Adam Taggart has boosted his chances of a Socceroos recall by scoring a second-half brace in Perth Glory's 2-2 A-League Men draw with the Newcastle Jets at HBF Park.
The Jets looked on track for an easy victory on Saturday night following Clayton Taylor's 13th-minute strike and a 55th-minute goal to Lucas Mauragis.
But with Socceroos coach Graham Arnold watching on from the stands, Taggart turned the match on its head with goals in the 72nd and 90th minutes.
Glory almost snatched the win in stoppage time in front of 6190 fans, but David Williams' glancing header struck the crossbar.
Taggart now has 14 goals this season from 18 matches, with his hot form putting him right in the selection mix for the Socceroos' World Cup qualifiers against Lebanon this month.
"For sure he's the best striker in the league at the moment," Glory coach Alen Stajcic said of Taggart, who was named co-captain this season.
Asked about Taggart's Socceroos hopes, he added: "It depends what Arnie wants and what he's looking for moving forward.
"But there's no question that he's one of our best players in the country.
"I remember his early days at Newcastle, he was a predator and I thought he was going to be one of the best strikers in our league.
"He's developed down that path.
"The best part this year is his leadership on the field ... to bring other people along for the ride."
Taggart's potential rival for a Socceroos berth - Jets striker Apostolos Stamatelopoulos - had an off night, missing a series of golden chances to score.
Glory only had 33 per cent possession in the first half, and their first shot on target didn't arrive until the 39th minute when Stefan Colakovkski's strike was saved by the feet of goalkeepr Ryan Scott.
In contrast, Perth goalkeeper Oliver Sail had a busy first half, producing good diving saves to deny Taylor and Thomas Aquilina.
The dam wall eventually broke in the 40th minute when Taylor expertly chested down in the box before nailing his strike from a tight angle.
Newcastle went 2-0 up in the 55th minute when Mauragis' powerful strike took a deflection off a Glory defender and thundered into the net.
But the game exploded back to life in the 72nd minute when Taggart pulled a goal back after trapping David Williams' long ball and nailing his strike.
Glory thought they had equalised three minutes later when substitute defender Kaelan Majekodunmi thundered home a header.
But the goal was disallowed after referee Lachlan Keevers deemed Jets striker Stamatelopoulos had been blocked in the lead-up.
Glory kept pushing, and Taggart levelled the scores approaching stoppage time with a powerful header from a corner.
It marked the fifth consecutive match the Jets and Glory have fought out a 2-2 draw.
The result leaves Glory seven points adrift of sixth-placed Western Sydney, who they host next week.
