Did you get to any Unite Round games? The poisoned chalice of the Unite Round being in Sydney meant that everyday life got in the way, but there was still time for four and a half games over a balmy weekend that brought proper football people to our city, not because they wanted to come, but because they simply had to. What better way to meet up with like-minded football supporters, fans that you’d see at any national team game around the country, and simply enjoy as much top flight action as you can cram in to three days. Let’s not dwell on the why and how this Australian sporting phenomenon has entered into the A-Leagues calendar, and you’ve probably read plenty of Unite Round conjecture elsewhere. Let me tell you about my Unite Round! Indulge me, please.
The life of a football fan involves sacrifices. The sacrifice on Friday was two hours of the work day as I made my way to Allianz Stadium for day one. A quick train ride and straight on the light rail, something that was the stuff of dreams only two days ago until the NSW government ceded, and I arrived at Moore Park light rail stop without having noticed anything different about this match day experience.
Getting off the tram and walking towards Allianz Stadium, there was a big area of activations, with the wind causing havoc with a number of the tents, but the concept was good. Barely a soul there, mind you, but I was early, and deliberately so – I was on photography duty tonight and wanted to build up the bank of player shots from Western United, who I haven’t seen yet this season. Entering through Gate 8, opposite the NRL building and next to the lifts, the usual scenario of not having a clue where to go once inside and the staff not knowing where I should go, left me asking numerous people before spotting a familiar face and being directed to the photographer room. Whenever Sydney FC are playing, I’m here as a fan. I’d even been here as a journalist during the Women’s World Cup, but I had no idea where the photographer room was. I do now.
Anyway, found it, grabbed to necessary bib, set up the camera and made my way pitchside, the sight of the Perth Glory goalkeeper coach setting up at one end sending me back to the other end in time for the Western United players to emerge and take over the Moore Park Road end of the stadium.
To say that Allianz Stadium was empty at kick off for the Perth Glory v Western United fixture would be absolutely spot-on. There was a smattering of fans in the shaded corner of the Sydney FC home end, as well as thirty or so die-hard Perth Glory fans at the other end and a Western Service Crew with minimal numbers in the Cove standing area. The fire-making machines were wheeled out not long before kick off, prompting a shift in my shooting position to get away from the closest one. It was already warm, no need for anything to make it even warmer.
Daytime fireworks are stupid. We saw it in the World Cup in Qatar and it’s pointless. There was no one to see them anyway, and it was daylight. Night time only! The light was challenging for photos from my position, the seats of the Eastern side beaming and making for shadowy shots from the middle of the park, although down the Western side of the field, the light was perfect. The miss by Noah Botic, following up when his initial effort had hit the bar, was beyond poor, think Paddy Wood at Central Coast but with his head – inexplicable – and Hiroshi Ibusuki headed wide when he had to score. It was one-way traffic. For some reason there was only one minute of stoppage time at the end of the first half despite plenty of stoppages, and the choice to head to the other end was surely the right one to see the second half goals.
And would you know it, Glory did score to take the lead back at the end I’d just left, a scrappy finish to a great move, and the Glory fans now behind me went off! It wasn’t long before all the good work was undone though, and Western United breezed into the lead, Ibusuki showing impeccable composure to stroke the ball home twice. The Perth fans, who had earlier been chanting “We Scored A Goal” at the sheer shock of taking the lead, were now singing “Can we sub on the women?”, “We’re only here for the women,” “You’re nothing special, we lose every week.” Gallows humour, helps ease the pain.
The Glory players and fans are a close-knit bunch; there was no feeling sorry for themselves, and there were still smiles. Some of the core fans were locked in deep discussion with staff after the game, the fans perhaps asking why they should bother if it’s going to coninue in this manner.
The dead time between the end of the first game and the start of the second was spent trying to get good shots of the Jets players warming up. A peculiar walk past of people in other countries’ national dress, waving flags and smiling at the crowd was unexpected, especially as there were only ten or so random countries represented, but it added colour to proceedings. The social media influencers continued to do what they do, and before we knew it, there was colourful smoke in the sky and the Squadron were singing along to the INXS favourite playing over the PA system.
