Sydney FC 3 Melbourne Victory 0

A second-half blitz by Sydney FC gave the travelling Melbourne Victory faithful absolutely nothing to cheer about as the league’s form team dispatched their arch-enemy in handsome fashion. The skies opened on Leichhardt Oval to give the spectacle an extra edge, which the Cove harnessed to urge their heroes on to the win in the pouring rain. Joe Lolley showed us why he is considered one of the biggest talents in the league with two quality strikes, and Alex Grant added a third with a towering header as an even first half turned in the home team’s favour as the game wore on. Sydney’s won four in a row… and I like it!

A slow overcast day saw us descend on the Orange Grove in Leichhardt around 5.30pm with the outdoor area in full swing. It was heart-warming to see so many familiar faces meeting up for this one, the lure of a Big Blue always too strong to resist despite the looming rain. The appearance of the police signalled the start of the march, a couple of Victory fans having been ushered away from the pub earlier for their own safety, and we were off, the first march of the season, through the backstreets of Sydney’s Inner West. We were directed through to the back gate, the police wondering why they had to be there, such was the relative calm of the home fans. Two away fans were harangued away from the home gate and directed back into the gloomy streets by the police, and we were in the stadium in no time.

The Cove area was a peculiarly cordoned-off area, two strips of blue material at either side and barriers at the rear making it impossible to get in without the required wrist-band. The newly-grassed area behind the Cove would get a work out, and the crowd grew nicely up until kick-off, the majority of the Hill side setting up shop under the huge trees at the rear, away from the treacherous steep section that remained empty as the rain started to tumble.

Melbourne Victory had brought a few fans, but not enough to fill their small section at the far end. They were in good voice, not as good as the Cove though, who were enjoying the opportunity to berate their foes prior to kick off. The flag bearers and mascots lined up ready for the entrance of the players, the rain getting harder and harder, and the players were still not out by the allotted time. We Are Sydney rang out as the players exchanged clasped handshakes, Victory having turned the teams around just to maximise their nuisance. Sydney Ole then had the Cove going for more than ten minutes, the Sydney fans barely noticing the wild weather. We were in for a treat here.

Both teams had their moments in the first half, Piero Quispe flashing a cross across goal, and Harrison Devenish-Meares coming out quickly to dive at the feet of the Victory striker at the far end – it was difficult to see up the far end with the rain in our eyes, and the ball was up that end a little too much. Roderick Miranda was involved in a number of flashpoints, ending up in the advertising hoardings at one point to joy from the partisan home crowd. Sydney finished the half strongly, Lolley putting a cross in from a free kick that Rhyan Grant seemed odds-on to thump in a header, but he had leapt too soon and the ball just grazed his shiny head. Devenish-Meares had to go down to his right to push away a stinging shot from the Victory left but Sydney held on until the break, which gave us all a chance to go to the toilet and have a couple of minutes out of the rain.

A quick walk up the far end confirmed that the away following was indeed quite small, and the containment lines between home and away fans were quite loose; the conditions had changed the mood somewhat and there was little angst between the fans.

The second half started with Sydney on the attack – Rhys Youlley had a great chance in front after Lolley had kept the ball alive on the right, but Jack Duncan made the save. Al Hassan Toure shot from the left and we couldn’t tell how close it was, but it got an ‘ooh’ from the crowd, before Sydney broke the deadlock, and what a superb goal it was, just after Jason Davidson had sliced a good opportunity hopelessly wide right in front of us. Sydney were working the ball up the left when Joel King played a ball inside and there was Lolley racing onto it and he smashed the ball past Duncan for a fabulous opening goal. Bedlam in the Cove, what a relief. Ain’t nobody, like Joe Lolley, makes me happy….

