PERFORMANCE OF THE WEEKEND – SYDNEY FC

They needed to bounce back after last week’s disappointing loss and they did so big time. Now sitting eight points ahead at the top of the table, Sydney’s result this week means they can mathematically only finish as low as second.

An early penalty lead to a Manny Muscat yellow card and following Sydney’s conversion, it was Muscat who saw a second yellow just a few minutes later.

While they may have been lucky to see Melbourne City go down to ten men, it was a comfortable match for Sydney who saw a Brandon O’Neill stunner give them the lead just past half time and then later, a Bobo strike gave them the two goal buffer.

Sydney again displayed their ability to put teams under pressure, offering very little in the way of chances for City. Danny Vukovic made just three saves all game, while Thomas Sorensen was called into action far more often as Sydney put the pressure on.

Sydney dominated the possession and put in twice as many shots and twice as many shots on target as their opponents and they didn’t allow City to reply at all.

The result sees Perth Glory rise to 3rd position and Melbourne City to drop to 4th. It also sees Sydney wrap up the top two positions with 3rd now a staggering 19 points behind Sydney in 1st.

Sydney could wrap up first within the next two weeks if they are able to beat Melbourne Victory next week and Central Coast the week after.

This performance symbolises the dominance they have shown all season and their ability to bite back away from home shows the quality of the side.

PLAYER OF THE WEEKEND – RHYS WILLIAMS

Well, now that the strange Rhys Williams saga is over, Perth Glory are reaping the benefits of having one of the competition’s best players.

Starting his third game in a row, Williams not only played an integral part in the defence, but at times got forward and put the pressure on the Wanderers’ defence.

Williams’ presence in the Perth Glory attack showed how poor the Wanderers really were that night and it was only by the grace of Perth Glory’s poor finishing that this result didn’t see a far higher score line.

Williams took on more duels than almost anyone else in the team and while he wasn’t left much to do in the defence, the Glory defence allowed the Wanderers just one shot on goal all game.

With a Socceroos squad set to be announced soon with many A-League players reportedly set to be called up, Williams could be a key replacement for the likes of Matthew Spiranovic who is yet to play in China’s second division this season.

If Ange Postecoglou was watching Williams on the weekend, he may be thinking a lot more about putting the Glory defender in his side for the crucial World Cup qualifiers.

A strong performance across the park for Williams, helping his side rise to 3rd position on the A-League ladder.

GOAL OF THE WEEKEND – NICK FITZGERALD

It was a quick reply for City and probably the only positive for them on Friday night as they lost to Sydney.

Immediately after conceding, City pushed a long ball forward with Tim Cahill heading the ball down to Nick Fitzgerald who ducked and weaved perfectly, beating two Sydney FC defenders before releasing a beautiful curling shot with the outside of the foot.

He displayed tight footwork, composure and excellent finishing to score just the 11th goal against Sydney FC this season.

After bagging an assist last week, Fitzgerald was able to best himself and score his second goal of the season against the tightest defence in the A-League. It was a stunning goal and it’s a shame he was forced to remember this week as a loss.

FLOP OF THE WEEKEND – WESTERN SYDNEY WANDERERS

From the heights of winning against Sydney FC last week, to only getting one shot on target this week, it has been a big fall from grace for the Wanderers.

Their one shot on target was comfortably saved by Liam Reddy and apart from that, they offered very little anywhere across the park.

The Wanderers were exposed all night and faced a huge 19 shots and if it weren’t for Perth Glory’s inability to get any more than six of those on target, they would have lost by a huge margin.

They gave the Glory every opportunity to put the game well beyond doubt, not shutting down players quick enough and allowing the likes of Rhys Williams to leave the defence to help in the attack.

If the Newcastle Jets had been able to get a win over Central Coast, the Wanderers would now be sitting outside the top six and frankly, they probably deserve to be there after this week.

They may have had the Asian Champions League during the week, the likes of Adelaide United were able to come within one goal of drawing with Melbourne Victory despite their mid-week fixture.

A big flop this weekend and they will be hoping to pick up the pieces next week when they face Adelaide.