I’ve got a soft spot for Newcastle Jets. Apart from Phillip Cancar. But I like their fans, and when they were joined by Glory and Western United shirts, the volume was good. Alou Koul missed a sitter for the Mariners, Mikael Doka looked the most likely player to unlock the Jets defence, but it remained goalless at the break. The second half was superb, the Jets taking the lead with a lovely goal, right in front of me, then conceding quickly afterwards when Ryan Scott came for a cross that he should have left. The winner was an own goal at the far end, and it was celebrated vociferously by the fans in the Cove behind.
I usually hang around to get fan and player interactions, but the evening had gone from very warm to ice cold very quickly, an annoyingly stiff breeze whistling along the advertising hoardings. Of course, given the conditions through the day, I was completely under-dressed. Back up to the photographers’ room to drop off the bib, and there was a huge tray of food all going to waste, so I took what I needed and headed back out of the stadium the way I’d come in over five hours before. An interesting chat with a fellow photographer en route to the light rail revealed the timing requirements of the photography agencies these days; the photos would be up on Getty Images within minutes of being taken – mine were going to be ready when I got the time to edit them, and given the lighting conditions and the lack of low-light performance from my equipment, that would take a very long time.
The light rail and train linked up beautifully, and I was back home some time after 11pm, starting the editing process, but not getting very far before my head was nodding and it was time to call it a day. Big day ahead on the Saturday, day two of Unite Round, much more football to consume.
And what a big day it was. My old football team in West Ryde was having an ill-timed reunion, and I wasn’t going to miss this. Unfortunately, like everyone else from Sydney, there was stuff to do, and I knew I would miss the first game of today’s double-header at Allianz Stadium. Still, meeting up at the pub and seeing some old friendly faces was a tonic, and many beers deep, I was waiting at the station, hopefully synced with Aurelia to meet her on the train and experience another magical Sydney derby. The journey was effortless, extra trams taking punters up to Moore Park, and the busy carriage spilled out into the station, under the walkway and up towards the fan hub that had been so empty yesterday. Today it was absolutely buzzing, and the second-hand shirts were there to be rifled through, with still a good hour before kick off. Whils it did feel wrong to be on the outside of a stadium while an A-League game took place inside, we’d already missed the majority of the game so there was no rush. I find not knowing the scoreline helps.
Impressed with the range of shirts, there were more Newcastle United shirts than Ultra Football has ever stocked, a no-name classic for $240, a Mark Viduka special for $320, a Sunderland shirt that had no tag so must have been free to a good home. No sale though, those prices are just silly, but I’m sure there would have been some very happy shoppers. Wanderers and Sydney fans mixed together, we won a McDonalds toy with a spin of the wheel, and that was enough fan hub before walking up the steps and around to our gate.
The atmosphere was something else! The Cove was in place, and the previous game was in its final throes. As soon as the final whistle sounded, Brisbane having lost to Adelaide despite a spirited display, the chanting started up from the Sydney fans, and they weren’t holding back in their disdain for today’s visitors from the West. There was time to grab food from the extensive selection of outlets open today, and we took our beers and sushi up to Cove Heights to join the throng.
It’s not often that you see Cove Heights up on their feet and joining in with We Are Sydney, but today felt special. The fireworks worked against the darkening sky, the smoke drifting away from the patchwork Allianz Stadium playing surface, the visiting fans were amassed behind the goal and animated, much moreso than any game at Commbank Stadium. The noise was terrific, it may have been the many beers consumed earlier in the afternoon, but it felt like we could have been in any top flight stadium in the world, where football is the number one sport – a taste, perhaps, of the future of the beautiful game in Australia.
The first half was superb entertainment, Joe Lolley looked offside up the other end from our distant position when the ball fell kindly to him as Sydney FC broke upfield, but we weren’t going to let that curtail our celebrations when he thrashed the ball home, and they only intensified when it was apparent that there was in fact no offside. There was a decent break for an injury that sent me scurrying to the bar – I never go if the game is on, but I figured it would save time at half time, and it was timed well – no big roars to cause panic, and the good thing about te new Allianz Stadium is the amount of TVs that keep you up with action if you’re not in sight of the field. Just when it looked like we would be leading at the break, a dynamic breakaway by the danger man and future Socceroo winger Nicolas Milanovic on the right saw the phantom of the opera Zac Sapsford steer home an equaliser at the far post. Sapsford didn’t seem too keen to celebrate on his own in front of the Cove, and had to wait for the cavalry before giving it the large one.