The moment of the night though saw Rhyno push the fiesty Nikos Vergos into the Sydney FC substitutes in the corner and all of a sudden it was all on, players racing in, squaring up, the home fans absolutely loving it. A rousing F*ck you Melbourne Victory from the main stand and the Cove let the away players know where they were, and Paddy Wood was given a yellow for his part in the nonsense. The tempo had certainly changed now. The crowd were at peak volume, the players had a spring in their step, they were going in for the kill.

Kids were crawling under the blue material to get into the Cove, the stewards were having their work cut out. Captain Grant then played an exquisite ball up the right, Victor Campuzano scuttled after it and played in Quispe, but the shot was wild and ended up way into the clouds. The second goal was class though. Lolley cleared up at the back and played a cheeky one-two to get out of trouble. He set off through the middle, players making runs either side and he just kept going, eventually taking aim and firing the ball past Duncan with a cracking left-foot shot. We couldn’t believe it. What a goal! He just kept going, no one challenged him, what a finish! The stadium erupted again, this was turning into a rout.

Victory did have the ball in the net from a horrible deflection, but the player it hit was adjudged offside, much to our amusement. That saved us from a nervy finish. A third goal followed when Alex Grant met a corner from the left, we were in celebration mode now, and when Lolley nutmegged his defender the crowd was loving it. Our central defender Grant was substituted late in the game and received the love from the Cove as he walked past, clearly loving it, and the game concluded with Sydney having demolished their visitors in a superb second half display.

The players were over quicker than normal to celebrate with the Cove, the home fans urging them closer instead of hiding behind the advertising boards. Devenish-Meares grabbed the mega for a Come On Your Boys In Blue, which was awesome, and the players were swift in their meet and greets after the game, the conditions just putrid, fans and players all soaked to the core. The gate to the Cove was closed behind us as we headed for the bathrooms, which forced us out of the main entrance, and we were back at the Orange Grove after a ten-minute walk through the snarled-up traffic. Perhaps wisely, the pub had closed its doors, but the Sydney fans were in full voice as we arrived, a mystery guest capo geeing up the delighted Sydney fans for one last sing-song.

The car seats were swimming in water when we got back to the North Western suburbs after 11pm, but what an evening we’d had. It’s nights like this that make you crave for more, fantastic entertainment on the field in atrocious conditions, the crowd in full voice and plenty of incident to fire everyone up for next weekend’s massive showdown with the other side of Sydney at the far end of Victoria Road. That one’s going to be epic! See you there; don’t be a knob and pretend the EPL or La Liga is all you care for. This is real football, just as entertaining and just as passionate. Forza Sydney FC!

Sydney FC 2 Macarthur FC 0

Sydney’s won three in a row! And so sang the Cove after the Sky Blues eventually put Macarthur FC to the sword at a blowy Leichhardt Oval on Sunday afternoon. In the same vain as the last home game, the visitors looked to have stifled Sydney FC’s attempts to dominate the game, but they finally caved in when marquee defender Marcel Tisserand headed home in the final quarter of the game, and were put to the sword when Joe Lolley popped up with the second deep into injury time. The blue carpet was rolled out for the Sydney fans in the Cove, and the fans and players joined in celebration at the end to make this a joyous conclusion to the weekend in suburban Sydney.

A weekend that started with Oasis and included a thriller at Kogarah in the Australian Championship could only be topped by a Sydney win, and we were heading to the Orange Grove in Leichhardt just before 1pm to meet up with many likeminded souls to enjoy an quick pint before an afternoon of top flight Australian football. The outdoor area was almost deserted, the chill in the air sending most people inside, the two Macarthur fans were barely noticed and the pub started emptying out just after 2pm. The short walk to the stadium saw us detour to the back gate – we usually don’t even try as you never know when it’ll be open – but today it was open and there were good numbers going through the gate and spilling onto the world-famous Hill.

