Louis D’Arrigo had not scored a goal in his preceding 33 games to begin his Adelaide United career since debuting in 2019.
But it was well worth the wait when he bulged the old onion bag in his 34th Reds match against Newcastle Jets in March 2021 inside six minutes.
The 19-year-old collected a poor clearance just inside the 18-yard box and capitalised on the situation, holding his composure to dispatch his strike into the top corner.
D’Arrigo ran to the corner flag and performed a celebration that appeared to be premeditated and as it turns out there was truth to that inkling.
Adelaide would go onto claim a 2-1 victory and a third consecutive triumph thanks to Craig Goodwin’s 77th minute winner.
D’Arrigo revealed a conversation he had with teammate Ben Halloran during the week leading up to the game about a potential idea for a celebration.
Ironically, as fate would have it, that exchange would foreshadow what was to come.
“It was funny during the week Ben (Halloran) said to me that if you score or if I score, we’re going to do a celebration and we ended up doing the celebration – so it was a good moment for me,” said D’Arrigo upon reflection.
Describing the goal itself, D’Arrigo was pleased he was able to hold his nerve and deliver an unerring finish.
“I was pretty calm to be honest, I thought when the ball landed at my feet that was the chance that I had to score,” he said.
“And as soon as the ball hit the back of the net I thought it was a moment of relief for me.
“It felt good to contribute to three points.”
