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AAP
AAP
Anna Harrington

Roar stun Victory as Reds, Canberra draw in goalfest

Brisbane Roar have completed a stunning ALW opening round with a 2-1 win away to Melbourne Victory. (Joel Carrett/AAP PHOTOS)

Brisbane have stunned Melbourne Victory 2-1, with 16-year-old schoolgirl Grace Kuilamu scoring on debut as the Roar kicked off their A-League Women campaign in sensational style.

In a dramatic day of action, Emilia Murray snatched a late equaliser to salvage Adelaide United a 4-4 draw against Canberra United and New Zealand striker Hannah Wilkinson scored the winner as Melbourne City fought out a 1-0 victory over Wellington.

The Roar, without Matildas midfielder Tameka Yallop, headed to the Home of the Matildas as underdogs against Victory.

But 16-year-old Kuilamu, who juggles Roar training with school, gave Brisbane the lead against the run of play in the 49th minute, bursting into the box to finish off a superb run and cross from Sharn Freier.

"She's a superstar. Honestly," Roar coach Garrath McPherson said of Kuilamu.

"As a coach, sometimes you're a bit nervous with youth and making the decision to throw her straight in.

"... (But) she's trained too well to leave out. She just keeps going up another gear and well-taken finish and she defends well.

"And you know what the benefit is? She doesn't even know. She's just in there eating a sandwich at the moment, thinking about school tomorrow."

Victory thought they'd equalised in the 59th minute when McKenzie Weinert scored a wonderful individual goal, but it was ruled offside.

Roar stand-in skipper Jenna McCormick doubled their lead when she headed home Hollie Palmer's free kick in the 70th.

Debutant Ella O'Grady, 18, snagged a consolation goal for Victory in added time but coach Jeff Hopkins was "disappointed" with his disjointed charges as a whole.

At Coopers Stadium, Murray's deflected strike in the 94th minute capped off a chaotic match that included three penalties.

Canberra star Vesna Milivojevic scored a brace and had a would-be winner, and hat-trick goal, cruelly ruled out for offside in the 97th.

Adelaide took the lead in the ninth minute via Alana Jancevski's penalty.

The visitors responded when Milivojevic forced a turnover from Grove, before coolly scoring.

Michelle Heyman gave Canberra the lead when she pounced on a horror error from Grove, who let the ball go over her head then was beaten to it by Heyman.

Mariah Lee equalised from the penalty spot in the 53rd minute, but Nicki Flannery made it 3-2 with a spot kick nine minutes later.

Hannah Blake scored a wonderful equaliser in the 65th but just two minutes later, Milivojevic cleverly restored Adelaide's lead from close range.

Murray had the final say when she snatched at a chance just inside the box and it took a fortuitous deflection home.

In awfully windy conditions at Sky Stadium, hosts Wellington took it up to City and were only beaten by Wilkinson's 73rd-minute tap-in.

Matildas winger Holly McNamara gave the Phoenix defence nightmares all game but left her shooting boots at home.

City scored when Rhianna Pollicina forced a save from Rylee Foster, but she could only parry it and a switched-on Wilkinson pounced to tap home.

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