After a cagey first half in which neither side could fashion a clear chance, Perth took the lead through a controversial penalty tucked away by Neil Kilkenny.

Corey Brown was ajudged to have handballed in the box, when it appeared the defender, whose hand wasn't far outstretched from his body, had little time to react.

While Melbourne appeared a little rattled by the decision and the absence of marquees Ola Toivonen and Keisuke Honda, Perth took advantage and snuck another through a flying Diego Castro volley. 

The Spaniard latched on to a perfectly weighted cross from Ikonomidis in superb style, to seal a crucial three points for Tony Popovic's men.

"It's more than just a win, the weight of the match coming in - it's too early to be saying too much, however," Ikonomidis said.

"We kept to our guns, Victory alwasy come out strong at home, but if we stayed compact and tight we knew the spaces would open up and we took our chances."

Melbourne Victory finally found their mojo with the introduction of Honda, who re-entered the A-League after a lengthy injury layoff and Kosta Barbarouses capitalised on increased forward intensity to slide in his 10th goal of the season.

But it wasn't enough for Victory, who will now be hoping that the return of their marquee signings will prove the difference, if not in the run in to finals, then in the finals themselves.

"We've always pushed games until the end, but they shut the game down well," Leigh Broxham said.

"They made it difficult for us, there wasn't too many chances in the game and they took theirs.

"You're losing 2-0 at home, you need to take some chances. Keisuke came on at the end and he's a quality player, he makes a difference, but it wasn't enough at the end."