Live updates from the round nine game at Coopers Stadium
Email: mike.hytner@theguardian.com | Twitter: @mike_hytner
10.00am GMT
64 min: Don Pablo gets his head on the end of yet another corner, this time at the near post. But he can’t get it on target this time and Adelaide’s lead remains slender.
9.59am GMT
62 min: A crowd in excess of 6,000 is announced, although there are now less than that in the stadium, following the early walkout on the half-hour mark.
9.58am GMT
61 min: This is a fair reflection of the state of play at the moment:
60' | UPDATE | @AdelaideUnited are pressing but have not found a 2nd goal, while @PerthGloryFC are dangerous on the counter. 1-0 #ADLvPER
9.58am GMT
60 min: Djite. Djite. No, no, still no goal for the Adelaide striker, but you could say he’s getting closer. This time he fires just wide of the post.
9.56am GMT
59 min: Phil Withall has been back in touch, this time including that stroke of comic genius he promised earlier. “I have to confess to being surprised by Adelaide this season,” he writes. “They have shown in parts that they are a very decent football team, almost the Chelsea of the A league.”
9.55am GMT
58 min: Off the post! It’s not at all intentional but Marrone’s sliced, high, looping cross has Covic frantically backpeddling. He doesn’t reach it but the ball cannons back off the upright and Perth breathe again.
9.53am GMT
57 min: Elsey leaves Castro in a heap on the ground with a strong challenge and the United defender will see yellow for that one.
9.53am GMT
56 min: More chances fall Adelaide’s way, as first Jeggo lets fly (blocked) and then Djite (over the bar) pass them up.
9.52am GMT
54 min: Elsey climbs to meet the corner but it’s comfortably cleared by Sidnei, who was posted on the post.
9.50am GMT
53 min: Jeggo breaks free for a moment to race onto a long punt forward, but Covic gets there first to turn the ball behind for an Adelaide corner. There are hopeful calls for a penalty, but it never really was.
9.49am GMT
52 min: Djite gets the ball with his back to goal, he holds it up well, but is soon bundled off the ball by Thwaite. He’s not had a particularly bad game, but a couple of missed chances and he’s beginning to cut a forlorn figure.
9.47am GMT
51 min: Adelaide are looking dangerous at moment, but Djite slips at a crucial moment, before moments later he turns and fires well over the bar. He couldn’t buy a goal at the moment.
9.46am GMT
50 min: Djite turns and shoots in one swift movement but it’s well blocked at close quarters by a Perth leg.
9.44am GMT
49 min: Let’s not forget that Adelaide are yet to win this season. This is a big half for them – and coach Guillermo Amor.
9.44am GMT
48 min: Nothing comes from the corner, and Perth break quickly! This looks promising for the visitors... it’s played into the path of Garcia, but his measured, side-footed effort is rather weak but well saved by Galekovic nevertheless.
9.43am GMT
47 min: Pablo Sanchez stings the palms of Covic early on this second half with a well-struck effort from the edge of the box. Corner to Adelaide...
9.41am GMT
46 min: We’re back, and off again. No changes to either side during the break. It’s as you were.
9.26am GMT
45+5 min: And that will be that for the half. The ref calls an end to the opening period, and Adelaide head in a goal to the good, and are probably worth it, given the number of chances they have enjoyed.
9.25am GMT
45+4 min: Moments later Cirio breaks free down Adelaide’s left. He cuts inside but is denied by a massive hand from Covic, who turns the ball around the post! Tremendous save, that one!
9.24am GMT
45+3 min: Jeggo! Not a bad effort by the Adelaide midfielder, from distance, but Covic makes the save look easy.
9.23am GMT
45 min: Three minutes of added time is shown by the fourth official, mostly for the drinks break, presumably.
9.22am GMT
43 min: Sanchez karate kicks Harold as the Perth man looked to get away down the Glory left. Free-kick given but no card for the challenge by Sanchez.
9.20am GMT
42 min: Sanchez is left all alone in the box but when his cut-back reaches Jeggo, the midfielder snaps at his shot somewhat. Deflected behind nevertheless.
9.18am GMT
41 min: Wow, Djite has not scored in 14 games, according to Simon Hill. That’s quite some barren patch.
9.18am GMT
40 min: Elrich hoons off down the left flank and his early cross into the box seems destined to be finished by Djite – until Covic claims at the striker’s feet.
9.16am GMT
37 min: In keeping with the flow of the game at the moment, Adelaide now surge forward, but Carrusca’s cross drifts over the frame of Covic’s goal.
9.15am GMT
35 min: Down to the other end and and Diego Castro is denied by Galekovic! End to end stuff at Coopers!
