Soccer: Perth aim for glory right from the start

By TERRY MADDAFORD

Perennial chokers Perth Glory struck quickly as the new National Soccer League season kicked off with a series of close matches.

Perth, beaten in the last two grand finals after storming through the minor premiership, beat Parramatta Power 2-0 away to join Newcastle United at the top of the table after round one.

Second-half goals from Matt Horsley and Bobby Despotovski handed Glory a lead they were never going to surrender.

Power's best chance came from Royce Brownlie - the player who walked out on Perth just days before the transfer deadline.

Newcastle also won 2-0, beating South Melbourne at home. Adam Griffiths celebrated his first game for United by heading home the opening goal from a 43rd-minute corner.

Scott Baillie completed the scoring two minutes the other side of halftime, again following a Milan Blagojevic corner.

Defending premiers Olympic Sharks came from a goal down for a 1-1 draw away to Melbourne Knights. Anthony Pelikan gave the Knights their 36th-minute lead.

Ante Milicic snatched the second-half equaliser as the Sharks, without Paul Kohler (sent off with 20 minutes to play), battled for a point.

The points were also shared by the Marconi Stallions and Wollongong Wolves, who played out a 2-2 draw at Marconi Stadium. Eighteen-year-old Alex Brosque got both Marconi goals.

Wolves grabbed the equaliser just before halftime through Naum Sekulovski and he got another just after the break.

With their 0-0 home draw against Sydney United, the Football Kingz head into Friday night's away game with Northern Spirit just two points off the pace, being set by Perth and Newcastle.

In the feature game of the second round, Olympic play Marconi.