Sydney: Australian winger Nathan Burns scored with a header in the 73rd minute Saturday to give Greek side AEK Athens a 1-0 win over Scottish Premier League champion Rangers in the Sydney Festival of Football.
Burns helped give AEK its third win in as many matches and the round-robin title in the four-team tournament that included Sydney FC and Blackburn Rovers.
The 22-year-old Burns joined AEK from Adelaide in 2008 but had only just returned to the club after he was loaned out last season to then-second division side Kerkyra.
Disappointing results
AEK went into the match with 13 points, seven ahead of Rangers in the Sydney event.
The tournament awarded three points for a win, one for a draw and a point for each goal scored.
Despite turning in a good performance in an occasionally niggly game, Walter Smith's side succumbed to a 72nd minute goal from AEK's Australian substitute Burns.
It was a disappointing result for the Light Blues who had already beaten Blackburn and drawn with Sydney and left the Greek side as Festival winners.
However, the Rangers boss will be more concerned with the fitness of striker Kyle Lafferty, who limped off in the first half with what appeared to be a groin injury, the same complaint which caused defender Andy Webster to miss the match.
It was a better day for Blackburn in Australia as Brett Emerton and Morten Gamst Pedersen bagged the goals as they beat Sydney FC 2-1.
