<\/p>\n
Melbourne Victory will head to Wellington knowing anything less than a win could end their hopes of an A-League Women three-peat after their wasteful 1-1 draw with Brisbane Roar sent their finals hopes down to the wire.<\/p>\n
In-form Roar striker Shea Connors handed Brisbane the lead against the run of play in the 29th minute, with help from an uncharacteristic error from goalkeeper Casey Dumont.<\/p>\n
Melina Ayres levelled from the penalty spot eight minutes later.<\/p>\n
Victory had 16 shots to the Roar’s two, including eight on target, but failed to make them count.<\/p>\n
As a result, Victory leapfrogged Canberra back into fourth place on goal difference alone, with both teams sitting on 28 points, while sixth-placed Perth (25 points) stunned third-placed City (29 points) later on Sunday evening to stay alive.<\/p>\n
Victory’s goal difference (+9) keeps them ahead of United (+7) heading into the final round, when they will face Wellington away and Canberra play City.<\/p>\n
“We’ve highlighted the areas that we need to be better in and good thing is one or two senior players were speaking up in the huddle after the game. I left them talking,” coach Jeff Hopkins told AAP.<\/p>\n
“But I know this group, I know what they’re like, especially around this time of the year. They’ll be hurting.<\/p>\n
“All I said to them is we need to be better next week and we need to prepare for another huge game. All we can do is go there and win.<\/p>\n
“There’s nothing we can do to affect anything else apart from recover from this game, learn a few lessons from this game and then get to work next week and win the game. And that’s what we intend to do.”<\/p>\n
Only Western United (36 points) and Sydney FC (34 points) are locked in for finals.<\/p>\n
Perth have a game in hand and play Sydney away mid-week then ninth-placed Brisbane away on the weekend.<\/p>\n
“We’re disappointed on the penalty decision that we didn’t think was (there) and disappointed we didn’t take out three points,” Roar coach Garrath McPherson told AAP.<\/p>\n
“Hard-fought and we knew Melbourne were going to come out – they had finals to play for but Brisbane aren’t a side that lays down and shies away from a challenge and it was good to see a desire from our playing group.<\/p>\n
“We have things to lose as well and it wasn’t a spot in the finals today for us but there’s positions on the table at stake and there’s the pride in the jersey.”<\/p>\n
Brisbane have until Tuesday to appeal their points deduction for fielding an ineligible player against Western United, which gave the league leaders all three points, and hope for a quick resolution.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n