Perth Glory have continued their 4-1 scoreline, this time against Brisbane Roar thanks to a Rachel Hill hat-trick and Sam Kerr penalty on Sunday.

Brisbane Roar were bolstered by the return of Amy Chapman, Tameka Butt and Kaitlyn Torpey but forward Hayley Raso was rested for the game.

It was a solid performance for Perth started the game slowly but that was expected in the humid hot weather Brisbane puts on for a 1:30pm game.

It took until the 42nd-minute for the deadlock to be broken as Kerr and Hill combined for the first goal.  However, the celebrations did not last long as Perth failed to clear their line with Clare Polkinghorne heading home the equaliser.

While the first half went from 1-100 in a minute the second half was a different story as Perth came out from the change rooms and dominated the game.

BRISBANE ROAR: WHAT WENT RIGHT 

There were glimpses of promise from Roar with Arnold saving her side a number of times to keep the scoreline the way it was while Perth found it hard to beat experienced fullback Clare Polkinghorne.

Brisbane's pacy front third at times were able to trouble the Perth defence, particularly with balls out wide.  Hong Kong International, Wai Ki Chueng showed why she has the potential to be one of the best internationals this season being involved in a number of opportunities.

Despite having a number of chances in front of goals, they were unable to convert, an issue, which has been spoken about during pre-season and will be one Roar need to focus on.

AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT

It was a disappointing loss for the Brisbane Roar after coming off an impressive 3-1 win against Sydney FC last week.

The Roar were not able to make the combinations they were against Sydney but this could be put down to brilliant goalkeeping from Melissa Maizels and great marking from her defence making it near impossible for the forwards to get the ball into the box.

It appeared as though the team was not as cohesive compared to Perth and Brisbane struggled to get their key players like Katrina Gorry and Tameka Butt on the ball.

“We had a good training week and we went into the match with confidence,” coach Mel Andreatta said.

“I think the positives were conceding a goal and scoring one back going into the second half but then we lost control of the game so there are things we need to work on.”

PERTH GLORY: WHAT WENT RIGHT

Perth coach Bobby Despotovski was over the moon with his team’s performance.

“We worked hard in training in the lead up to this game to come here for what we want but I didn’t expect 4-1 but we will take it,” he said.

Perth continued to dominate the game with their pace and combination play between Rodriguez, Kerr and Hill.

Hill in particular caused all sorts of problems the Roar defence.  Her positioning and movement of the ball was an excellent foil for Sam Kerr with the duo already seeming to have found a connection.

“She [Rachel Hill] is an exceptional young player and obviously she gels in very well with the team while also complimenting Sammy [Kerr] up front.” Bobby Despotovski

“The combination will only get stronger.”

In midfield, Glory also looked solid.  The addition of Nicola Bolger has helped Perth keep the ball more than they have in previous seasons while Shannon May and Shawn Billam provided the defensive cover.  That trio worked well to nullify the potential dominance of Gorry and Butt.  With Nikki Stanton out with a probably broken arm, Depotoski will be looking to keep control of matches and supply a dynamic.

AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT

While Perth held up reasonably well defensively, the lapses they did have cost them either a goal or goalscoring opportunities.  Out wide the full backs have looked vulnerable to pace with both Melbourne City and Brisbane Roar looking to get in behind the defence via those avenues.

Goalkeeper Melissa Maizels has looked sharp 90% of the time dominating her box aerially.  However, she would be disappointed with the two goals conceded as both appear have come from indecision rather than technical aspects.

If those areas can be tightened up, Perth look to have a defence that will be difficult to breach.

UP NEXT

Brisbane Roar is on the road for Round 3 as they head down to Marconi Stadium to face the Western Sydney Wanderers while Perth Glory can’t head back west just yet and make the trip to Adelaide who lost their first game of the season.

MATCH DETAILS

Brisbane Roar   1 (Polkinghorne 43’)

Perth Glory        4 (Hill 42’, 58’, 83’, Kerr 77’ (p))