Glory ALW Head Coach Stephen Peters believes that a victory over Western United in Tuesday’s Round 13 clash at Ironbark Fields could prove hugely significant for his side (kick-off at 4pm WST, watch live and FREE on 10Play).
The women in purple have remained in Victoria following their 1-0 defeat to Melbourne Victory on Saturday in which they ran the high-flying hosts desperately close despite battling a lengthening injury list and losing Tijan McKenna to a 60th-minute red card.
And with the Ninja A-League table remaining incredibly congested as we reach the halfway point of the campaign, the Head Coach feels that downing Western could prove pivotal.
“Yes we’re down on players, yes we’re down on confidence a little bit because of the recent results,” he said, “but we’ve just got to get in there and play for the three points because if we do, we’ll be getting pretty close to that top six position.
“We’ve just got to get that monkey off our back and find that next win very quickly and I think this is a good opportunity for us.
“We hear that Ironbark is a windy ground, but we’re used to that and ready for that and there are no excuses in the team.”
Glory will be up against a Western United side which has lurched from the sublime to the ridiculous at times this term, losing 8-2 to Brisbane Roar and 5-1 to Western Sydney Wanderers, but also downing Wellington Phoenix, Sydney FC, Newcastle Jets and Central Coast Mariners, before drawing with reigning Premiers Melbourne City last time out.
And Glory’s Head Coach admitted he is not quite sure what to make of them.
“They’re a very difficult team to get a grasp of,” he said.
“They’re just so inconsistent.
“Sometimes they’re very good and sometimes they’re really poor, so hopefully when we play them, they’re really poor and we can get the three points!
“They seem like a team that needs to be fired up to play well.
“They’ve got a lot of quality across the pitch, such as [Grace] Maher, [Chloe] Logarzo and the Taranto sisters [Melissa and Adriana], Kahli Johnson and Sasha Grove.
“They’re a good outfit and they look a little bit more settled now they have [Alyssa] Dall’Oste in goals.”
Johnson has certainly caught the eye for Kat Smith’s side this year, scoring seven goals and claiming one assist, while Logarzo has hit the net four times and Maher three.
In terms of Glory team news, meanwhile, McKenna will miss the game through suspension and concussion protocols will also rule out Georgia Cassidy who was unfortunately forced off by a blow to the head against Victory.
Ella Abdul Massih, however, is set to return to the squad and Mischa Anderson is also expected to feature.
Glory’s four previous ALW clashes with United have yielded an even split of two wins apiece and an overall aggregate of 12 goals.
United took the win in last season’s corresponding fixture, with Logarzo claiming the only goal of the game.
Match Details
Ninja A-League 2024/25 Season Round 13
Western United v Perth Glory
Ironbark Fields
Tuesday 21 January 2025
Kick-off: 4pm WST
#ONEGlory
