Thwaite took advantage of some static Perth defence to nod the ball home during the 11th minute as Melbourne dominated play during the opening half.

It had taken Glory 16 minutes to really move into attack with any fluency as the pacy James Downey fired in two crosses within a minute. But there was no one on the end of the first one and the second was misdirected, allowing Melbourne to clear.

After a period of aimless play and misdirected passes from the hosts, Glory finally produced their first shot on target in the 33rd minute as Jamie Coyne forced Michael Theoklitos to deflect the ball wide of the post.

Perth's Mark Lee then drove a shot straight at Theoklitos in the 35th minute but despite these efforts, Glory still looked uncomfortable in possession while Melbourne's passes were composed and incisive, as Costa Rican double act Carlos Henandez and Jose Luis Lopez combined effectively through the middle with Fabiano threatening on the right.

Victory also finished the half better as Berger saw a shot collected by Juric before Nick Ward shot wide in the final minute before the break.

Melbourne picked up where they left off after the break as Fabiano slipped a shot wide under pressure from David Tarka before Juric, looking more composed as the game went on, deflected Allsopp's 64th minute effort wide.

In the 58th minute, Victory coach Ernie Merrick had brought off an underdone Hernandez, bringing on Tom Pondeljak, while compatriot Lopez came off in the 71st minute for Steve Pantelidis after collecting a yellow card.

Without their first-choice midfield, Melbourne dropped its intensity in the final 19 minutes as the Glory increased its possessions, creating more meaningful shots on goal.