ECU Joondalup put on a five-star performance to keep in touch with the top five in PlayStation 4 NPL WA after a 5-2 win against Balcatta at Grindleford Reserve.
A stunning strike from midfielder Sam Pollard opened the scoring for the visitors before skipper Gordon Smith bagged two goals before half time.
Second half goals to Daryl Nicol and Tommy Amphlett put ECU in total control, but late strikes from Luccas Mello and Ben Meredith gave the scoreline some respectability for Balcatta.
ECU coach Dale McCulloch was delighted with the win, but was disappointed to concede two late goals.
“I thought we were very comfortable for the whole game and yes, we conceded two goals late, but we made three quick substitutions which upset us a little, and we have to learn from that going forward,” he said.
“We took our chances well and killed the game off early in the second half. We could have scored a few more to be fair, but a good win on the road and we move on to Tuesday in the FFA Cup against Dianella.”
ECU assistant player/coach Steven McGarry said it was a great result and picked out youngster Sam Pollard for praise.
“We started well today but we could have scored more so that is something we have to work on, and defensively we need to be better,” he said.
“Sam was excellent today, and he has been outstanding for us in recent weeks. It took him a couple of games to get used to playing at this level, but when he’s on the ball he’s dangerous and can score goals, and today’s was a cracker.”
In other Saturday matches, Sorrento conceded their first loss of the season in a physical match-up with Joondalup United at Percy Doyle Reserve, Inglewood claimed a 2-0 victory over Armadale at Perth Plasterboard Centre Stadium and Perth SC beat Subiaco 2-1 with a last-gasp stoppage time winner at Dorrien Gardens.
Floreat claimed a 2-0 away win over a luckless Mandurah City at Securitas Protect Stadium, Bayswater moved into the top four on the league ladder with a 2-1 victory against Perth Glory at Finance 365 Stadium, and Stirling Lions beat Cockburn City 2-0 at Macedonia Park to stretch their unbeaten run to five games.
RESULTS
Sorrento 1 (Vittiglia 75min)
Joondalup United 2 (Howles 13min, 31)
FULL MATCH REPORT HERE
Inglewood United 1 (Salmon 44min, 90+2)
Armadale 0
FULL MATCH REPORT HERE
Perth SC 2 (Sabatini 39min, Orr 93)
Subiaco 1 (Feely 44min)
FULL MATCH REPORT HERE
Mandurah City 0
Floreat Athena 2 (Evans 61min, Stynes 81)
FULL MATCH REPORT HERE
Bayswater City 2 (Stokoe 17min, Mirco 55)
Perth Glory 1 (Petratos 38min)
FULL MATCH REPORT HERE
Stirling Lions 2 (Vujacic 22min, Sokol 90+1)
Cockburn City 0
FULL MATCH REPORT HERE
Balcatta 2 (Mello 69min, Meredith 89)
ECU Joondalup 5 (Pollard 23min, Smith 25, 43, Nicol 58, Amphlett 65)
FULL MATCH REPORT HERE