ALM Match Wrap: Legend Risdon goes out a winner as Glory finish season in style

Club legend Josh Risdon was farewelled in style on Saturday evening as Glory ended the 2025/26 Isuzu UTE A-League season with a rousing 2-1 win over Brisbane Roar at HBF Park.

Click HERE for full match highlights.

Click HERE for Adam Griffiths’ post-match media conference.

Introduced from the bench in the second half to a standing ovation, Glory’s record A-League appearances holder had a close-up view of Seb Despotovski’s stunning winner 14 minutes from time.

Earlier, Glory had taken the lead via a Gabriel Popovic penalty, spurned the opportunity to go 2-0 up later in the first half when Nicholas Pennington missed from the spot and then conceded a controversial equaliser which was claimed by Dimitri Valkanis.

The result means Adam Griffiths’ men lost just one of their final eight games of the campaign and there were joyous celebrations at the final whistle, before Risdon was further acknowledged for his contribution to both the club and Australian football.

Glory’s two penalties were the main highlights of a first-half which was otherwise somewhat low on goalmouth incident.

Roar enjoyed the bulk of the possession and territory, but failed to trouble Matt Sutton in the home goal and with the exception of the two penalties they earned, Glory found chances equally tough to create.

The first of those spot-kicks arrived with just eight minutes on the clock as Marius Lode inexplicably handled the ball after Brian Kaltak had done well to hook a Pennington corner back into the six-yard box.

Popovic took responsibility and after a stuttered run up, calmly sent Dean Bouzanis the wrong way to claim his second goal in as many home games.

Roar responded by looking the more likely for the next 20 minutes, only to then concede another needless penalty.

This time, Youstin Salas was the offender, tripping Despotovski just inside the box, but Pennington was unable to emulate Popovic and sent his effort from the spot crashing against the junction of post and bar.

It was the visitors who continued to shade the midfield battle following the restart and they were eventually rewarded in the 66th minute, albeit with a goal which could and perhaps should have been ruled out.

In a dramatic passage of play, Justin Vidic saw his shot parried by Sutton before a fine Scott Wootton block prevented Valkanis from firing home the loose ball.

From the resulting corner, however, Valkanis seemed to bundle Sutton into the net before forcing the ball over the line and yet even a VAR check failed to deem the defender’s challenge to have been an illegal one.

Roar very nearly took the lead moments later when substitute Jay O’Shea struck the post from just outside the box, but Glory reacted to that let-off in the best possible way.

Despotovski it was who strode onto centre-stage, chesting down a pass some 25m out from goal with his first touch and arrowing an unstoppable half-volley into the top corner with his second.

The dying moments saw tempers flare on a number of occasions, but Roar were unable to respond for a second time and there were emotional scenes post-game as Risdon was joined on the pitch by his young family and given a send-off befitting of a true club legend.

Match Details

Isuzu UTE A-League 2025/26 Season Round 26

Perth Glory 2 (Popovic (pen) 8′, Despotovski 76′) Brisbane Roar 1 (Valkanis 65′)

Half-time: 1-0

HBF Park

Saturday 25 April 2026

Referee: Tim Danaskos

Attendance: 6901

Perth Glory: 29.Matt SUTTON (gk), 2.Charbel SHAMOON (24.Andriano LEBIB 83′), 3.Sam SUTTON (19.Josh RISDON 76′), 4.Scott WOOTTON, 7.Nicholas PENNINGTON (22.Adam TAGGART 70′), 9.Jaiden KUCHARSKI (23.Anthony DIDULICA 75′), 16.Gabriel POPOVIC (67.Stefan COLAKOVSKI 70′), 25.Sebastian DESPOTOVSKI, 27.Will FRENEY, 39.Giovanni DE ABREU, 45.Brian KALTAK

Substitutes not used: 17.Arion SULEMANI, (c), 40.Ryan WARNER (gk)

Yellow Cards: Kucharski, Despotovski, Lebib, Freney

Red Cards: None

Brisbane Roar: 1.Dean BOUZANIS (gk), 2.Youstin Delfin SALAS GOMEZ, 3.Dimitri VALKANIS, 5.Marius LODE (39.Niall THOM 80′), 8.Samuel KLEIN, 13.Henry HORE, 16.Matthew DENCH, 17.Justin VIDIC, 19.Michael RUHS (27.Benjamin HALLORAN 69′), 31.Noah MAIERONI (26.James O’SHEA 19′), 44.Jordan LAUTON

Substitutes not used: 6.Austin LUDWIK, 10.George VRAKAS, 11.Macklin FREKE (gk), 35. Mikael EVAGOROU-ALAO

Yellow Cards: Ruhs, Klein, Hore

Red Cards: None

#ONEGlory