Socceroos striker Mitch Duke scored his fifth goal of the Japanese J2 season but his ladder-leading Machida Zelvia were beaten 3-1 at home by JEF United Chiba on Saturday.
Duke made it 2-1 in the 72nd minute, before midtable United iced the game with a third goal, meaning Machida has only managed one point from its past two games.
The Socceroo, who played a full game in attack, won a loose ball in Machida’s front third, spreading the play wide for winger Byron Vasquez who delivered a cross which Duke powered beyond the goalkeeper with a rifled header.
Across the Sea of Japan, Peter Makrillos scored his sixth of the season for Chungbuk Cheongju in their 2-1 home win over Seoul E-Land in Korea’s K League 2 on Sunday.
Elsewhere in K2, Patrick Flottmann was an unused sub as Seongnam lost 3-2 at Cheonan City.
In the K League 1, Harrison Delbridge was a 92nd minute substitute for Incheon United in their 1-0 win at FC Seoul. Lachlan Jackson and Aaron Calver were both unused as Gwangju won 1-0 at Suwon.
Alex Grant put in a full shift on Friday night as second-placed Pohang Steelers won 2-1 over Jeonbuk Motors.
Former Socceroos defender Ryan McGowan was on the scoresheet for St Johnstone as they won 4-0 at Alloa Athletic in the Scottish League Cup on Saturday.
McGowan, who put in a full shift, netted St Johnstone’s second goal in the 20th minute with a drilled finish with a shot from just outside the box.
Ryan Strain played a full game and provided two assists as St Mirren won 4-0 over Arbroath. Aziz Behich and Mark Birighitti were both absent as Dundee United won 3-0 over Peterhead.
MIKAAAA! 🎯
Mandron gets off the mark for St Mirren. #OurStMirren #COYS pic.twitter.com/3UX2a5dJoG
— St Mirren FC (@saintmirrenfc) July 23, 2023
In the early stages of the Austrian Cup on Friday, James Holland netted as Austria Vienna eased past fourth tier Spittal 7-0.
Holland played a full game in midfield and netted his side’s third goal in the 38th minute.
In the opening game of the new Croatia’s Prva HNL season on Friday, Anthony Kalik was an unused substitute as Hajduk Split won 2-1 at Dinamo Zagreb.
💪 7:0 Sieg in der 1. Cup-Runde
👍 Manfred Fischer (2), Haris Tabakovic, James Holland, Aleksandar Jukic, Muki Huskovic und Dominik Fitz erzielen die Treffer pic.twitter.com/armWYY31oL— FK Austria Wien (@FKAustriaWien) July 21, 2023
