United sub Ruhs scores late ALM winner over Sky Blues

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United sub Ruhs scores late ALM winner over Sky Blues

Western United’s Michael Ruhs has come off the bench to score and deliver a thrilling 4-3 comeback win against A-League Men heavyweights Sydney FC.

Ruhs’s 87th-minute goal settled the see-sawing affair at Allianz Stadium, with United mounting a serious second-half challenge after coughing up an early lead on Saturday.

Noah Botic had drawn first blood for the visitors after netting two and a half minutes into their match before Sydney youngster Adrian Segecic pulled off a first-half maiden brace.

Star United winger Abel Walatee restored parity less than a minute into the second half and teammate Rhys Bozinovski added another in the 62nd.

Sydney remained relentless, with Rhyan Grant burying the ball with a forceful header six minutes later but Western United had the final say.

Ruhs, joining the fray in the 77th minute, outran Sky Blues defender Alexander Popovic and bested goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne to strike true for the match-winner.

The 22-year-old broke into tears following the final whistle.

Jon Aloisi’s United side recorded their first win over Sydney since January 2023, while the Sky Blues suffered a second-straight defeat to leave both sides one point out of the top six.

Stunned by Botic’s opener, a poor pass from Riku Danzaki opened the door for the hosts to equalise in the 37th minute.

The Japanese defender had intended for the ball to connect with Tate Russell, but mistimed his pass and gave the ball away to Sydney’s Joe Lolley.

Lolley pounced and crossed to Segecic, who slotted easily.

Segecic popped up again a minute into first-half added time to complete his brace and launch Sydney ahead, picking up a brilliant cutback from Anas Ouahim.

The Sky Blues should have had a larger buffer after taking 12 shots on target to four in the first half, but United goalkeeper Matt Sutton proved a true brick wall.

Sutton put on a show with nine fantastic saves, flaunting his quality by denying Lolley with the studs of his left boot in the 16th minute.

Star Sydney recruit Patryk Klimala scored in the 48th minute but it was ruled out for handball.

United’s Hiroshi Ibusuki suffered a similar fate after his 57th-minute goal was rubbed off for offside.

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