Newcastle Soar as Perth Left Without Glory

On a comfortable December late afternoon, early evening, Perth Glory played host to Newcastle United in what would be a rather miserable and difficult A-League match to watch as they suffered a 4-0 defeat at HBF Park. The Jets dominated early, with Thomas Aquilina scoring in the 8th minute, followed by goals from Lachlan Bayliss (21') and Ben Gibson (26'). Gibson added another goal shortly after halftime in the 46th minute. Aquilina contributed significantly with a goal and two assists, while Gibson tallied two goals and an assist.

Perth just never looked comfortable and were never able to mount and pose any serious challenge as Newcastle would have the answers at every throw of the dice, with Perth at times looking desperate to seek an opening goal to their account throughout the match. 

Perth Glory struggled to mount a comeback, making several substitutions at halftime, but were unable to break through Newcastle's defense. The match saw multiple yellow cards, including for Perth's Nicholas Pennington and Taras Gomulka, and Newcastle's Aquilina. 

 

This result marked a significant victory for Newcastle Jets, ending a series of draws between the two teams and highlighting their offensive prowess. This game was certainly a tough match to watch, although it was not as such for my friend who is a Newcastle fan and would be reminding me what was going on as well as the score. But it was all in jest as we had both agreed that Newcastle are very much like the Perth Glory of the east and have their fair share of ups and many, many downs to make their fans, much like Perth fans tear their hair out is despair.

Now on about the food and drink. We had a Matso's ginger beer which was not too bad as well as a Captain Morgan's rum. These were 13.50 each and again mid-strength beverages which they taste alright, do lack that alcohol content that packs any punch and not worth it for the price. Cool drinks like Pepsi are now almost the price of a Toyota Corolla and valued at 6.70. This is becoming ridiculous, but of course people are thirsty and the younger ones who want a beverage will no doubt be supplying the vendors with their sustained high demands for it. Keeping the circular flow going until it becomes beyond a joke.

 

The chicken burger was with a Korean twist and was not too bad and the spiciness wasn't bad either. It was just not the spicy it bills itself to be. I guess it is more of a mainstream Australian 'spicy' rather than actual spicy. The pulled pork loaded fries with nacho topping and jalapenos were not too bad either. but for 17 dollars were on the rather high side of things.

Another day watching Perth Glory do what they do best. Although the, pardon the pun, 'glory days' of Perth Glory now seem like a distant memory as the National Soccer League era is now 20 years ago, the memories of match-days and the glimmer of hope they show and those experiences do occasionally shine through. Which like an old unhappy marriage, I can relate, you just keep hanging around and when the good times are there, you seem to want to hang around. Well, until the next time, I shall be at Perth Oval yet again for another unpredictable adventure, with predictable results. 

Australia Bomb Five In Against Palestine

Australia capped off their second-round FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifying campaign with a dominant 5-0 victory over Palestine at HBF Park on a rather crisp and cool evening in Perth. The result sealed a perfect group stage for the Socceroos, who won all six matches in Group I, scored 22 goals, and did not concede once. Graham Arnold’s side showcased their attacking firepower, tactical discipline, and squad depth, while also giving younger players a platform to impress. Palestine came into the match already in second place and while the defeat was heavy, they had already done enough in the earlier matches to progress to the next phase of qualification.

 

Australia made a fast start, earning a penalty in the 5th minute when Aziz Behich was brought down in the box. Kusini Yengi stepped up and slotted home to make it 1-0. In the 26th minute, Martin Boyle delivered a pinpoint cross that found Adam Taggart, who made no mistake to double the lead in front of his hometown crowd. Before halftime, Boyle again turned provider, threading a perfect through ball for Yengi to score his second and give Australia a 3-0 cushion at the break. The Socceroos maintained their intensity in the second half. In the 53rd minute, Yengi turned playmaker, releasing Taggart who then squared it unselfishly to Boyle for a simple tap-in. The scoring was capped off in the 87th minute when debutant Nestory Irankunda converted a penalty after a handball by Yaser Hamed. The 18-year-old marked the moment with his signature backflip celebration, becoming the youngest goalscorer for Australia in the modern era and highlighting why Bayern Munich have signed him.

 

Australia’s campaign was as clinical as it was commanding. With 22 goals scored and none conceded, the Socceroos cruised through Group I with confidence and cohesion. Big wins, including a 7-0 thumping of Bangladesh, underlined their attacking prowess and squad depth. Players like Kusini Yengi and Martin Boyle were instrumental, and emerging talents like Irankunda added excitement for the future. The team will now progress to the third and final round of Asian qualifying, set to begin in September, where tougher tests await.

