Glory coach Lowe upbeat despite Roar draw
UPDATE 4.30pm: Perth Glory coach Kenny Lowe says a run of six games without a win isn’t affecting the confidence of his A-League leaders.
Glory needed a late Dino Djulbic equaliser to salvage a 2-2 draw against Brisbane Roar at nib Stadium last night and will lose top spot if they go down to Melbourne Victory at AAMI Park next Saturday.
But Lowe says he'll worry about where they are in the standings once the regular season is completed.
"After 27 (games) is when you look at the league," Lowe said.
"Yes it's a big game but there's plenty of twists and turns in this league. There will be more twists and turns before the end of the season and I think it's fantastic.
"We are playing some good stuff, we are getting lads back and we're ticking along nicely."
Glory appeared on track for their third defeat in six matches after two strikes from Brisbane in three mad minutes cancelled out Danny De Silva’s first-half opener.
But the course of the match altered when Roar defender Corey Brown was sent off in the 76th minute for pulling back Jamie Maclaren when the Glory striker was through.
Soon after winger Dragan Paljic’s long-range cross-cum-shot rebounded off the post, allowing Djulbic to pounce on the loose ball and smartly fire home the equaliser.
Andy Keogh then had two golden opportunities to snatch a much-needed win late, but a header and a scrambled shot close to goal in the space of two minutes failed to find the net.
The draw maintains Glory’s tenuous hold on top spot – three points ahead of second-placed Victory, who have one game in hand after they went down 3-2 at home to Wellington on Sunday.
De Silva had earlier rewarded Lowe’s decision to return the teenager to the starting line-up by knocking in a first-half goal.
But two strikes from Brisbane – a lunging shot from Jean Carlos Solarzano followed by a class Matt McKay finish – snatched back the lead in a seesawing contest.
Solarzano got his foot to a centre from Brandon Borrello in the 59th minute to find the net and level scores.
McKay then showed his quality by holding off Josh Risdon and negotiating Michael Thwaite to slice the ball into the top right corner of the net.
Perth looked unlikely to capitalise on a host of half-chances until Brown was penalised for a clear indiscretion.
De Silva’s goal was his fourth of the season and had appeared a timely one, having missed three of the past four matches through illness.
Chris Harold was a resurgent force in the first half for the hosts down the right wing, with his well-placed header allowing De Silva to dummy around an opponent and tap in the opening goal in the 26th minute.
Paljic also created several scoring opportunities in his best game for the club as Perth tried – but ultimately couldn’t find – an extra goal to asset their dominance before half time.
Roar coach Frans Thijssen was pleased with the performance of his team, and had no complaints about Brown’s red card.
"Even in the first half we were on top and created chances," Thijssen said.
"Henrique had a good chance and we were tackling a lot more. In the second half we picked it up again and scored two great goals but in the end there's a lot happening.
"For me it was a red card. I think if he (MacLaren) beats Corey he goes to the goal. You can't complain about it and his position wasn't good so he had to make the foul.
"As a young player you make mistakes ... he is disappointed because he knows we could have had three points instead of one."
