Perth stays in 1st place in A-League with 1-0 win over City
A first-half goal by Chris Ikonomidis was all the Perth Glory needed to remain in first place in Australia's A-League
SYDNEY (AP) — A first-half goal by Chris Ikonomidis was all the Perth Glory needed to remain in first place in Australia's A-League.
The Glory reclaimed the competition lead hours after losing it to the Melbourne Victory by beating Melbourne's other team, City, 1-0, in the Western Australian capital.
City was reduced to 10 men in the 80th minute when Curtis Good was booked a second time. Good's second yellow card came when he tried to keep the ball in play with a sliding effort but took down Ivan Franjic in the process.
Perth's win extended the club's unbeaten run to seven games, keeping it two points clear of the Victory, which won its fifth game in a row by beating Adelaide United 2-0.
The Glory also opened a six-point gap on Sydney FC, which was beaten 3-1 by Wellington Phoenix. Fifth-placed City, on 10 points, is seven points behind Perth.
Swedish attacking midfielder Ola Toivonen set up the first goal for the Victory, scored by Kosta Barbarouses, and added one of his own in the 81st minute.
The Phoenix scored three first-half goals in 17 minutes, with striker Roy Krishna netting twice. Defender Michael Zullo pulled a goal back in the 89th minute, but Sydney sustained successive home losses for the first time since April 2016.
Western Sydney beat last-place Central Coast 2-0, the Mariners' fifth loss in seven matches.
On Sunday, Newcastle defeated the Brisbane Roar 2-0 in the final match of the round.
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