Perth Glory’s Australia Cup hopes were dashed after a 4-0 defeat to cupholders Macathur FC at Darwin’s Larrakia Park.
The Bulls seized an early advantage with an unfortunate Darryl Lachman own goal, setting the tone for what was to follow. By the seventeenth minute, Macarthur had doubled their advantage with a strike from their captain, Lachlan Rose.
Late in the first half, Jake Hollman’s curled effort past Oliver Sail effectively put the game out of reach for the men in purple, and substitute Jed Drew would go on to net a fourth for his side to cap off a superb showing.
Macarthur will now face Campbelltown City of the South Australian NPL in what looks to be an intriguing Round of 32 derby.
Mile Sterjovski’s side looked strong from the outset, and a minute in, after Rhys Youlley’s defensive splitting pass sent Jesper Webber through one-on-one, the ball would find the back of the net after a series of defensive blunders.
Glory would come close to a quick equalizer when Stefan Colakovski’s cross was first unsuccessfully palmed away by youngster Alex Robinson in net; luckily for him, though, Matthew Millar was on hand to head the ball clear.
However, the impetus shifted again, now with Millar spearheading a Macarthur attack. Driving the ball out of defense, he executed a well-weighted pass that found Lachlan Rose, who calmly doubled their lead.
Just ten minutes after scoring, Rose turned provider. Picking up a poor return pass from Trent Ostler, Rose laid the ball into the path of Jake Hollman, who curled the ball around Oli Sail and into the bottom corner to make it three.
Perth would seemingly capture the momentum of the game through a few early substitutions, particularly Luke Ivanovic, whose initial impact saw a low-driven shot just whistle past the post.
Glory’s next big chance of the game would come through Daniel Bennie’s cutback to Ivanovic, who came agonizingly close to pulling one back as his effort dribbled wide.
Despite the pressure, it was Macathur who delivered the final blow, with Jed Drew scoring after Sail was caught in possession.
Match Details
Perth Glory 0
Macarthur FC 4 (Lachman (o.g.) 2′, Rose 19′. Hollman 34′, Drew 81′))
