Fan favourite Aaron Mooy in action against Perth Glory Photo: Che Taylor
Atrocious weather in Sydney on Saturday did not dampen the spirits of Western Sydney Wanderers supporters who turned out in great numbers to see their fledgling team beat a stubborn Perth Glory 1-0 at Parramatta Stadium.
It was an evenly contested match throughout most of the first half with Western Sydney just shading possession. A couple of half chances for either team saw a Youssouf Hersi shot go close and a Shane Smeltz header that went well wide for a goal kick.
The best moment came just before the half time whistle when a long range strike from Mark Bridge drew a nice low save from Perth Glory keeper Danny Vukovic.
The second period started with Perth set to continue their objective of ensuring Western Sydney sees as little possession in the middle of the park by using their physical presence.
Some good lead up play in the 58th minute saw Aaron Mooy make his way into the box where a fortunate deflection headed into the back of the Glory goal to give Western Sydney a 1-0 lead.
Perth’s disciplined structure made them competitive throughout the match closing their opposition down in midfield, which is where the Wanderers usually dictate.
Perth Glory were weak in attack and could only manage one real threat on goal when a wide shot flicked off Ryo Nagai’s foot and just went over the bar, much to the relief of Wanderers keeper Ante Covic. Western Sydney ran out the match 1-0 victors making it an impressive seven wins in a row.
Western Sydney Wanderers 1 (Aaron Mooy 58′)
Perth Glory 0
Man of the match: Nikolai Topor-Stanley
Crowd: 11,772
