View from the Victory, Volume Nine: Misery Continues for Melbourne

Mehmet Durakovic's Melbourne Victory were in desperate need of a win when they took on Perth Glory this past weekend at Etihad Stadium.

"You just want to win games of football," team captain Adrian Leijer told Stephen Rielly of the Australian.  "We haven't been conceding a lot of goals but going forward we haven't been scoring a lot, either.

"It's a balance. It's a team game and at the end of the day our fans want to see us scoring goals and I want to see us scoring goals. It's about getting maximum points."

Adding to the issues for Melbourne Victory was the health of Harry Kewell, who suffered tightness in his hamstring after the Socceroos lost 1-0 to Oman in FIFA World Cup Qualifying.

"Of course, it is a bit of a disappointment (if Kewell is unavailable) - fans love to see him play, he's an asset to the team," said midfielder Leigh Broxham to Roger Vaughan of the Sydney Morning Herald. "But he's only human, it's bound to happen every now and again throughout the year, as it does with everyone."

In the end, it was the same old story for Melbourne, who have been unable to hang on to leads and ended up settling for a 2-2 draw to the Glory.

Carlos Hernandez scored a penalty in the 53rd minute, which was a controversial one won by Archie Thompson, the true revelation of the Victory this year. Danny Allsopp made it 2-0 in the 58th minute but goals from the Glory in the last 20 minutes salvaged the draw for Ian Ferguson's side.

As a result of their efforts, the Victory were deservedly booed off the pitch, a microcosm of an appalling start to their Hyundai A-League campaign.

"It was disappointing," Durakovic told Michael Lynch of the Australian. "We were leading 2-0 and gave the ball away in the last 20 minutes. We give a goal from a free kick and suddenly you are under pressure. We need to get three points at home … we need to get as many points at home as we can."

Up next for Melbourne is a match with Gold Coast United at AAMI Park. Kickoff is scheduled for Nov. 27, 2011 at 5 p.m. AEST and will be televised by Fox Sports 1.