Perth Glory coach David Zdrilic is urging fans to stick by the embattled club, and he's found an unlikely ally in the form of Newcastle Jets coach Rob Stanton.
Zdrilic's position is set to again come under the microscope following Glory's 4-0 loss to the Jets in Perth on Saturday night.
Perth trailed 3-0 inside 26 minutes, and their for-and-against goal tally now stands at a woeful 4-24 for the season.
The latest disaster left Glory anchored to the bottom of the table with just two points to show from eight games in Zdrilic's first season in charge.
Perth's winless run has now extended to 18 games, and they will equal the A-League Men record of 19 unless they beat fellow strugglers Brisbane at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday.
Zdrilic apologised to the club's fans for his team's woeful display against the Jets, saying it simply wasn't good enough, especially at home.
"It's obviously a team now that you can see is low on confidence," Zdrilic said.
"This at home, it's not acceptable. It's not what the fans deserve.
"We apologise, but we're going to keep working to get it right."
In the lead-up to the Jets game, Glory chief executive Anthony Radich confirmed Zdrilic, who is on a three-year contract, retained the full faith of the club's board and owners.
"I speak with the owners regularly, and they also understand the situation that we're in," Zdrilic said.
"It's not comfortable - one of the worst starts, and I have to take that on me, but I'm just working hard to make sure that we can turn this around.
"We were hamstrung in terms of what we were able to do in the off season.
"So moving forward, it's going to get a lot better. And supporters of this club are very loyal, and if they understand that it is a tough challenge, and we stick together, things can change very quickly."
Newcastle have been through their own troubles.
The club's very future was up in the air before they were bought by Maverick Sports Partners in June following a lengthy ownership hunt.
Newcastle haven't featured in the finals since 2017/18, and Stanton was feeling the heat after guiding the team to just one win across the first six rounds this season.
But victory over Glory has helped ease the pressure, and Stanton was quick to go into bat for Perth.
"The game can turn really quickly for you, one good win and it could change," Stanton said.
"They've had some owners come in during the last year, like we have, and you're resetting things and you're trying to get it right.
"We're in the same position, and (it's about) little steps. Our budget is small, and we're managing, and we're trying to make sure that the survival of the club is there.
"Perth Glory will be disappointed, the fans will be disappointed, but it's got a lot of history, and it can rise again."
