Two goals in the final five minutes secured Newcastle Jets a 2-1 victory at nib Stadium after Glory had taken the lead via Joe Knowles’ maiden Hyundai A-League goal.
The young striker opened his account with an emphatic close-range finish on 20 minutes and having controlled the game for long periods, Kenny Lowe’s side looked poised to secure a third home win of the season.
But a fine strike from substitute John Koutroumbis and an unfortunate own-goal from Jeremy Walker handed the Jets a victory that their Head Coach, Ernie Merrick, later described as ‘daylight robbery’.
It was a bright start from the hosts in hot and humid conditions, with Mitch Nichols going agonisingly close to opening the scoring within eight minutes.
The midfielder, who would go on to dictate the tempo of the game from a more advanced position, fizzed in a volley from an almost impossible angle which forced Glen Moss into an acrobatic, fingertip save.
The encounter was rather stretched in the early stages and Glory took full advantage after 20 minutes, with Knowles breaking the deadlock in style.
Full-back Joseph Mills whipped in a superb ball from the left-wing that shaped perfectly to find the young striker who volleyed into the bottom-right corner from the centre of the six-yard box.
Newcastle remained dangerous on the counter-attack, with the attacking duo of Andrew Nabbout and Dimi Petratos linking up well in the final third, but they were unable to penetrate a stubborn Perth defence as it remained 1-0 at the break.
The second half began in a much more reserved fashion, with the Jets struggling to break down Glory’s resolute midfield.
Chris Harold then almost marked his 150th A-League appearance with a goal as Nichols’ clever lob found the winger inside the area, but his shot on the half-volley sailed over the crossbar.
With Xavi Torres and Alex Grant both exiting the contest through injury midway through the half, the visitors ramped up the pressure, with Ben Kantarovski coming close as his free header narrowly evaded the target and went out for a goal-kick.
But just as it seemed Perth were set to hold on for maximum points, Koutroumbis snuck in at the far post to volley home the equaliser against the run of play.
And Merrick’s men completed an unlikely comeback when Dimitri Petratos’ corner was deflected into Liam Reddy’s net by the luckless Walker.
The loss sees Glory slip to eighth spot ahead of a clash with bottom-side Wellington Phoenix at nib Stadium on Saturday 16th December.
Match Details
Perth Glory 1 (Knowles 20′) Newcastle Jets 2 (Koutroumbis 89′, Walker (o.g.) 90+2′)
Half time: 1-0
Referee: Adam Kersey
Attendance: 8,063
Perth Glory : 33. Liam REDDY, 2. Alex GRANT (5. Jacob POSCOLIERO 68′), 4. Shane LOWRY, 6. Mitch NICHOLS, 8. Xavi TORRES (17. Diego CASTRO 68′), 14. Chris HAROLD, 15. Brandon WILSON, 16. Joe MILLS, 19. Joe KNOWLES'(20. Jake BRIMMER 79′), 26. Jacob ITALIANO, 29. Jeremy WALKER
Subs not used: 13. Nick FEELY (GK), 11. Mitch MALLIA
Yellow cards: Walker 33′, Lowry 70′
Red cards: Nil.
Newcastle Jets: 20. Glen MOSS (GK), 3. Jason HOFFMAN (18. John KOUTROUMBIS 58′), 4. Nigel BOOGAARD (C), 5. Ben KANTAROVSKI, 6. Steven UGARKOVIC (23. Devante CLUT 85′), 7. Dimitri PETRATOS, 10. Wayne BROWN (9. Roy O’DONOVAN 58′), 13. Ivan VUJICA, 15. Andrew NABBOUT, 24. Joseph CHAMPNESS, 44. Nikolai Topor-Stanley
Subs not used: 30. Ivan NECEVSKI, 22. Lachlan JACKSON
Yellow cards: Nabbout 15′, Boogaard 62′,
Red cards: Nil.
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