Central Coast Mariners have gone three points clear in second position thanks to a 2-1 win in Perth on Wednesday night.
The traveling Mariners scored twice in quick succession through Daniel McBreen and Matt Simon in the 22nd and 23rd minutes before Simon's 26th minute penalty was saved by Glory keeper Tando Velaphi.
Glory's Jamie Harnwell was given his marching orders for an elbow on Simon prior to the hour-mark but it didn't stop the home side going on the offensive and they managed to give themselves some hope when Todd Howarth fired home in the 38th minute.
But the Mariners ground out a winning result to move within seven points of league leaders Brisbane Roar as the Glory remained rooted in second bottom position.
It was the 11th time the Mariners had beaten the Glory in 18 meetings between the clubs.
A-League Week 23Perth Glory: 1 (Todd Howarth 38') Central Coast Mariners: 2 (Daniel McBreen 22', Matt Simon 23')p>Venue: nib Stadium, Perth Crowd:Referee: Ryan Shepheard Yellow cards:PG - Steven McGarry 17', Tando Velaphi 25', Adriano Pellegrino 57'/90+3' CCM - Pedj Bojic 14', Rostyn Griffths 45', Oliver Bozanic 48' Red card:PG - Jamie Hanrwell 27', Adriano Pellegrino 90+3'
Perth had an early chance when Tommy Amphlett's fifth minute shot went just over the crossbar but it was the Mariners who got on the scoresheet first through Daniel McBreen. GOAL The big striker made the most of a Trent Sainsbury header, nodding past Tando Velaphi for the opener in the 22nd minute for his fourth of the season.
GOAL Less than a minute later, the Glory were shell-shocked when Central Coast grabbed a second through Matt Simon. His goal came when Sainsbury crossed in to the back post for Simon to easily slot home from close range.
It could have been far worse for the home side when referee Ryan Shepheard awarded the Mariners a penalty when Andy Todd brought down McBreen inside the area but Simon's 26th minute spot kick was saved by Velaphi.
Central Coast were dominating the match, as they have done with this fixture for some time now, and it looked to go further in their favour when Glory defender Jamie Harnwell was shown a straight red card for elbowing Simon in an aerial contest.
GOAL But the home side fought back in the 38th minute when Todd Howarth scored his second goal in two matches with a neat finish from a Scott Neville pass to get the team back on track and feeling confident at the half-time break despite having no luck in the first 45 minutes.
Perth's newfound confidence was shining through in the early stages of the second half as they were pushing forward with regularity but the Mariners never seemed to be out of it and were beginning to look far more dangerous as the match progressed.
Michael McGlinchey was making a nuisance of himself in the Mariners midfield but their overall desire to go 3-1 up fell away as the Glory replaced Robbie Fowler with Victor Sikora who was coming on for his first piece of action in more than a year.
Despite having a player advantage, the Mariners looked out on their feet as the Glory strived for a leveler but they were unable to restore parity despite a late blast by teenager Adam Taggart which was well-saved by Mathew Ryan.
Perth's Adriano Pellegrino was shown a red card for a second bookable offence in injury time but it did nothing to alter the result.
Starting Line-Ups
PG Tando Velaphi (gk), Scott Neville (Howard Fondyke 90+4'), Andy Todd, Jamie Harnwell, Josh Mitchell, Adriano Pellegrino, Tommy Amphlett, Steven McGarry (Taggart 84'), Todd Howarth, Mile Sterjovski, Robbie Fowler (Sikora 77')
Subs - Alex Pearson (gk), Victor Sikora (77'), Adam Taggart (84'), Howard Fondyke (90+4')
CCM Mathew Ryan (gk), Trent Sainsbury, Alex Wilkinson, Chris Doig, Pedj Bojic, Michael McGlinchey, Rostyn Griffiths (Amini 58'), Oliver Bozanic, John Hutchinson, Matt Simon (Baird 74'), Daniel McBreen
Subs - Paul Henderson (gk), Mustafa Amini (58'), Michael Baird (74'), Matthew Lewis
