Adelaide United have continued their inconsistent run in the A-League by suffering a 2-1 defeat at the hands of leaders Brisbane Roar on home turf.

Brisbane started off on the attack, and Besart Berisha almost had the chance to take on a shot from the left side of the box when he was played in, but he timed his run too early and got flagged offside.

The home side responded with some positive play of their own, but after failing to break down Roar's defence, Steven Lustica latched onto the loose ball five yards away from the box and unleashed a thumping shot towards goal, but it flew just above the post.

Adelaide's pressure paid off in the sixth minute when a cross came into the box, which left Roar scrambling to get the ball away, but it fell to Osama Malik, who headed the ball down into the net to give his side the lead.

The away side had their chance to draw level when they were awarded a penalty after Tarek Elrich brought down Corey Brown in the box, and Berisha was able to take advantage of the opportunity by sliding the ball into the bottom right-hand corner of the net.

Both sides had the chance to take the lead, but it was Adelaide who kept up the pressure until the close of the first half. After the break, the home side had the first set piece of the game with a free kick, which was swooped in by Marcelo Carrusca, but none of his teammates managed to latch onto the ball.

Following a number of chances for both sides, it was Brisbane that eventually took the lead, once again through Berisha, who surged into the box with a number of Adelaide shirts surrounding him. Some poor defending couldn't keep the ball out as the forward fell to the ground, but still managed to slide it into the back of the net.

Despite Adelaide continuing to press for an equaliser, they were unable to make the most of their chances.