Down 2-0 after strikes from Adelaide's Lucas Pantelis and skipper Travis Dodd, Glory forced their way back into the cellar dweller contest with a goal from Perth captain Jacob Burns.

But the game turned when Iain Fyfe brought down Mile Sterjovski on the edge of the box with the Glory striker clear through on goal. As Fyfe was the last defender, referee Ben Williams instantly showed him a red card.

Burns then scored from the resulting free kick to level the game - and a winner from new recruit Daniel McBreen sealed the three points... and kept alive Perth's dream of finals football.

Pantelis opened the scoring when he was closing in on the touchline after he collected the ball on the left hand side and went to cross the ball into penalty box.

His kick went finer than everyone expected and cleared Glory goalkeeper Tando Velaphi before rebounding off the right post and over the line to score.

It was vintage Dodd in the second half, with the Reds skipper stealing the ball off Jamie Coyne in the attacking third and coolly pushing the ball past Velaphi's left leg.

The 8904 crowd was in celebration mode but was quickly silenced when Fyfe received his marching orders for bringing down Mile Sterjovski and were then stunned when Burns scored the visitors' first.

The Perth skipper took the free kick within the 'D', beating the defensive wall and sending the ball sailing into the top right-hand corner of the net.

With an extra man on the pitch, Perth went on the attack and Adelaide went to water.

Burns found space in the box and had the poise to finish again while a match-winning opportunity opened up for McBreen when Mark Rudan failed to clear.

Despite being thrashed 6-2 by Melbourne last Saturday night, Perth's impressive response now sees the Western Australians hold a four-point buffer over seventh-placed Central Coast, while the Reds are destined to finish last with some tough games ahead.

Adelaide scored early, the speed of youngster Mathew Leckie proved an ongoing concern for the Glory in the first half. Adriano Pellegrino collected a yellow card trying to restrict the teenager, while a couple of midfield bursts from Leckie left the opposition looking flat footed.

It wasn't one-way traffic however, with Perth giving Adelaide some nervous moments in defence.

Half-an-hour into the clash, McBreen got to within striking distance of the goals and forced Galekovic to leave the safety of the penalty box. But neither he nor his team-mates could get a genuine shot away while the home side's structure was disrupted.

Captain Jacob Burns and Pellegrino also pulled the trigger from long range during the half but were off target and in the 39th minute Todd Howarth's effort was flicked away by Galekovic.

The Glory came out firing after the break, with Jamie Coyne getting the first shot on target while new-signing Steven McGarry tested Galekovic on his Glory debut.

But after Dodd gave the hosts a two-goal buffer Perth produced a goal flurry of its own and if some scorching Andrija Jukic strikes had been successful, the margin would have been greater.

A frustrated Adelaide lost the plot and when Pantelis received a red card in injury time, the home side mentally shot as a season that promised much slipped away.

To add insult to injury, United will now be without Pantelis and Fyfe for the clash against old enemies Melbourne Victory this weekend.

Adelaide United 2 (Pantelis 13, Dodd 53)
Perth Glory 3 (Burns 62, 69, McBreen 77)
Crowd: 8,904 at Hindmarsh Stadium