The crossbar and last ditch Brisbane defending denied NRMA Insurance Western Sydney Wanderers a second half equaliser time and again as the Red and Black tasted defeat for the first time this season in a 3-1 loss.
The crossbar and last ditch Brisbane defending denied NRMA Insurance Western Sydney Wanderers a second half equaliser time and again as the Red and Black tasted defeat for the first time this season in a 3-1 loss.
Brendan Santalab got the Wanderers back into the match with his first goal for the club after they conceded two early goals.
From that point on the match was a barrage of Wanderers attacks on goal but the elusive break-through never came and Kwame Yeboah sucker-punched the Red and Black in the 91st minute to seal the result.
It was the first time a team had ever scored three goals against the Wanderers but the scoreline could have been very different but for the woodwork denying Labinot Haliti-s looping header.
Further chances fell to Santalab, Mark Bridge and Shannon Cole but it was not to be as the Wanderers succumbed to their first regular season loss in over ten months.
Berisha scored the opener in the fifth minute, the first time the Wanderers had even conceded in the opening twenty minutes of a match, collecting a deflection off his own shot before guiding the ball in to the back of the net past a stranded Wanderers defence.
Following the frantic start the match settled and Mateo Poljak attempted to unlock the Roar backline with a cross-field ball on 17 minutes, but despite getting numbers into the box, the Wanderers were unable to fashion a scoring chance from Mark Bridge’s cross.
The Red and Black were just starting to find their feet before Ivan Franjic struck a 20-yard volley from the top of the penalty area to double the hosts’ advantage on 19 minutes.
Santalab skewed a volley wide of the target on 22 minutes before making the breakthrough five minutes later when Bridge intercepted Jade North’s pass, laying the ball off for Santalab who finished with a clever chipped shot over the advancing Michael Theo.
Renewed by the goal, Santalab missed the chance to level terms when his goal-bound header was blocked by a Roar defender.
A long ball from Wanderers goalkeeper Ante Covic found Shannon Cole in behind the Roar line late in the half with Theo intervening to maintain the Roar’s half-time advantage.
The contest surged from end to end with few genuine chances for either side before the Wanderers struck the crossbar courtesy of a Haliti header on 66 minutes.
The lurking Cole subsequently missed the target with a spectacular overhead attempt on the rebound.
Further chances fell Western Sydney’s way as Bridge and Tahj Minniecon shot wide in the final 20 minutes.
A series of corners for the visitors also kept Roar under pressure late in the game.
A tense finish ensued before the 19-year-old Yeboah repeated his heroics against Central Coast Mariners a fortnight ago, breaking down the left flank and cutting inside before striking a fierce shot past Covic with his right foot.
Brisbane Roar 3 (Berisha 5, Franjic 19, Yeboah 90)
NRMA Insurance Western Sydney Wanderers 1 (Santalab 28)
Crowd: 19,066 @ Suncorp Stadium