9.13am GMT
34 min: Sanchez turns provider to feed Carrusca whose first touch is great to set himself up for a lovely dink over the advancing Covic! But the big, crazy man gets an equally big (and possibly crazy) hand to it!
9.11am GMT
32 min: Marrone goes close with a decent, daisy-cutting effort from 25 yards out that whistles just past the upright!
9.11am GMT
30 min: A round of applause goes up at an odd point in play, but it soon becomes clear why – it’s fan protest time once again. A banner which reads “FFA can you hear us now” is unfurled and the majority of the fans behind Galekovic’s goal exit the ground.
9.09am GMT
29 min: Oooh! Pablo Sanchez again gives the crowd a lift as he rises to meet a deep cross with a back-post header. It’s off target, but still, he’s done well in the air tonight.
9.07am GMT
28 min: It’s “Thirio” again now. “Cheerio” didn’t stay in fashion for too long. Anyway, it’s a decent touch from the Thpaniard.
9.05am GMT
27 min: Chance for Sidnei! And he should really do better after being played in by Castro, but his effort is straight at Galekovic, disappointingly.
9.04am GMT
25 min: Elrich is fine to continue, although he only does for a moment before both sides take a scheduled drinks break.
Which gives us a moment to appreciate one of Elrich’s finer moments. “Elrich! Oh what a goal!”
9.02am GMT
23 min: Tarek Elrich is floored by Chris Harold and the Adelaide full-back stays down for a worrying while to get treatment. Harold, for his troubles, is booked.
9.01am GMT
20 min: Covic wins some plaudits for something I missed because I was googling Don Pablo’s Animals in a attempt to make a link to Pablo Sanchez, who has been Adelaide’s don so far tonight.
Anyway, Covic gave a nice interview to Paul Connolly not so long ago. It’s well worth a read. “You need to be a little bit nuts to be a goalkeeper,” he told Paul.
Related: Ante Covic: 'You need to be a little bit nuts to be a goalkeeper' | Paul Connolly
8.56am GMT
18 min: Perth are comfortable in possession here, playing the ball around the back and letting the Adelaide front players work up a sweat.
8.55am GMT
17 min: Haven’t seen any anti FFA/News Corp banners in the Hindmarsh crowd yet. If you missed it, here’s what David Squires envisaged happening this weekend:
Related: David Squires on ... the response to A-League fan protests
8.53am GMT
15 min: Adelaide’s bright opening has been dulled somewhat over the past five minutes, since that last Sanchez chance. Perth are in the ascendency.
8.52am GMT
14 min: This is a good little spell of pressure from Perth now. A free-kick finds Golec, but the former Adelaide player can’t direct his header on target and ball sails into the stands behind Galekovic’s goal.
8.50am GMT
12 min: Perth keep up the pressure though and the ball comes across to Sandor who strikes it first time. It’s well blocked by a red shirt (or at least some red socks) and the ball balloons behind for a... goal kick, weirdly.
8.49am GMT
11 min: This has been a cracking opening to the game. Very enjoyable so far. And here’s Perth now, winning a corner, although it’s taken quickly and the rushed effort comes to nothing.
8.48am GMT
10 min: Sanchez again! Close to a second for United as the goalscorer produces a diving header at the back stick. Unfortunately for the Reds, he can only head down into the ground, which takes the pace of his effort and allows Covic to make the save.
8.48am GMT
9 min: Phil Withall has been in touch, although disappointingly he has this to say:
@mike_hytner I had just written some comedy gold for you.Then Adelaide scored making it obsolete. Sorry.
8.46am GMT
8 min: Garcia looks like bursting away from McGowan now, but he’s stopped in his tracks by a rather industrial challenge from the Adelaide defender. Yellow for McGowan, who sports the look of someone who knows he deserves it.
8.45am GMT
6 min: Carrusca plays a delightful backheel, and Adelaide are playing with a newfound confidence that has been sorely lacking in recent weeks. Amazing what an early goal can do. (Also, amazing what playing the second-worst team in the league can do.)
8.44am GMT
5 min: Those in the stadium are making a bit of noise. I don’t think it’s going to bring on tinnitus, but it’s a decent sound nevertheless.
8.43am GMT
4 min: A quick word on the kits, which in light of last night’s events in Auckland has become a hot topic – Adelaide in all red, Perth in their third strip, a slightly off-red number. Not really, but they are in their away kit, all white with purple trim.
8.42am GMT
3 min: What a start to the game for the Reds. And the inclusion of Pablo Sanchez in the starting XI has already paid dividends.
8.41am GMT
2 min: Bang on the two-minute mark and Adelaide take the lead through Sanchez! United’s top scorer performs a basketball-style 360 spin to get through a challenge (not in a Maradona way, more agricultural than that) before dinking the ball with a touch of class over the imposing figure of Covic!
