Carl Valeri – 5.5

Made a couple of cynical fouls in dangerous positions, none of which ended up costing Victory any goals but certainly put the visitors under pressure. The Victory captain was booked with 20 minutes to go, ruling him out of the following tie on Tuesday.

Terry Antonis – 6.5

Was the man pulling the strings in the midfield, but his ability to pick out attackers in forward positions was limited by how deep Victory were forced to play. Instead, Antonis found himself in defensive pockets where he had to protect the back four.

Kosta Barbarouses – 5.5

Didn’t do enough to clear a loose ball in the lead up to the opening goal and paid the ultimate price. The opposing goalkeeper knew nothing about Barbarouses’ close-range shot a short while after, which bounced off the keeper’s head.

James Troisi – 5.5

Due to Victory’s lack of possession and territory throughout the 90 minutes, Troisi remained isolated and unable to make a real impact on the game. At times, the Aussie international showed intent, but linking up with Berisha effectively seemed to be a bit of a problem.

Leroy George – 7.5

Showed sparks of his usual, creative self and grabbed another assist, thanks to Berisha’s finish. In stoppage time, the Dutchman stepped up once again to claim the penalty won by Christian Theoharous. With confidence, George placed the ball on the spot and stole a point for the Melbourne boys.

Besart Berisha – 7.5

Far from the prettiest goal Berisha has scored in his career, but he’ll claim it nonetheless. The striker’s equaliser in the 36th minute gave Victory some much needed motivation going into half-time. As the clock ticked in the second half however, Berisha grew increasingly frustrated with his service.

SUBS:

Christian Theoharous – 6

With Victory almost depleted of ideas, Theoharous picked up the ball on the edge of the box and made a daring run into the penalty area. His pace and footwork were enough to fool a defender into making a mistimed challenge; winning a deciding penalty in the process.

Josh Hope – did not see enough of the ball to receive a fair rating.

Kenny Athiu – did not see enough of the ball to receive a fair rating.