.

Sarkies again played the role of provider, receiving a short pass from Kitzbichler and sending a through-ball for Allsop to break clear with only the keeper to beat, the oft-maligned striker making no mistake with the finish.

The second half began in similar style as Melbourne continued to gain the advantage in midfield, Kitzbichler and Sarkies again proving lively in attack. But a great cross from a free kick in front of the Melbourne goal caught the defence napping, allowing Despotovski to level the scores in the 68th minute.

Initially, Despotovski met the cross with a diving header that forced Victory 'keeper Michael Theoklitos into a fine reflex save. As the ball came to rest on the back of Despotovski's legs as he lay in front of the six-yard box, midfielder Nick Ward scooped the ball over Theoklitos and it appeared to cross the line after rebounding off the bottom of the crossbar. But referee Peter O'Leary awarded the goal to Despotovski, who followed up with a header to send the bouncing ball into the back of the net.

Melbourne went in search of a winning goal, one they felt they deserved after controlling most of the play, and almost found one immediately. As a high-ball entered the box, Allsop won out in a battle of strength with Glory central defender Jamie Harnwell and his toe-poke narrowly missed the target. Archie Thompson then missed an opportunity for a clear shot on goal and was soon substituted as he fell victim to cramp.

Perth looked certain to concede a third goal in the 73rd minute when Petkovic and midfielder Simon Colosimo made a meal of a loose ball, allowing Victory midfielder Michael Ferrante the chance to blaze away at an open goal from barely a metre away. But a desperate challenge from Harnwell somehow found the path of Ferrante's strike, denying them a certain goal.

Even when Melbourne substitute Andy Vlahos sent a stinging drive just over the bar, it seemed that it would be only a matter of time for the home side to score the winner.

But Perth held on for a valuable point, leaving the Victory with four important away games, starting with league leaders Adelaide United at Hindmarsh Stadium next Thursday night, and plenty of work to do if they hope to qualify for the inaugural A-League finals series.

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