Half time then, the scores level, but Sydney were so much better than their lowly opponents.
Time to freshen up at the break, and the usual walk around the stadium didn’t happen despite best intentions, too many happy familiar faces to chat with, and we were back in our seats just as the second half kicked off.
And what a second half, despite Douglas Costa not reappearing. Three goals at our end, with another chalked off and the view from Cove Heights made us feel like Roman emperors watching down on the colosseum below. Anas Ouahim was ahead of Patryck Klimala in the penalty pecking order this time and showed his teammate why he should have taken that one in the Asian Champions League. The Wanderers did get one back as the Sydney defence went to sleep, and a grandstand finish looked inevitable. In true cavalier fashion though, Sydney put the icing on the cake with a gloious through ball from Ouahim giving Klimala the chance to slot home and finish the game. He still had a lot to do, but did it in style. This was Kevin Keegan’s entertainers of the mid 90s, breath-taking stuff.
There was one more, Jaiden Kucharski sweeping home at the far post, but a foul earlier in the build up had been duly noted and it was quite rightly chalked off. It didn’t matter though, what a win, and what an evening for the Sydney FC faithful.
The scenes at the end were terrific. Super Sydney FC was joined in by everyone, Patryck Klimala gave us a quirky Come On You Boys In Blue which was lapped up by the huge bank of Sydney fans, this was definitely a feel-good moment to savour.
Already rocking after over-consumption on a hot day, I headed back to West Ryde to continue the reunion at the West Ryde Hotel, while Michelle partied on in Sydney with the many Unite Round visitors. The reunion was still in full swing but was moved into the front bar for the drunkards, where we stayed until kicking out time at 3am. What a massive day, great times, and I had a sneaking suspicion that I may pay for the indulgences when the sun came up two hours later.
Day three of Unite Round, and it was already stinking hot when we left for Kogarah; we were going to miss the first half of the first game already, but there was no rush and to be honest we were both slow-moving. Parking was nowhere near as easy as it normally is around Jubilee Oval, but we parked up a few streets away and grabbed some delicious fish and chips from the seafood shop en route. Unbeknownst to us, the security guard on the gate would deny us entry due to our meal. “We sell that here, you can’t bring it in.” Since when was that a rule? If I had it in a lunch box, would I be allowed in? We weren’t the only ones either, but sitting outside the stadium, listening to the oohs and aahs from the first half while we leisurely enjoyed our lunch was a little unusual. The Sydney FC players were walking in as we picnicked on a park bench under the shade, themselves subject to bag checks by the same security guard. A stark reminder of the dark old days here at this stadium…
Fed and watered and now inside the stadium as half-time ended, the Cove crew were under cover, sheltering from the beaming sun, and after saying hello to fans from around Australia, we decided to do a tour of the stadium to see what the activations were. And we weren’t disappointed. Michelle’s competitive edge made light work of the Connect Four, but the cornhole missing a beanbag didn’t detract from the fact that we’re really not that good at it. We should have been watching the first game though, and we said hello to the Perth crew as the game was heating up. They must be used to the hot weather; it was stifling for us Sydneysiders, especially those who chose alcoholic hydration the day before.
I found out that spray-on tattoos don’t work too well on hirsute arms, and we had our photo taken at the photo booth. We were proper football tourists in our own city, and it was fun. The fenced off Ninja area was welcome; branded coolling fans and branded beanbags and branded loungers, with branded eskies full of bottled water; it was tempting to stay there for the rest of the afternoon. Grabbing some sunscreen, we made our way over to the traditional Cove area behind the goal, but not before the next reminder of why Kogarah Oval grates on our nerves. As we stood chatting, admittedly in the middle of the wide walkway, we were asked to move to the side. Fair enough, silly us. There was hardly anyone walking around, but we should have been over to the side. The vocal security guard didn’t want us over to the side though, he wanted us off the walkway altogether and into the seats. We shuffled a little further over, just finishing our conversation. He wouldn’t have it, heels in the walkway, the whole foot has to be off the walkway. We all looked at each other and decided it was time to get away from this situation and we continued walking around.
