Glory sweating on stars ahead of FFA Cup final

Perth Glory coach Kenny Lowe is hopeful of getting some of his big guns back for next weekend’s Westfield FFA Cup final, with an injury crisis currently affecting the club.

The undermanned Glory went down for the third time in four Hyundai A-League games on Sunday, beaten 1-0 by Western Sydney Wanderers.

Glory was without Gyorgy Sandor, Diego Castro, Chris Harold and Mitchell Oxborrow, while both Dino Djulbic and Guyon Fernandez played despite carrying knocks.

It’s the worst possible timing for Glory, with the Cup final against Melbourne Victory to come on Saturday night at AAMI Park.

“We actually prepared during the week with a game-plan and we picked up injuries,” Lowe said.

“Sandor and Oxborrow have got impact injuries from a tackle during the week. Castro’s got a reaction to a calf just from the hard grounds, same as Guyon Fernandez.

“Djulbic got through the game. I didn’t think he’d start but he got through the game so we’ll see how he goes. Chrissy Harold has got a hammy.

“So it’s bring your boots [for the final] and you’ll get a game this week.

“I’m hoping to get a few boys back but if not we’ll go with what we’ve got. Everyone gets a lovely opportunity to get a game in a Cup final. I think I’ll bring my boots this week,” Lowe joked.

The absences certainly affected Glory at ‘Wanderland’ as they failed to get a shot on target over a lacklustre 90 minutes.

In the end it was Dario Vidosic’s superb strike just before half-time which settled the contest in front of just over 14,000 fans at a rain-soaked Pirtek Stadium.

“I thought [Wanderers] controlled the tempo of the game without massive amounts of clear-cut chances,” Lowe said.

“But to concede at a corner, we were a bit disappointed by that. There was a lot of honest endeavour by us, we were in it until they death.

“The Wanderers needed a win and you could see that the last 10, 15 minutes because they were a little apprehensive.

“If we could have found that little touch of quality or a little bit more control of the ball, maybe we could have pinched something out of it.”

With the Cup final next weekend, Glory are not in action in the A-League for another fortnight with a trip to Suncorp Stadium to play Brisbane Roar.