 

For Palestine, the loss in Perth did not overshadow a historic achievement. Finishing second in the group means they progress to the final round of Asian qualifiers for the first time in their history. While outclassed on the night by a sharper Australian side, their earlier performances—including wins over Bangladesh and Lebanon—were enough to see them through. Palestine will now compete among Asia’s final 18 teams for a potential place at the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

 

Now back to the food and drink. I have said many times before that I try and you should also try to avoid the food and or drink at the venue as they are somewhat expensive, but also rather lackluster. The flavour to price ratio is just simply not worth it when you try and rationalise your purchase. But when you are with your younger ones, you just have to make those exceptions and when they are hungry and thirsty you just have to go with the votes.

 

I bought a meat-box for 20 dollars and it was not too bad, but the chips are just not quite right with just how poorly they are salted and they just all  rather stuck together and a mushed mess. You need the cheese lightly melted, but not too much. You need the chili and garlic sauce to compliment this and then you need the right amount of crunch of the chip batter as well as the salt levels to add to the flavours of the sauces and the cheese. It was just a bit lacking but with what we paid it was just passable.

 

For drinks it was the Pepsi for 6.50 and a Captain Morgan mid strength, because we are not allowed to have any fun in Australia, was 13.50. So while nothing excitingly different there, it was enough to just satisfy us during the cool winter's evening while watching Australia take complete control of the match.

 

Another game done and dusted at Perth Oval, Australia punch in another win and move on-wards. Hopefully Perth do well this season and maybe, just maybe I might have the odd drink or maybe there's something nice on offer at the ground. 

Kangaroos Hop Towards First Win

North Melbourne visited Optus oval in Perth to take on much improved West Coast in a highly competitive game that was in the balance right up to the final minutes of the match. North Melbourne have been showing some fight and some promise. However their inexperience and their lack of match stamina has cost them the chocolates as they say in Aussie rules circles but they do seem to be improving and not far off from securing a win. This would be their chance to do so for the first time this season, though it was not an easy contest and they had to work hard and fight hard for the vital 4 points. 

Was a rather low scoring affair and North Melbourne didn't get off to the start they were hoping for by being kept goalless in the first quarter. However, to the Kangaroos' credit their defensive lines were resolute and determined and were able to smother any attack the Eagles made when they were venturing within their attacking 50 metre arc. They were only able to score 10 points and kick one goal and four points. North Melbourne were on track to keeping the Eagles goalless too but this goal was kicked in the dying stages of the quarter to so possible signs that the defensive lines of the Shinboner's might be put to the test and could be teetering.

The second quarter started strongly with North Melbourne opening their account scoring their first goal and a few behinds to bring the scores level. in the 9th minute West Coast kicked one and things looked concerning for the visitors. However their dogged determination and their ferocious tackling and their close quarters tagging had cramped up the Eagle's style of play and had resulted in West Coast being shut down and unable to break away from the Kangaroos. This was resulting in North Melbourne being able to gain the ascendancy and began to turn the screws on the hosts and began to stamp their authority. Though they ran into the main break with an 8 point lead at half time 29 to 21.

North Melbourne had turned on the heat and the third quarter was all Kangaroos. They kept West Coast goalless and only allowed them to score 6 behinds where North Melbourne had kicked four goals and one behind to head to the three quarter change with a 27 point lead. North Melbourne were 54 to 27. It looked like North Melbourne had broken the Eagles and the game was going to go all North's way. West Coast looked deflated and bereft of an idea. Though This is North Melbourne and they have struggled to finish teams off or maintain the pace with their opposition. So would have to wait and see how the final quarter would pan out.

Well West Coast had turned the game on its head as North Melbourne simply looked like that they had run out of petrol in their tanks and more and more unforced errors had culminated in West Coast completely shutting down the visitors. West Coast kicked 6 unanswered goals and had smashed the defense of North. It was rapidly slipping away until the 25th minute with North Melbourne finding just enough juice in their tank to snag two vital goals to seal the match and clinch a 9 point victory to finally record their first win of the season.

Now after all that onto the food and beverages. Mid-strength Bundaberg and cola and Matso's ginger beer were both 13.50. Now I have said this many times. But for mid-strength alcohol the price is too high for a slightly reduced content. But I digress before I once again go down that rabbit hole of ranting and raving about that issue. It was enjoyable to have either way during the match. Water was highway robbery at 5.40 and that is ridiculous, especially when they bang on about responsible service of alcohol and the reduction in trying to not allow people who are consuming alcohol to not become intoxicated and to remain sober. Having water at such a price is ridiculous, especially for children and people who do not consume alcohol.