Of course, stopping to say hello to someone else, we were caught unintentionally doing much the same thing, but over to the side of the walkway. Our security guard friend happened to have followed us and was straight on our case. “You’d get the same thing at Leichhardt or Allianz,” he quipped as he started his spiel about blocking the way. Funnily enough, no we wouldn’t. We’d get a gentle reminder perhaps if it was busy, but this was almost deserted. Before we got ourselves into a situation that would escalate, we again curtailed the conversation and headed up into the seats to join the Women’s Cove. Looking back on that, it was hardly an incident worth writing about, I hope I don’t come across as another moaning arse, but it was a taste of how security works at Kogarah for football fans, and it reminded me of a Viz Comic strip “The Parkie” – a park warden who makes up park rules so he can abuse the public. Foot on the seat? We have it on camera – you’re out!
Back to the football though…
Being part of the Women’s Cove is a joy. MMTV is our capo and she does it with a smile on her face and a sprinkling of humour. Drummer Jamie loves to intentionally miss a beat to really mess with our minds. We try to give it our best, whatever the scoreline. Today was tough though as it was so hot and sticky. The free waters from the Ninja eskies were welcome, but it was energy-sapping just being out in the full sun. We sang for the whole 90 minutes, surprised that there were no drinks breaks on the field. Funnily enough, in these games there always seems to be an injury that requires lengthy treatment, which then serves as a drinks break anyway.
Mackenzie Hawkeby scored a belter early in the game, think Calem Nieuwenhof in Wollongong, as Sydney FC looked dominant, but disaster struck soon after and Melbourne City equalised when a routine shot was palmed tamely into her own net by our new goalkeeper Brianna Edwards. Not the first time in the game, even at this early stage, that she had looked shaky from in front, and we’d seen something similar against the Mariners on the opening day. I shouldn’t comment though, as a goalkeeper this season I’ve conceded my fair share of shit goals and it doesn’t feel good; and I do remember NUFC custodian Pavel Srnicek’s first season when he cost his team valuable points with similar mistakes, but went on to become an absolute legend. In Brianna we trust, we’re with you.
The game was entertaining, if not a little sluggish, and no surprise given the conditions. Indiana Dos Santos was exciting on the right, the female Maxi Burgess, dazzling us with her tricky footwork, while Mariana Speckmeier cut a Hannah Wilkinson figure as she powered upfield for the visitors, and Rhianna Pollicina is always a joy to watch. The Cove roared on but the game didn’t deserve a winner and the final game of the Unite Round ended in a draw as the sun finally surrendered to the hazy cloud.
Regardless of the result, there is always a lot of love for the Sydney FC women’s team, and today was no exception. The young fans love the attention they get from the players and may it always be like this. Everyone left the stadum with a spring in their step, and we made our exit for a weary walk back to the car and back to the North Western suburbs of Sydney via a very familiar route.
Unite Round done. Was it a success? Who knows? After the embarrassment of an empty stadium at kick off for the first game at Allianz Stadium, the weekend just got better and better. Fans of all teams joined together in their dislike of Sydney FC, which is par for the course, and the sight of many different shirts in one bay cheering on the Newcastle Jets was heart-warming. Saturday night was special for every Sydney FC fan back at Allianz Stadium, and I dare say the neutrals would have loved it too. Six goals and high quality attacking football. Sunday at Kogarah was a bit too hot, but the fun mood and the effort that had been taken to make it an exciting afternoon at the football was appreciated. We didn’t get to The Ladies League where all the football fans of Wellington Phoenix and Perth Glory had converged, but there was too much going on.
So what happens now? Are the three years up for Destination NSW? Does some other state get a go? Can we go to Tasmania or New Zealand for Unite Round? If this concept is going to stay, it would be great to have it somewhere else so us Sydneysiders can be the ones discovering another city, state or country. I have a feeling it’s going to be in Sydney again next year though, but watch this space. This was the best so far, I’m up for it again!