Gutsy, gritty, determined. A small collection of words to describe the Glory’s performance against the Jets. It wasn’t pretty by any means, but in the end they walked out of McDonald Jones Stadium with their first win of the season.
With that small hurdle overcome, the next one will be to build on the 2-1 triumph in the Hunter by backing it up tomorrow against a hot and cold Macarthur.
Momentum is massive in football, and with the Glory’s three game run at home starting after this match, the stakes are higher for the men in purple.
Two wins on the bounce going into this HBF Park run would be massive for the confidence of the players and supporters. It would be just as deflating for both if they can’t get a result against a team who will be coming off a three day break.
Adam Griffiths broke a seven year streak by managing a win away at Newcastle. He could become the first Glory manager to win at Campbelltown. Would look good on his CV.
Are the demons from the 6-1 still there?
There are unhappy memories from the last visit down to the Bullpen. October 20, 2024. David Zdrillic’s first game in charge. The dawn of a new era, the start of something special. It very quickly turned into the stuff of nightmares.
4-0 down within half an hour, a 6-1 demolition in the end. The Glory never recovered from there, and neither did David Zdrillic.
Now they have to go back to ground zero. Will there be an effect because of that day? I would say probably not, based on the fact the landscape at both clubs is vastly different from a year ago.
Of the Glory’s 18-man squad from the opening day of the 2024/25 season, only three were in last week’s matchday squad. For Macarthur, the four attackers who did all the damage on that day are no longer at the club.
Perth have a whole new outlook, and while the Bulls still boast some good attacking players, they aren’t at the same level as the ones they’ve lost.
The Glory were nowhere near their best against Newcastle and still found a way to win. If the team can raise by 20% like Adam Griffiths wants, they should walk out feeling confident of picking up some points and exorcising any demons from 2024.
Does Lawrence play up top or out wide?
The absence of Lachie Wales is a significant blow to the Glory’s attack. Since the appointment of Griffiths as interim, the winger has thrived back in his natural position.
Adam Taggart made a nice cameo off the bench and will hopefully return to the starting lineup.
If that is the case, either Tom Lawrence or Jaiden Kucharski will have to move out wide to accommodate the Glory’s main man.
Lawrence doesn’t have the pace of Wales, but his playmaking and experience on the left side of midfield is enough to suggest that is the route Adam Griffiths will most likely take.
Taggart and Kucharski linked up well in the opening match against Wellington. In my eyes, they are the best front two the Glory possesses.
Despite the win, not enough goal scoring opportunities were created. In order to consistently win games, more service needs to be provided to the strikers.
Some of that is on the midfield. The rest is on those in the wide areas, where most chances will be created.
As the marquee signing, there is an expectation of Lawrence to step up. He’s opened his account, now he needs to continue building and become more of a threat.
And for the Glory girls…
Who takes charge of improving the defence?
The fruit doesn’t fall far from the tree. Just like the men’s side of previous years, the Glory women now boast the worst defence in the ALW after four games.
They’ve conceded multiple goals in the last three matches, which have all been losses. Against Canberra, a terrible start ended their hopes of getting a point early.
The magnets were moved due to the last minute injury of Izzy Dalton, who will also miss this week’s clash with the Victory.
With or without her, there has been too many easy goals conceded and too many errors leading to goals.
Onyi Zogg and Julia Sardo are the experienced defenders. Those two should take on most responsibility for keeping it tight at the back.
Georgia Cassidy will be a welcome return and should slot straight into midfield, alongside Emma Tovar.
That pairing should provide stability and a bit of assistance to the backline. It will be difficult to hold out against Victory, but they must improve in that area to keep within touching distance of the pack.
Predicted lineup
Taggart – Kucharski
Lawrence – Pennington – Bozinovski – Despotovski
Shamoon – Kaltak – Wootton – Risdon
Sutton
All images courtesy of Tom McCarthy.