The Italian steak sandwich was a bit expensive at 22 dollars but certainly tasted rather delicious. Though it probably should be 5 dollars cheaper. The pork loaded fries were 14.50 and I think the portion to price ratio was suitable and I think the price for this is somewhat fair for what is on offer. This was finished with a bulleit bourbon for the same price and the Bundaberg and Matsos. Again, my same complaints and it is also mid-strength.

This was also my first game at Optus stadium to watch a North Melbourne game and the first time since I think about 2007 since I have seen North Melbourne win a game in Perth. Also it has been 12 years since I saw a North Melbourne win in person since I was on the Gold Coast back in June of 2012. Another game and another outing to Optus stadium. A very good venue, some complaints about pricing, though I think that this is just the way it will always be and sadly wont change. Though I will always make a point about it.

Royals Reign Against Floundering Falcons

A Foundation Day encounter between modern Western Australian Football League (WAFL) clubs of West Perth Falcons and the East Perth Royals at a cool and pleasant afternoon at Joondalup Arena was the stage for the high fancied 2024 premiership visitors East Perth against the touted finals challengers and often a dark horse in this competition being the hosts of this match, West Perth. East Perth have been playing some good and solid football so far at this stage, although there have been signs for the Royals that the wheels may be wobbling and the bus towards the 2024 premiership might be spluttering and struggling to close out matches. West Perth on the other hand do not have the same pressures as the Royals and have been showing signs of promise as they aim to rebuild and take a shot at the flag in their own time with no added pressures of expectations unlike previous seasons. However, West Perth, especially at home in Joondalup are to not be taken lightly and will always be a tough encounter. Given this encounter will be especially challenging with Foundation Day and being East Perth.

It was a challenging affair, though East Perth were in control for most of the game and would ensure that there was a slight buffer of a lead as they would run into the quarter time break with a two goal lead and were off to a good start.West Perth would claw their way back into the contest for the second quarter making East Perth work hard for their lead. It was being whittled away and East Perth were determined to hang in there at the main break with the lead at 6 points.

West Perth had found gaps in the Royal's defensive lines and were able to break them down, scoring two goals and two points, with the lead building to a possible 20 plus point lead towards three-quarter time, it looked like West Perth had broken them down and the game was there to be won for the hosts. West Perth went into their team huddle for the three-quarter break only 6 points ahead. It was going to be a close last quarter with it being a kick in it. This was going to be a war of attrition and a battle. Both sides simply couldn't land a knock-out blow to build upon any lead to make them into more comfortable ones. This was also due to both sides being highly wasteful with the ball, poor connections of kicks and hand-passes, strong defensive lines being able to break down attacking pushes into their attacking 50 metre arcs and just simply both sides not being able to flow and gel together and build upon good passages of play into something greater.

East Perth scored two goals early in the last quarter with West Perth holding firm and preventing the Royals from breaking open the game, but also wasteful possession and passing from the visitors would make the last quarter that much harder for themselves. West Perth kicked a goal and had hit the lead towards the end of the match with East Perth snatching a victory from the jaws of defeat with a well times goal immediately after West Perth's crucial goal and would run out 3 point winners. This means that it would be my first experience of an East Perth win at the Joondalup Arena in quite some considerable time. I would say over ten years if I could accurately document that.

Now the food and beverages. We did not have any food on this occasion as the queues for food and drinks were too long and the match was a really close encounter we were simply glued to our seats. But my dear old father and I did manage to get an ice-cream and eventually a cool drink. Dad had a double hedgehog chocolate cone with nuts. I simply had a single chocolate one with a flake, as we both had a can of coke. The double was 8 dollars and the single was 6 dollars with the cans being 3 dollars. They weren't bad and went down well while watching the football. But all-in-all another good match between these two and was nice to head up to Joondalup to watch some football with Dad. Hopefully we can do it all again sometime soon.

 

Royals Shine But West Coast Soar

East Perth played host to West Coast on a bright, sunny and somewhat of a warm May for some Western Australian Football League (WAFL) action at Leederville Oval. East Perth have been touted as premiership favourites for the 2024 WAFL season and with them sitting on top of the table it does look like they will be the ones to chase and somewhat hard to chase. However, there were signs during the game that do point to potential issues with East Perth in how they could face challenges in their tilt for the flag this year. West Coast had started out rather poorly, but were starting to find their feet and begin to cause issues with the hosts whenever they would string their passes and look for options when they were pressing forward into their attacking 50. This is where I mentioned is the potential for East Perth's title tilt to become rather unstuck. There would be moments where the Royals would "shut down" and become all sixes and sevens and simply not be able to kick or hand-pass effectively; in turn becoming impotent when they would try and press and would fail to take their chances. West Coast were mounting a serious challenge to the Royals and this is a clear sign that while East Perth are able to disrupt their opposition and take the lead, they tend to struggle and not be able to maintain their efforts into the second half, especially into their last quarters of matches. Some really troubling signs for them.

