By Phil Lutton
Brisbane Roar striker Besart Berisha last night remained adamant that a controversial penalty awarded to him in the dying minutes of the team's A-League grand final win was legitimate.
The Roar became the first club to defend their A-League title, going back-to-back under coach Ange Postecoglou as Berisha slotted home a highly contentious penalty in injury time to give his side a 2-1 victory over Perth Glory at Suncorp Stadium.
It wasn’t the magnitude of Brisbane’s achievement or Berisha’s late double (81st, 94th) that would dominate post-match discussions but the pivotal ruling by 24-year-old referee Jarred Gillett.
And to boot, there was a farcical error by the FFA in awarding the Joe Marston Medal to the wrong player, with Thomas Broich crowned in front of a stadium full of fans instead of Perth captain Jacob Burns.
Brisbane's Besart Berisha is awarded a penalty shot at goal after being brought down by Perth's Liam Miller.Credit: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images
Coaches Postecoglou and Ian Ferguson largely avoided any talk of the penalty decision, although the Roar mastermind said he would have a problem with anyone who said his side didn’t deserve a win that eventually hinged on the most arguable call in A-League history.
But Glory captain Jacob Burns and Berisha remained poles apart in their interpretation of the chaotic moment that left football fans around the nation gobsmacked. Burns said Berisha had admitted to him that it wasn’t a penalty, but the feisty Albanian denied any such discussion.
As they did last year, the Roar looked in huge trouble and trailed after 53 minutes when Ivan Franjic was dejected to knock in an own-goal. A Broich cross to Berisha created the equaliser out of nothing with less than 20 minutes to play before all hell broke loose.
With just seconds on the clock, Berisha weaved his way into the Perth box, beating a number of players before crashing to the deck after a challenge by Liam Miller. Gillett wasted no time in pointing to the spot but replays suggested Berisha fell of his own accord as he mistimed his strike.
Steve Pantelidis of the Glory shows his frustration as he questions referee Jarred Gillett over his decision to award the Roar a penalty.Credit: Getty Images
The Glory’s on-field remonstrations continued when Burns fumed to Fox Sports immediately after the match.
“I don't have words really. You've got to congratulate Brisbane but I feel as though I've been robbed there.
"That decision cost us the grand final,” Burns said.
Besart Berisha celebrates his winning goal.Credit: Getty Images
“Plain as day. You could tell from Berisha’s reaction. He came up to us right away. He knows it wasn’t a penalty.
"These knee-jerk decisions cost you. I’m just gutted.”
Shattered ... Perth Glory skipper Jacob Burns.Credit: Getty Images
Later, in a hastily arranged press conference to give him the Marston Medal in front of about 20 reporters instead of thousands of fans, Burns said he and Berisha had spoken after the game.
When asked: “Did Berisha admit to you it wasn’t a penalty?”, Burns replied: “Yeah, he did.”
Shane Smeltz's wife Nikki posted a photo of the Perth's star striker's injured face on Twitter.Credit: Nikki Smeltz
That was news to Berisha, who flatly denied the exchange.
“Of course it was a penalty. He touched me, I lost balance, I fall down and this means it’s a penalty,” Berisha said.
Fans show Besart Berisha their appreciation.Credit: Getty Images
“I’m very glad that the referee saw this. It’s a very hard situation. I’m very happy that he saw this. I got a click then in time I lost my balance. It was a clear penalty.
“What he (Burns) says, I don’t care. The team played an amazing year. We are the better team. The boys deserved this win. It’s my first title. I’m so happy.”
Roar players celebrate their victory.Credit: Getty Images
Glory fans took to websites and social media to voice their disgust at the call, with some questioning the appropriateness of Gillett’s relationship with a member of the Roar staff. The FFA declined to comment on the matter.
While Burns was understandably emotional on the field, the Glory captain and his coach were a picture of humility later in proceedings. Burns said he thought they had done enough before lightning struck twice.
“I kept looking at the clock thinking we’ve got this. I felt we’d done enough. You’ve got to be humble when you win, you’ve got to be humble when you lose,” Burns said.
Broich said there may have been some conjecture over the penalty but with the Glory a man down after Dean Heffernan was sent off in the 91st minute, it was only a matter of time. His confidence is reflected in the statistics, which saw Brisbane fire off seven shots at goal to Perth’s zero.
“They were a man down. Really, half an hour of overtime, we were pushing. One way or another, we would have won this game. I guess the result reflects the game,” Broich said.
Gillett was under fire from all quarters last night but he was gradually finding supporters deep into the night. One was the head of Fox Football, Murray Shaw, who said he had examined the incident on replay 30 times and felt it was the right call.
“I've watched the penalty probably 30 times and I still think the ref got it right. Sorry Perth fans! There is contact,” Shaw wrote on twitter.
Perth’s job was made more difficult by an early injury to Shane Smeltz. The star striker played 80 minutes of the match with a horrendous facial injury after he collided with Roar captain Matt Smith in the opening minutes.
He was gushing blood onto the field and was taken to hospital after the match where he will have reconstructive surgery.
The Brisbane Roar will be recognised with a tickertape parade starting in Queen Street Mall on Tuesday at 11am.