Asia/Oceania
Brockie, playing high on the right, struck twice in the space of a minute to send Newcastle to joint second on the A-League table with the win over Shane Smeltz’s Perth Glory. The first in the 10th minute was a clinical finish from a tight angle but his second, a powerful volley which included a cheeky dink over his defender, is sure to feature in end-of-season highlight reels.
Wellington-born Michael McGlinchey enjoyed his return to the capital as his Central Coast Mariners outfit edged the Wellington Phoenix 2-1. Tony Lochhead, Leo Bertos and Tim Brown all played for the Phoenix while Mark Paston was on the bench and Ben Sigmund suspended.
Glen Moss was on the receiving end of a heartbreaking 3-2 loss to Sydney FC that culminated in an injury-time penalty. Moss pulled off a series of close-range saves and one acrobatic effort in a game Gold Coast led 2-0 before Sydney’s remarkable comeback.
In the Australian W-League, Emma Kete’s Perth Glory enjoyed a 2-1 win over an Adelaide side featuring fellow Football Ferns Abby Erceg and Anna Green.
All Whites striker Chris Killen signed off from the Chinese Super League midweek with his fourth goal in as many games – and his ninth of the season – as the already-relegated Shenzhen Ruby lost their final game 2-1 to Changchun Yatai.
Meanwhile, Micheal Fitzgerald’s Zweigen Kanagawa moved to fourth in the Japanese Football League with a 4-1 win over Sagawa Printing.
At home, All Whites David Mulligan, Ivan Vicelich and Aaron Clapham enjoyed high-scoring wins with Auckland and Canterbury in the ASB Premiership while Sarah McLaughlin struck a hat-trick and Hannah Wilkinson extended her golden boot lead in the ASB Women’s Youth League.
Europe
A late double from Football Ferns striker Sarah Gregorius has lifted Bad Neuenahr off the bottom of the Frauen Bundesliga table and out of the relegation zone with a 2-0 win over FCR Duisburg. Gregorius scored in the 79th and 87th minutes – her first goals as a professional – while international team mate Katie Hoyle came off in the first half with a knock.
Elsewhere in Germany, Rebecca Smith’s VfL Wolfsburg beat Bayer Leverkusen 5-1 to consolidate fourth spot, while Ria Percival’s Frankfurt lost 1-0 to Frieburg to drop to second place and Amber Hearn’s USV Jena lost 1-0 at home to Lokomotive Leipzig.
Chris Wood played a rare 90 minutes for Birmingham City who saw their nine-game unbeaten run ended by a 1-0 defeat at Reading. Wood tested Adam Federici on a number of occasions but couldn’t beat the Australian gloveman to add to his already impressive goals tally.
Striker Kris Bright put in an unfamiliar 90-minute shift in midfield for Balzan Youths who went down 2-0 to Malta Premier League leaders Valletta, while further east Kosta Barbarouses watched from the bench as Alaniya Vladikavkaz returned to the top of the Russian first division with a 2-1 away win over previous leaders Mordovia Saransk.
North America
It was a quiet weekend for Kiwis stateside with Dan Keat not involved for LA Galaxy in the MLS playoffs, and five US-based All Whites and one Football Fern already in their post season.
Football Fern Betsy Hassett played the full game for UC Berkeley in a 2-0 defeat to Stanford while Rosie White came off the bench as UCLA beat University of Southern California 5-1.
Story courtesy of New Zealand Football.
For more on New Zealand football go to www.nzfootball.co.nz

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