However, thanks in part due to West Coast's WAFL side being still rather inexperienced and still trying to find their feet into semi-profession football and the Aussie Rules setup, the experience and caliber of East Perth shone supreme as they were able to wrestle the game away from them in the end of the 3rd quarter and then put the game to bed in the last quarter. East did not look back as the goals were slowly mounting and the win was all but secured. However, West Coast should not feel too despondent as there were promising signs of good performances and I think that they could pose a threat to other WAFL teams further on into the season. As the AFL West Coast team have been turning their fortunes around compared to last season and have been really challenging teams, like the Essendon match. East Perth had finished the visitors off with a 74 point win, a needed percentage booster against title challenger Peel Thunder and 2023 WAFL grand finalists who are sitting in second position.

Now for the food and drink. While I did not have any alcohol, I perhaps should have as the food was not worth the lengthy wait and was even for WAFL and Aussie Rules rather sub-par. The cheeseburger was 13 dollars and was not worth this price, nor worth the taste either. Was highly disappointing but was semi-saved with a sausage roll from Mrs Macs which was 5.50 and while there is a mark-up to make money off the sale of a Mrs Mac's sausage roll, it is perhaps a dollar or 2 just too much there. Hot chips and gravy were 8 dollars and were not too bad, but the gravy was on the more stingy side and a bit watery and weak. The chips were nicely done and were nicely salted also. A real shame there as it could have gone down a treat to save me from the cheeseburger and the bog-standard sausage roll.

Drinks were 4 dollars for the cans and well, they are simply a can of Fanta and Coke. What more could you say about those? They tasted exactly as you would expect, just that they are double what would be a reasonable price for anyone. While I might feel that I am somewhat stuck in the past or unrealistic, having to cough up that much for a can does make going out to the football, or any other local sport over the weekend a difficult prospect at times.

Due to my university commitments and personal commitments, I have seemingly visited more Aussie Rules football games of recent times. While I am the punctual football fan and I do love my football, I must confess that I do enjoy watching my other favourite sports and was good to go and watch my father's and mine's favourite team of East Perth play. It has been a long time since my father and I have watched an East Perth game or WAFL game live together. Brought back many memories and was a great afternoon. Would love to do it all again when we can. These moments feel further special as age is marching on and Dad is getting older. Well, was a good day watching the football, but food wise was rather forgettable.

Eagles Soar but Bombers Rule the Skies

Was a somewhat coolish evening in Perth at Optus stadium that played host between the struggling, yet showing signs of promise West Coast Eagles and the high flying Essendon Bombers for round 8 in the Australian Football League 2024 season. Now with that mouthful and a bit of a long-winded introduction to the game let us talk about what actually happened during the match and then get onto the whole point of this blog shall we? 

As AFL fans, especially West Coast fans would know is that their team, the main and successful team out of Perth, Western Australia have been struggling of late since the onset of the Wuhan virus chaos and drama in early 2020. They have had a few lean seasons and have been widely tipped that 2024 would be somewhat more of the same. While, I personally think this is amusing as I am not a West Coast fan, but you can understand why fans and the media in Perth would be highly critical and frustrated with such a team's recent seasonal performances given their rich, deep and successful history since joining the competition in 1987. Now you have the opposition, Essendon, known as the Bombers and have been around from the outset. They have been a rather up and down side in recent seasons with this inconsistent form preventing them from playing finals football post-season, something they have not experienced since 2004. However, this season things seem to be looking rather promising for the red and black with them sitting in the top 4 leading into this match. With a third of the season over, things are looking promising to break that drought.

The match started and the visitors from Victoria had started off strongly. It was looking like it might be the beginning of a bit of a blowout like in previous seasons for the Eagles. However, it wasn't long for the home side to muscle its way back into the match and really make Essendon fight for their leads. West Coast had kicked up several gears and were buoyed by the crowd cheering them on, forcing Essendon to create many unforced errors, costing them many opportunities to further their lead. This only kept West Coast within the contest and able to not drop their heads as they kept pushing to close the gap and possibly hit the lead. Essendon lead at every interval and ran home winners with 11 goals 11 points 77 to West Coast's 11 goals 5 points 71.

