Brisbane Roar have claimed their first scalp of the A-League Men season, knocking off Sydney FC 4-3 at their Allianz Stadium home.
The Roar soared to a three-goal buffer on Saturday before the Sky Blues mounted a serious challenge in the final 20 minutes of regulation time.
Tiago Quintal came off the Sydney bench and struck in the 84th minute before fellow substitute Jordan Courtney-Perkins closed the gap further four minutes later.
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The hosts were given seven minutes to salvage a point but it was a desperate Roar outfit that prevailed.
It is the last-placed Brisbane’s first win since April 2024 and will be much cherished for the owners of the worst record from the first 12 games of a season in the 20-year history of the competition.
“(This is) one of the toughest periods that you can probably have as a club,” Roar coach Ruben Zadkovich said.
“To see the way that they stick together and the way that they keep continuing working hard for each other every day, I’m just really proud that they got their just rewards tonight.”
Asked if he felt a weight off his shoulders following their gutsy win, Zadkovich said he has always been unbothered in the face of outside pressure.
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“I enjoy the tough times because I feel like they’re the times that shape you,” Zadkovich said.
“I’ve had a lot of people say to me ‘stay strong, keep going’ and I kind of laugh, because in my head, I think, ‘What’s the alternative? To roll over?’
“That’s not something that’s in my arsenal.
“I wasn’t employed by this club to roll over under pressure.”
Sydney blew their chances to move into the top two and have now dropped two places to sixth, picking up only one point in their last two matches after a goalless mid-week draw with Wellington.
They could drop to seventh if Melbourne Victory beat Adelaide United later on Saturday.
“We weren’t at the races today,” Sydney coach Ufuk Talay said.
“From the get-go, I thought we were very lethargic and very slow.
“We finished the game strong, but the game was gone by the time we started to push for it.”
It took just one long kick down the middle from captain Jay O’Shea to open the floodgates.
O’Shea sent the ball flying down the middle and over the heads of three Sky Blues defenders to teammate Ben Halloran.
Halloran tapped the ball over goalkeeper Harrison Devenish-Meares with incredible ease to open the scoring in the 15th minute.
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O’Shea notched another assist five minutes later with a clinical slice through a congested penalty area to help Henry Hore announce his return from a loan spell at K League club Gangwon FC in style.
Sydney pulled one back via Joel King in the 31st minute but it was a minor hiccup for the visitors, with Adam Zimarino restoring the two-goal buffer nine minutes later.
Brisbane looked to have settled the matter in the 71st minute after a precise volley from 17-year-old Lucas Herrington before the hosts came to life late.
Sydney will be without Anthony Caceres for at least one game through concussion after the midfielder clashed heads with Samuel Klein in an attempt to clear an airborne ball in the 58th minute.
While Klein was able to see out the match, Caceres was visibly dazed and needed patching up for a gash on his head.
Meanwhile, Adelaide United have charged to the top of the A-League Men’s ladder, defeating fierce rivals Melbourne Victory 3-2 in a thrilling contest before a sell-out crowd at Coopers Stadium.
The Reds came from 1-0 down to lead Saturday night’s match 2-1 at the break before Victory drew level midway through the second half.
But the visitors’ hope was short-lived with United finding the winner on 71 minutes.
Adelaide coach Carl Veart praised his side who collected maximum points despite not producing their best football.
“It was just great resilience from the playing group to still dig in when we’re not playing our best to get the goals and get the win,” he said.
Victory were the dominant side from the outset and deservedly opened the scoring on 17 minutes through Ryan Teague.
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The Reds coughed up possession on halfway and, after being involved to recover the ball, Teague latched onto a delightful through ball from Bruno Fornaroli before coolly dispatching from 10 metres.
Victory almost added a second minutes later when Santos drove towards the box before squaring a pass across the area for Daniel Arzani whose powerful low shot was well saved by the legs of Ethan Cox, in just his second A-League match.
With the temperature still in the low thirties, referee Alireza Faghani called for a drinks break midway through the first half.
It appeared to turn the tide in Adelaide’s favour and the hosts equalised on the half hour.
Panagiotis Kikianis lifted a ball over the Victory defence for Stefan Mauk who had ghosted through the visitors’ back four, with the United midfielder slamming a half-volley past Jack Duncan.
Shortly after, former Victory attacker Ben Folami was released by Zach Clough but his shot from just inside the area was tipped over by Duncan.
Just as the half ticked over 45 minutes, United took the lead courtesy of an own goal.
Dylan Pierias was released down the right by Kikianis and the Reds fullback whipped in a low cross.
Victory stopper Brendan Hamill was first to the contest, but cleared straight into the path of the sliding Roderick Miranda, with the ricochet beating Duncan at the near post.
The visitors were first out of the blocks following the interval and Santos should have done better with his chance on 48 minutes, skying over the bar from close range after being slipped through by Zinedine Machach.
The Brazilian made amends though, scoring a classy equaliser to make it 2-2 on 65 minutes.
Arzani whipped in a cross from the right which evaded everyone except Santos who was charging in at the far post and knocked the ball into the net with a diving header.
Following Victory’s goal, referee Faghani called for a drinks break and, just as it was in the the first half, it proved the circuit break the Reds needed.
Within two minutes of restarting, United regained their lead.
A long ball from Jay Barnett on halfway found Clough out wide on the left who slipped through substitute Yaya Dukuly.
The pacey winger drove to the byline before cutting back to the penalty spot where Ethan Alagich’s first time shot hit a couple of Victory bodies before nestling into the net.
“(We are) disappointed, obviously,” said Victory coach Arthur Diles.
“You want a result at the end of hard work and we were worth a result today. I thought we were excellent for most parts of that game.”
The Reds pinched top spot just hours after Auckland FC thrashed Melbourne City 3-0, putting Adelaide one point in front of the A-League newcomers.
© AAP