Victory claims thriller
A Kevin Muscat penalty in the last five minutes has seen Melbourne Victory secure a thrilling 3-2 victory over 10-man Gold Coast United at Skilled Park.
On a dusty Saturday evening, the two sides produced a sensational opening half as United claimed the lead through skipper Jason Culina's 18th-minute spot kick after Muscat brought down Joel Porter in the area.
The Victory hit back almost immediately as Carlos Hernandez smashed home a 30-metre piledriver four minutes later before the Melbournians claimed the lead two minutes before the interval when Archie Thompson prodded home.
By that stage United were already down to 10-man as Steve Fitzsimmons was handed his marching orders for a crude challenge on Leigh Broxham. But despite the disadvantage the hosts levelled by the break as Porter scored his first Hyundai A-League goal, nodding home a Culina corner during first-half injury time.
Both sides continued trading blows after the break but the real drama occurred late in the encounter when Thompson was fouled in the box by Bas van den Brink. Muscat stepped up to take the penalty and drove it high over the bar,
But referee Peter Green deemed a United player had come off his line too early and ordered the spot kick re-taken, allowing Muscat to redeem himself and bury the Gold Coast's chances.
Melbourne's second win in a row, and its second on the road, sees last season's premiers climb to fourth position on the Hyundai A-League table ahead of Sunday's three games, while United remain on top despite having taken just one point from its last three games.
In National Youth League news, Sydney FC has continued its perfect title defence by defeating the Brisbane Roar 2-0 on Saturday afternoon via a double from Kerem Bulut, while Adelaide United came from behind to stun the AIS 4-1.
Terry Antonis opened the scoring for the AIS in Canberra just after the half hour, but Fabian Barbiero's goal for United two minutes after the break opened the floodgates and the Reds cruised to a commanding win.