I personally didn't have anything to eat but I was with a friend and we had a few drinks with the usual mid-strength Bulleit bourbon at 13.75 and Matso's Ginger Beer also at 13.75. I had a can of V for 5.80, which is rather akin to service station prices and a ridiculous 6 dollars for a bottle of water. I have said it many times, and I will say it always. I feel that the alcohol was expensive and should be between 10 and 11 dollars. For full-strength I could understand the logic, but for mid-strength alcohol it is absurd, especially in these difficult economic times.

 

This was my first AFL game at the new stadium outside of WAFL football and any other sport that has been played at the stadium. The ground is clearly purpose built for AFL, a nice ground but a shame other sports arent ideally well suited for it. But all-in-all it is a good venue for the city, especially after suffering for so long with dilapidated facilities.

Jets Soar But Perth Out-Gun Newcastle

Was a warmish Western Australian evening at HBF Park for an A-League clash between Perth Glory and Newcastle United Jets. I cannot say that I ever enjoy calling them the jets as I really dislike the idea of Australian football teams having nicknames like they do in the AFL and the NRL. However, it is a rather 'Australian' thing and I guess football is no exception when it comes to names for teams in the competition. But i digress and should get back on task as I should. Both teams respective campaigns were flagging and slipping away ever so quickly. A win here for either team would give them some form of a glimmer of hope for their play-off chances to be kept alive. However, with the teams at the business end of town racking up the full points and making sure they pick up points along the way when they stumble, it makes it further challenging for both teams to try and stay in the hunt.

This game was crucial for both and this fixture always throws up some degree of drama, so it was not going to be anything but a dull match or a foregone conclusion. Perth were showing positive signs, however, they just were failing to capitalise of the hard work and pressing the defensive lines of the jets. The valiant defence of the scrambling jets which lead into venturing counter-attacks would start to form cracks in the Perth defence. With there chipping away at the Glory defensive lines and some rather sloppy defending from the home side, Newcastle opened their account and scored the first goal of the match in the 40th minute with a Clayton Taylor goal.

Perth were rattled and just wer not able to settle and get into a bit of a groove. Newcastle were starting to feel more and more comfortable with the ball and were pressing up into their attacking half looking threatening. Perth just couldn't string enough passages of threatening play to shake off Newcastle's momentum and although there were a few glimmers of hope for the home side, there just wasn't the breakthrough they were desperately searching for.

Newcastle further extended their lead in the 54th minute with Lucas Mauragis causing the crowd of 6190 to fall silent and the very small, yet vocal away support feeling that there might be a rae, yet vital away win looming. However, this was all about to be turned on its head with another display of the Adam Taggart show that would crash through the evening and throw a cat amongst the pidgeons. Taggart scored in the 72nd minute and injected new life into the hosts, where they seemed to be instantly transformed. Perth were playing with an increased sense of urgency, passion and desire to want to get things moving and to force something out of the contest; rather than wait and see and be flat-footed as they were in the first half.

Newcastle were just blown away and the jets were being downed as Perth began to gain the ascendency. Taggart sunk his second for the game in the 90th minute to square the game at 2-2 and looked threatening to possibly poach a third for an unlikely win for the hosts. However the match ended 2 all with Perth squandering their chances in the second half. However, Newcastle will feel the same as they too squandered golden opportunities in the first half.

I sound like a broken record, but I must keep saying this for every game I will ever come to when I watch Perth Glory. Try to avoid buying food at this venue at all costs. The food is nothing to write home about and it is completely over-priced and a waste of money. Luckily it was just myself and a friend who watched this match. But as I have stated many times, and will for many more, try and avoid this situation if you are taking your family or your children. They will eat you out of house and home if you  allow this to occur. 

Captain Morgan mid strength rum and cola is 13.5, with my usual complaints about how for mid strength this is over priced and if you want to just have a few quiet ones and enjoy the game with your friend, can be a very costly enterprise. Alcoholic ginger beer was also at 13.50 and same goes for this. Water was 5 dollars with Pepsi 600mL at 6.20. The beef burger was 14.50 and was not anything special to write home about, but enough to write in this blog about just how generic it was and how over-priced it was. But for my friend it filled the void as we were drinking two alcoholic beverages. I had a Mrs Mac's pie and that was 7 dollars. Just a typical pie from them that is exactly that. A beef pie.

 

An entertaining match, always good to see the sun set over the Perth city buildings over the western side of the ground. Creates a lovely picturesque backdrop further adding to the pleasant experience. As always, the price of food and beverages leaves a sour taste. Especially if the food is nothing to write home about.