IT may not have been better than hooking a 30-foot marlin - or Lego - but the 30-metre thunderbolt by Nikolai Topor-Stanley was enough to sky-rocket the Jets defender into favourite for the A-League goal of the year.
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With an acre of space, Topor-Stanley unleashed from distance in the 12th minute of the Jets' clash with Perth on Saturday night. The 34-year-old gave it everything with his left foot and the ball was still rising when it pierced the top-right corner of the net. The Fox Sports football lab clocked the tracer-bullet at 128 kilometres per hour.
The goal celebration was nearly as spectacular as the goal, which provided the inspiration for the Jets to stun Perth Glory 2-1.
"They probably didn't expect me to shoot and gave me a chance to get the ball out from under my feet and I thought why not," Topor Stanley said. "As soon as it left the boot, I could see it was going top corner."
An avid fisherman, Topor-Stanley was asked by Fox Sports pundit Adam Peacock if the goal was better than catching a 30-foot marlin?: "I've scored the goal now," Topor-Stanley replied. "I haven't caught a marlin that big, which would be some kind of record."
The goal was the veteran's 11th in 311 A-League games.
"You should see my goals at training," he laughed.
If he has scored similar, Jets coach Carl Robinson or Perth boss Tony Popovic, who had the defender at Western Sydney, hasn't seen them.
"I have not seen a goal like that for a while, certainly not from a centre back," Robinson said.
"It was a super strike."
Popovic added: "I have coached Nikolai and I'm not sure he ever did that, even at training.It was a wonderful goal."
The goal was Topor-Stanley's third for the campaign. The previous two were scored inside the penalty area.
"It is something that as a player in my position, you have to aim for that," he said. "Those things can win or lose you games."
Though lapping up the addition to the highlight reel, Topor-Stanley said, securing a much-needed three points had been the priority.
"It was good to get a win, first and foremost. It has been a frustrating year for us," he said. "It is more about the win, getting back on top in the second half, grind them out and then dominating, which realistically we haven't done this season.
"We have had small patches of great football and then let it slip. It was good to have it the other way around."
