Sydney FC 1 Auckland FC 1 (AET Auckland 3-1 on penalties)
Sydney FC paid the penalty for a diabolical set of spot kicks that derailed the club’s number one priority of winning trophies; only five days ago, talk was of winning the Australia Cup, qualifying for Asian football, spreading the brand through Asian markets and building success. What we saw tonight was the instant unravelling of that bravado and a solid return to earth with an embarrassing failure from 12 yards. But tonight wasn’t about the players, the squad, the coaches or the hierarchy behind those lofty ambitions; tonight was about the fans.
There was a tingling of anticipation about this Australia Cup quarter-final. With local football cancelled for the umpteenth time, we had plenty of time to make it down to Kogarah Clubhouse, and that three-year club membership was still valid as we took advantage of the food and drink deals to get our voices ready for kick off. Walking through the suburban streets, guided by our faithful supporter marshalls, there was something magical in the air; the floodlights beaming over rooftops, the dark streets filled with pedestrians, and entering Gate B on the side, the suggestion was that the traditional Cove position behind the Northern goal would not be the option tonight. Indeed, the position under the roof of the main stand was allocated to active support, and numbers grew as kick off approached, loyal fans greeting each other with hugs.
This was a family reunion, even with unexpected guests, babies having become toddlers, teenage kids having outgrown their parents and everyone a little older and wiser. Football almost seemed secondary.
The scoreboard showed the line-ups but they were too small to read, perhaps another sign of ageing, and the anticipation at kick off was palpable. We had new signings Rhys Youlley, Paul Okon-Engstler and Akol Akon in midfield behind workhorse Paddy Wood, no sign of Jordan Courtney-Perkins, and only a place on the bench for last season’s breakout player Wataru Kamijo. We Are Sydney rung around the stadium, the volume in the Cove at maximum levels thanks to the low roof. Football was back!
There’s no point in delving into the action, as you’ve probably seen the replay, but there was plenty of incident in this one. Referee Casey Reibelt gave us a classic moment, racing over to book Auckland’s Marlee Francois after Akon had pulled him back by the shirt. Francois had to correct the experienced official and she shook her head before re-issuing the card to the tricky Sydney FC winger. Joe Lolley raced back to defend like we’ve never seen before, and Sydney FC won a defensive free-kick and simply played on, the referee not noticing that they hadn’t actually stopped the ball to take the free-kick. When Alex Popovic sold his man a dummy in a dangerous position, there was a huge cheer from the fans and for once the clock continued on the scoreboard past the 45-minute mark, a useful addition for the in-stadium experience. Dan Hall had a great chance at the far post, albeit under pressure, Auckland’s tactic of crowding the six-yard box almost paying off, but the header was over from a yard out. The whistle sounded, not a bad half, Akon having flashes down the left without any end product.
That was the cue for a half-time walk through the stadium, bumping in to more familiar faces and marvelling at the incredibly long queue for food.
The second half was full of excitement. Hiroki Sakai conned the referee into a free kick when Wood threatened to break, crumpling to the floor with not even a suggestion of a touch. Sydney put the ball out for a player to received treatment and the referee restarted with a drop ball, eliciting the ire of the fans, and that was a theme in the second half, mysterious drop-balls when the throw-in was the obvious outcome. Maybe it’s a new directive for officials, but it certainly didn’t help. Corey Hollman showed perhaps too many tactical secrets, looking at Akon but not playing him the ball, and Youlley was getting roughed up by the Auckland defenders. Akon sent in a ferocious effort that jut cleared the bar, Wood ran into the Auckland goalkeeper on purpose to try and eke some reaction from the officials, and substitute Tiago Quintal was down injured for a moment after a shocking miscommunication with Akon saw the ball played into touch.
Callan Elliot let the ball run out thinking it was a goal kick, but Sydney had a corner, Rhyan Grant was all arms as he jostled in the box, and when the corner was finally taken, the referee immediately awarded a free kick to Auckland. The game looked dead and buried with five minutes left on the clock when Auckland scythed through the Sydney defence, a shot from Guillermo May parried by Gus Hoefsloot and former Western Sydney Wanderers player Lachlan Brook tucked the ball into the empty net for 1-0. What a shit. That didn’t stop the Cove from upping the volume, and Sydney were level almost immediately, Okon Jr taking over from Akon to play in Joel King, and his pinpoint cross was met by Joe Lolley for a tap in to send the Cove into meltdown. The celebrations were long and hard, the relief was pumping, Sydney had got out of jail. Lolley then picked up the ball on the right, fed Rhino and his cross hit the arm of the defender. Surely a penalty. They’ve been penalties forever! No, the referee pointed to the corner and the Sky Blues were denied. Alex Grant gave us a nervy finish to the game, going through the back of his player in the corner to earn a yllow card and the free kick was only just cleared. Extra time loomed.
The stadium staff started cleaning up, wondering what the fans were still doing here. There was no more food and drink. This was clearly unexpected. Extra time was nervy. Not for the first time tonight, the assistant on the nearside called a throw in when the ball had clearly not gone out. Players continued to lose their footing, as they had done all evening, and neither side had clear-cut chances, Akon creating a good opportunity on the left but Sydney couldn’t find a clear shot on goal, and a low shot from Auckland caused a scramble that Rhino cleared up. Joe Lacey somehow managed to wait until Akon had to turn his back to spin and played the ball straight out of play. The final whistle saw the players congregate on the sidelines as the Cove watched intently as the referee and the captains tossed the coin to work out which end the penalties would be taken from; when the goalkeepers started to make their way to the far end, the Cove upped sticks and raced up to the other end of the stadium.
This was it. The test of nerves. The lottery. The penalty shoot-out seemed to be going well at the start, Hoefsloot making a great save from May to give Sydney FC the edge, at 1-1 with a penalty in hand. Joel King’s penalty though was at the right height for a save, and while Auckland continued to convert their spot kicks, we were treated to two of the worst ever, Mathias Macallister doing the stupid stutter run up thing before completely shanking his shot hopelessly wide with the goalkeeper already diving out of the way. At 3-1 down after Jake Brimmer had only just kept his shot low enough to go in the roof of the net, Lolley had to score. In typical fashion, after slipping and sliding all over the place during the game, he planted his foot for the strike and it gave way, Lolley joining John Terry and David Beckham in missing a key penalty thanks to an ill-informed choice of footwear. The Auckland players were unsure. The referee took a long time to signal the end of the game, and there was silence in the Cove as the visiting players trotted to celebrate with their keeper. Utter disbelief.
The fans filed out silently from Jubilee Oval. The Auckland players signed autographs and celebrated with their fans, lining up for the customary qualifiers photo with the green-bibbed photographers. The Sydney brains trust were already having a post-mortem on the field.
This result was a massive kick in the teeth for the Sydney fans, who had watched their team contain last season’s Premiers only to bow out with a horrifying penalty failure. For all the talk of club philosophy, of the plan to lift trophies, of a system and a machine built for success, they had tripped at the first hurdle. An otherwise superb night in Sydney’s south, once again it was the result that let us down. We look forward to some meaningless friendlies now to tide us over until October, when we should have been vying for a spot in Asia again. Sydney FC, there is no escape!