The New King of Melbourne Heart Harry Kewell is back home in the A-League Photo: Nasitra
The opening round of the 2013/14 A-League season got under way over the weekend as summer’s focus turns towards the ever-flourishing and increasingly popular domestic football competition.
Friday saw Sydney FC host the Newcastle Jets, led by Italian superstar Alessandro Del Piero, at Allianz Stadium. In his new role as captain, the competition’s marquee player scored through a spectacular solo effort and created his side’s second goal with a standout man of the match performance as his team beat a lacklustre Jets 2-0.
In a replay of last season’s grand final, Western Sydney Wanderers and their hordes of supporters travelled up the F3 to face the Central Coast Mariners on Saturday. The majority of the game saw a well contested and evenly matched affair. The Mariners opened the scoring in the 55th minute thanks to the creative wizardry of star recruit Marcos Flores, but the Wanderers earned themselves a much deserved point with an equaliser three minutes from full time, much to the enjoyment of their travelling fans.
On Saturday night, the highly anticipated derby between Melbourne Victory and Melbourne Heart featured in the opening round for the second year running. Last year’s record crowd of 42,032 was overtaken with 45,202 in attendance at Etihad Stadium. Former Victory hero Harry Kewell lined up as captain for rivals Heart, adding extra spice to an already passionate occasion. Unfortunately the game didn’t live up to its usual entertainment with a scoreless draw as the end result.
On Sunday, Wellington Phoenix hosted Brisbane Roar at Westpac Stadium in Wellington. The home side was missing some key players who were away on international duties with the New Zealand All Whites. The Phoenix got off to a great start scoring the opening goal of the match in the 22nd minute. However that effort was cancelled out one minute into the second half through a Brisbane equaliser. The game seemed destined to be a draw but the Roar had other ideas as Ivan Franjic popped up to score the winner in the 92nd minute, sending the local supporters home in disappointment.
The last game of the opening round saw Adelaide United at home against Perth Glory on Sunday evening. Adelaide opened the scoring as early as the 10th minute, but Perth hit back immediately with a goal of their own in the next minute. Adelaide regained the lead 13 minutes later and led 2-1 at half time. The home team soaked up some pressure in the second half before making it 3-1 in the 64th minute to virtually guarantee them the three points. Two red cards to United gave Glory an opportunity to get something out of the game, but Adelaide’s superior passing game and tactics made sure they got off to a winning start.
A-League Round 1 Scores
Sydney FC 2 – Newcastle Jets
Central Coast Mariners 1 – Western Sydney Wanderers 1
Melbourne Victory 0 – Melbourne Heart 0
Wellington Phoenix 1 – Brisbane Roar 2
Adelaide United 3 – Perth Glory 1