8.38am GMT
1 min: And we’re off in Adelaide! A shrill whistle from referee Stephen Lucas and the game gets under way.
8.35am GMT
Weather update: (I know, but it’s important!) The mercury is hitting 33 degrees as kick-off time approaches. A man dressed up like Greedo from Star Wars (the green lizard man who Han Solo shoots under the table in the bar on Tatooine) is spotted in the crowd. Not an ideal get-up given the conditions, but hey, one assumes chances to dress up like Greedo from Star Wars are limited, so why not? (It might not be Greedo at all.)
8.28am GMT
So pleased that Coopers Stadium has “great viewing”. This, from the ground’s official website:
Coopers Stadium is a world-class multi-use facility just five minutes from central Adelaide. Considered by many to be the best football stadium in Australia, Coopers Stadium is home to the Hyundai A-League’s Adelaide United Football Club. The stadium boasts an immaculate playing surface coupled with an intimate ambience and great viewing. Apart from football, Coopers Stadium also hosts rugby league, rugby union and a variety of other sports that utilise rectangular pitches.
Is this the worst stadium view in European football? http://t.co/adB7Z9d9aL pic.twitter.com/WTbuew2iHI
8.25am GMT
Five minutes to kick-off and “the boys” are delivering their pre-match chat on the telly. Cirio has just been referred to as “Cheerio”, something of a departure from “Thirio”, which was fashionable for a while there. I prefer “Sirio”, for no reason in particular. But just how are we supposed to pronounce it? The name’s Jurman-esque in its complexity.
8.21am GMT
It’s the (un)official “Gone to the pub round” this weekend, given the current football fan/FFA farrago (you could probably add in another f-word there, but this isn’t the forum to do so), so what kind of crowd and atmosphere can we expect at Coopers tonight? If some other matches this round are anything to go by, it’ll be pretty poor.
8.13am GMT
Weather update: it has indeed been hot in Adelaide today – a contraption called a wet bulb globe, which looks like some kind of medeival torture device, has revealed it was too hot to play earlier in the day – justifying the change in kick-off time. But it’s cooled down now and judging by the Fox Sports commentary team’s open collared, resort-vibe clothing choices tonight, it appears to be a perfectly barmy evening.
8.09am GMT
So, Adelaide are without Craig Goodwin, who is serving a ban after accruing five bookings this season. Pablo Sanchez, United’s top scorer this season (with a whopping two goals), comes back into the starting XI to replace him, while Marcelo Carrusca starts for the first time in four games.
For Glory, Gyorgy Sandor comes in after six games away through injury, covering for Michael Thwaite who drops back to defence after a spell in midfield to replace Aryn Williams.
8.02am GMT
Here’s how the teams line up tonight:
Here’s how #AUFC are lining up for tonight’s clash against @PerthGloryFC. #ADLvPER pic.twitter.com/Ui3YPIXges
STARTING XI | Gyorgy Sandor makes his return to the starting eleven! #WestvsRest pic.twitter.com/MMWC1VYXUq
7.58am GMT
Twelve months ago, this match would have been
pencilled
permanent marker-penned into most self-respecting football fans’ diaries as this weekend’s must-watch event. Adelaide United, the strutting matadors of the A-League and their Spanish armada were playing some of the best football this league has seen – and more often than not getting the results they wanted – while Perth Glory were scorching a trail to the upper echelons of the ladder, guns blazing in true western style, and into the inaugural FFA Cup final – against Adelaide.
But that was 2014. This is 2015, and things are very much different. Gone from the Adelaide hot seat is Josep Gombau, and with him the side’s swagger. Gone from Perth are the likes of Andy Keogh and Jamie Maclaren, and with them any kind of potency up front, while the club is clearly still reeling from the salary cap scandal of the back end of last season. The two sides share just one victory between them so far this season – Perth have it, against Adelaide in round five – and as such, United prop up the table with Glory a point ahead of them in ninth. It’s a sorry state of affairs and one which new coach Guillermo Amor and his opposite number Kenny Lowe will hope to begin to rectify this evening at Coopers Stadium.
7.27am GMT
Mike will be here shortly to bring you updates from the delayed kick-off in steamy Adelaide this evening. While he wends his merry way to his keyboard though, why not have a read of Football Federation Australia’s latest mea culpa, over last night’s goings-on in Auckland.
Football Federation Australia is facing further headaches after reportedly admitting mistakes that led to a kit clash during Wellington Phoenix’s shock defeat of Melbourne Victory in Auckland and complaints about the state of the pitch.
Following a fortnight of turmoil in the game that has included mass fan boycotts of matches and an admission from the governing body that it had not responded quickly enough to defend supporters, FFA on Sunday again sought to quell unrest after accepting the blame for the incidents at North Harbour Stadium.
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