It was only dancing Sydney FC goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne that was the difference between Perth Glory and a near perfect Hyundai A-League 2018/19 Season.
Still, the men from the west will not forget the recent campaign anytime soon, with the Glory sweeping all before them during the regular season to clinch the club’s first piece of Hyundai A-League silverware.
INS AND OUTS: Perth Glory
TRANSFER HUB: All of the Hyundai A-League Ins & Outs
And there were plenty of highlights along the way, with incredible comebacks, sublime goals, records galore and some epic individual performances.
Here’s a look back at seven of the best moments from Glory’s record-breaking campaign.
Glory match it with EPL big guns
Everyone was interested to see how the Tony Popovic era would get underway in Perth and we got a glimpse of it in the high-profile friendly against Premier League side Chelsea in July.
The Blues had a point to prove under their own new manager in Maurizio Sarri and brought a squad boasting the likes of David Luiz, Cesc Fabregas, new recruit Jorginho and Spanish winger Pedro.
And it was the latter’s early goal which gave Chelsea a narrow 1-0 win in front of more than 55,000 fans at the new Optus Stadium.
While the result did not go their way, an exciting display against the EPL heavyweights was a pointer to what was to come for Glory.
Ikonomidis helps lay down early marker
Any team looking to show they are the real deal need a big ‘statement’ win to prove they mean business.
For Glory, that win came as early as Round 2 of 2018/19, at the home of the champions Melbourne Victory.
A dominant first half saw Perth lead 2-0 at AAMI Park thanks to goals from Joel Chianese and Andy Keogh, before Victory mounted a feisty fightback after the break.
EXPLAINER: How does the transfer window work?
FFA CUP 2019: Who Glory are up against in the Round of 32
Terry Antonis pulled one back early in the second half and then Storm Roux looked to have salvaged a point for the home side with a goal three minutes from the end.
But showing the hallmark of all successful teams, Glory refused to lie down.
Chris Ikonomidis popped up with his first goal for the club deep into stoppage-time to hand Popovic’s troops a confidence-boosting win.
Mrcela’s bizarre run-in with the goalpost
Talk about bringing in the New Year with a bang.
That’s exactly what Glory defender Tomi Mrcela did against Central Coast Mariners in the Gosford club’s traditional New Year's Eve clash.
Perth may have cruised to a comfortable 4-1 win but the Round 10 fixture will be remembered for Mrcela’s acrobatic attempt at a goal-line clearance which saw him run hard into the back of the net, causing the goalpost to snap.
Play was held up for 40 minutes as ground staff remedied the situation.
With both goals needing to have exactly the same dimensions, it meant portable training goals were brought in at both ends of the pitch before the match could resume.
The pause in proceedings didn’t slow Glory down, though, with Andy Keogh and former Mariner Fabio Ferreira grabbing doubles as Glory ended 2018 top of the league.
Wanderers shattered by miracle comeback
This Round 13 tie had all the hallmarks of being one of the upsets of the season.
Struggling Western Sydney Wanderers found themselves 3-1 up at HBF Park heading into the final 12 minutes.
FOOTBALL'S FUTURE: Working towards a National Second Division for 2021
BEST EVER: 2018/19 saw records tumble across the Hyundai A-League
But in a frenetic seven-minute period, Glory finished all over the top of Markus Babbel’s troops.
Ivan Franjic and Andy Keogh scored in quick succession to level the scores, before midfielder Juande blasted in an 86th-minute penalty to send the home fans wild and complete one of the comebacks of the season.
Glory bag themselves Bruno
Just when we thought Perth’s prolific forward line couldn’t get any scarier, they went out and signed Uruguayan striker Bruno Fornaroli.
Despite being widely considered one of the Hyundai A-League’s best-ever imports, Fornaroli had found himself out of favour at Melbourne City before being released in February.
And Glory were only too happy to pounce, signing the then 31-year-old for the start of the 2019/20 campaign.
With Andy Keogh, Diego Castro, Chris Ikonomidis and Joel Chianese all still on the books of Perth, the attacking arsenal at Popovic’s disposal will make Glory a formidable force once again next season.
Franjic fires Perth’s premiership party
After Sydney FC were held to a 1-1 draw by Western Sydney Wanderers 24 hours earlier, Glory knew that a positive result against Newcastle Jets would secure a maiden piece of Hyundai A-League silverware.
The scenario seemed to play with Glory’s nerves as the Jets dominated early, with Roy O’Donovan smashing a shot against the bar before finding the net soon after only to have the goal ruled offside by the VAR.
SIGNING NEWS: Glory swoop for ex-Roar duo
NEVILLE GONE: Premiership-winning fullback departs Glory
Popovic’s men slowly found their groove and began peppering Newcastle’s goal, creating – and squandering – a host of chances either side of the break.
With tensions beginning to rise, Glory broke the deadlock on 65 minutes as Ivan Franjic was found by an incisive Diego Castro pass before finishing smartly across Jets keeper Glen Moss.
Cue jubilant scenes as Perth held on for the 1-0 win to etch their name on the Premiers’ Plate.
Reddy heroics clinch epic Semi Final victory
There is not much that veteran 'keeper Liam Reddy has not seen in his long Hyundai A-League career, but what transpired against Adelaide United on the evening of Friday, May 10 is a whole new level.
In what was voted the Fans’ Game of the Season, Glory and the Reds shared six goals in the Semi Final before Perth prevailed in a gripping penalty shootout.
And Reddy was the undoubted hero for the home side.
The 37-year-old gloveman made four saves in the shootout – denying Isaias, Baba Diawara, Nikola Mileusnic and Nathan Konstandopoulos – and scored himself as Glory won 5-4 on pens.
To cap a crazy evening for Reddy, he copped a stray elbow from teammate Dino Djulbic as celebrations kicked off, leaving him with a bloody lip as a souvenir.
A small price to pay for one of the biggest nights in his – and Glory’s – football life.
