Perth Glory will be hoping that history can repeat itself when they head to Macedonia Park for Saturday’s PS4 National Premier League WA clash with Stirling Lions.
The youngsters downed the hosts 1-0 in the corresponding fixture last season and another three points from this weekend’s Round 20 clash would be most welcome as they look to climb the table.
Last weekend brought a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Sorrento in Geraldton, but midfielder Jack Leech is hoping that Glory can build upon what was an improved second-half performance against the Gulls.
“It was an extremely disappointing result against Sorrento,” he said.
“Our first half performance really let us down and conceding the two goals put us on the back foot.
“We didn’t play to the conditions and got punished for it.
“But the second half was much improved, we dominated the game, moved the ball quickly and created plenty of chances but were unable to score.
“Capitalising on our chances and punishing teams is something we must improve upon to win games.”
Leech went on to acknowledge that this weekend’s game against the 10th-placed Lions is a hugely significant one and insisted that if they play at their best, Glory are more than capable of securing what would be their fourth win of the season.
“With the season coming to an end and the bottom of the table being so close,” he said, “it’s vital that we start winning to pull away from the bottom. We know we can do it, we just have to stick to our plan and execute it to the best of our ability.
“This week’s game is vital; it’s a must-win for us to start climbing the ladder.”
Glory Head Coach John Gibson, meanwhile, also drew positives from the second-half display against Sorrento and is hopeful that his young charges can maintain that improvement on Saturday.
“We were really happy with our second-half performance and we played some super football,” he said, “but our first-half performance let us down.
“We have reflected upon that and have taken something from the game, but the damage was done in the first half and that is something we need to address.
“We know the importance of every game, but we’ll go in this week like we do every week, focusing on ourselves and looking forward to producing a strong performance.
“Our performances are always process-driven and we’ve been relatively happy with certain aspects of our game, but we always are looking to balance performance and results.
“Like we’ve consistently said all season, it’s a massive learning curve for this young group. The players are learning each week which will only help them as they continue to grow and evolve.”
Kick-off time at Macedonia Park is 3pm.
