Victory for Melbourne, Mariners sail past pack

Central Coast Mariners leapt to the top of a congested ladder with Daniel McBreen’s lone strike inflicting a rare home defeat on Ricki Herbert’s Wellington Phoenix. Adelaide United were bumped from the summit after being held 1-1 at home by Perth Glory. Dario Vidosic scoring his second in as many matches for Adelaide to cancel out Billy Mehmet’s first-half opener, leaving the Glory in fourth. Newcastle Jets sit in third after a 2-1 comeback win against new boys Western Sydney Wanderers. Emile Heskey scored his fifth in six outings for the Jets, while at the other end goalkeeper Mark Birighitti was in stunning form with his goal breached only by an early strike from Joey Gibbs, following an assist from Shinji Ono. Big match: Always a highlight on the A-League calendar, Sydney FC and Melbourne Victory produced drama worthy of the occasion. Down 2-0 with 11 minutes remaining, the Victory somehow conjured three unanswered goals to claim their first win in Sydney for five years. Despite having a hand in both goals, the result meant an unhappy 38th birthday celebration for star Sky Blues recruit Alessandro Del Piero, while coach Ian Crook resigned in the wake of the result. The match also doubles as the beyondblue Cup, an organisation set up to raise awareness about depression and anxiety. Headline-grabber: University student and youth team player Andrew Nabbout was the unlikely hero for Melbourne Victory, grabbing two stunning goals – both entering the goal off the inside of the post – to become a club cult figure in less than 15 minutes. The stat 278 – 15 years and 278 appearances have passed since Sydney FC’s Dutchman Pascal Bosschaart made his debut, but the former Feyenoord, Utrecht and Den Haag defender finally scored his first league career goal, hitting home a sweet volley in the Sky Blues defeat against Melbourne Victory. The quote There's a huge amount of pressure on this job and I think you have to be a special kind of individual to take it on but I don't think I'm the right person for it.'' Sydney FC coach Ian Crook announces his resignation From Fifa