Macarthur FC 0 Sydney FC 2
Macarthur away, always a fun time, and this one ended up with a win, a clean sheet and some beautiful shots of a hazy sunset in South-West Sydney. A first half of missed opportunities turned into second half of total domination and Sydney FC were good value for their two-goal victory. Luke Brattan played like a thug and still lost, Adrian Segacic made the Macarthur defence look stupid, and Joe Lolley’s shot is still in orbit after missing its target by a few hundred metres.
Busy weekend, this one, and we were on the road from an afternoon in Crows Nest, straight into the tunnel and on the M5 to register some good quality tolls on the way to Campbelltown. The timing was fortunate for parking, the leagues club car park filling up and we jagged one of the last spots on the roof, able to take in the marvellous view of the stadium below from our lofty vantage point. Sydney was smoky, bush fires giving the sky a dusty look, and it was red-hot, belying the advent of autumn. The gates had just opened and we went straight there before realising that we hadn’t in fact bought tickets during the week – look, it’s not been top priority, right? Fortunately the zealously-priced away active tickets were not sold out and we could buy them at the ticket office in exchange for a mobile number, an email address and $45.
Once inside we were treated to some marvellous panoramas of the stadium with the golden sun dipping behind the main stand opposite. As always, the away bay was in the corner of the opposite stand, the unpopulated hill behind the goal closed off with temporary fencing. The arrival of the Cove train to Lumeah station saw the bay fill up, but this was by no account a big crowd.
The singing began as the players entered the field before our fearless capo brought it to an immediate halt; his polite and articulate address to the non-active fans in the adjacent bay was heart-felt. You may not be in active, but you can most certainly sing along with We Are Sydney. As a result, the crowd belted out the anthem and we were off and running.
The first half was superb. We were treated to some intricate football, Douglas Costa’s dribbling and back heel bringing gasps from the crowd, Wataro Kamijo flew into a sliding tackle that yielded applause from the away bays, before he gave the ball away and earned a yellow card for crunching his player. Good commitment and just what the fans wanted to see! Costa had earlier wooed us with a crazy outside-of-the-left-foot cross that Patryk Klimala steered goalwards, Filip Kurto making one of two marvellous saves. We also had the ball in the net, but the offside flag saved the home team, and the celebrations were cut short.
Half time saw paramedics in the away bay; an unfortunate lady was resting against the concrete at the back of the area looking in a lot of discomfort; as half-time came to a close, she was being stretchered up the one gangway access to the active bay and it took a while for the active fans to reassemble for the second half. Broken leg we understand, not sure how or why!
Costa struck a free kick that dipped viciously, Kurto tipping it over the bar in front of us at the away end, then Kurto made a strange volleyball-style two-handed save to repel another Sydney attack. It was on – Sydney FC were on fire. Brattan assaulted Leo Sena, leaving him in a heap, there was a bit of biff, Joel King played in a fantastic cross that Costa just couldn’t finish, and Costa rattled the cross bar with a superb shot from distance. Surely the goal would come; it certainly did! For all the fancy football, flicks and tricks, the goal was as simple as could be; Joe Lolley slipped the ball through for Klimala who smashed the ball home. Basic principles of football at play and a devastating finish from the in-form striker. And the Tequila chant for Klimala, don’t we love it?
Tomi Uskok nearly took off Costa’s head with a high tackle, and all of a sudden, Sydney had two. There was no danger when substitute Adrian Segacic took a chance and closed down a ridiculously pedestrian clearance from Kevin Boli (yes, from the famous Boli family of footballers) and the ball rebounded off the Sydney man and into the unguarded net. The Cove were mid-song, and such was the surprise of the goal, the song continued but with much more intensity until “Adrian Sega, he scored another” took over. The salmon-shirted Bulls had caved in now – poor Matthew Jurman had just come on as the goalkick was taken that resulted in the goal and he was looking at the sky for inspiration.
Segacic was then miles offside, but play went on, and he was just unable to get the cross in. Lolley ballooned a shot miles over after taking aim from the edge of the area. Quite possibly the most off-target shot seen at this stadium. Sena did another one of those impudent stops where he claims his shirt is being pulled, the referee not falling for it, the freshly shorn Harrison Devenish-Meares made a full-length save to stop former Sydney man Kealey Adamson’s powerful drive, and Macarthur did have the ball in the net but it was well offside. Captain Rhyan Grant sent hearts fluttering with an overhit backpass that went out for a corner, but he and his fellow defenders were taking the piss by now, playing risky balls from goalkicks with utmost confidence.
It was a shame when the final whistle went. The Cove had been constant, although there was way to much chattering instead of singing from some of the active section that the volume could have been higher.
The players enjoyed their moment with the fans, Sega joining the group after he had finished his interview, and Costa was loving the attention. This had been a very pleasing victory for the Sky Blues, and everyone in a blue shirt left the stadium with a spring in their step, knowing that those precious three points had maintained a strong position going into the week off and two massive ACL2 quarter-final fixtures. The car park had emptied by the time we got back to our car, and we were back in the northern suburbs by 11pm ready for an evening of FA Cup action on the telly.
What a superb evening’s entertainment, and we look forward to the next game in Newcastle next Saturday for the resurgent women’s team. Forza Sydney FC!