The non-playing squad members were signing merch under the face-painting marquee, the new Jacaranda shirts were obviously selling well, and the Hill had barriers to make walkways either side of the scoreboard. Everything was set for a fabulous day. Except it was windy as all hell, and any doubts about the direction of the wind were dispelled when the sprinklers were turned on and the photographers dived for cover at the Cove end while the fans got doused in cold water. And, despite the sunny conditions, it was cold behind the goal, fans in t-shirts a little under-dressed for the constant wind and chilly shadows. The appearance of the players warmed things up, We Are Sydney being lost a bit in the wind, but we could hear it loud and clear.

The first two rows of seats in the ‘home’ end had been covered by a blue mesh, the incidents of a fortnight ago prompting the safety officers to keep everyone away from the fence for fear of crushing. Parents had been warned to supervise children and not leave them unaccompanied in the active area. It made no difference to the atmosphere, but the blue covering was an unusual sight. The Cove continued to sing well past kick-off, and the conditions looked tricky, Sydney shooting towards the far end in the first half and both teams not really mastering the conditions. Former Sydney maestro Anthony Caceres tried an audacious long range shot when he spied Harrison Devenish-Meares in his customary offline mode but the ball cleared the bar, and when he went in for a tackle in front of the benches, the crowd watched on amazed as a bird got caught up in the action, emerging unscathed from a close-call with the Macarthur man’s boot.

Sydney, sporting their jazzy new third kit, carved out some openings, Lolley fizzing one in but the header from Campuzano was always going wide. Macarthur went close too, their new Mexican star Rafael Duran jinking inside to curl a shot just wide that must have got a touch for a corner. The Bulls were also very close to scoring when Sime Grzan raced in from the right, Devenish-Meares getting an important tackle in to send the ball over the bar – incredibly the referee waved away appeals for the corner and Sydney FC had dodged a bullet. There was plenty of huffing and puffing, but very little in the way of quality goalmouth action, Sydney seeming to get stuck trying to find the last ball in, and Macarthur getting the ball in but there was no one on the end of the crosses.

Lolley rescued Rhyan Grant, who was caught upfield in attack, as Macarthur countered, the silky winger getting praise from his central defenders for covering for his captain. Come on you Boys in Blue was sung to the main stand, and then tried with the Hill, but the sound wasn’t carrying today in the non-stop breeze, so they went back to the main stand again for a second round. The Sydney mascots Muph and Plutonic came round behind the Cove looking drunk, the costumes clearly a bit tricky to negotiate and they needed a helper to guide the way. A frustrating half for all involved came to a close and it was time to walk up to the Hill to thaw out in the sun, the malfunctioning audio from the loud speakers making it uncomfortable for everyone.

The walk around the stadium to avoid the mammoth queue at the gents bathroom on the Hill was very busy, a mass migration of people around the perimeter path quite tricky to navigate, and the line for an ice-cream and the line for food by the main entrance was enough to make you go hungry. Back to the home end and the second half kicked off almost unbeknownst to half of the crowd, Bruno going bush to find his hat that had blown off. Sydney were shooting towards their home fans, with the breeze, looking to get reward for their toil. The Sky Blues looked the better team, although Joel King seemed afraid to be the one to put the cross in, and Lolley couldn’t get the ball onto his left foot and had to squeeze in crosses from the right on his weaker foot.

Rhys Youlley thrashed one over from distance, before the home team reshuffled, last week’s goal hero Al Hassan Toure making way for Abel Walatee and Youlley heading off to be replaced by will-o’-the-wisp Tiago Quintal. With Toure off, it was Piero Quispe on corner duty and he finally noticed the classy Paul Okon-Engstler shouting for the short corner. The new Socceroos player took his time and lifted in a delicious ball that Tisserand was first to, glancing a lovely header past veteran Filip Kurto in the Bulls’ goal. The Cove erupted, beer filled the air, Tisserand raced over to celebrate in front of the fans with the remaining substitutes and all the struggles were forgotten.

Former Sydney FC captain Luke Brattan, who had been all class as always, brought down Quispe on the run for a deadset free kick, earning a harsh yellow card. Lolley and Quintal stood over it, but it was Lolley who hit it, the ball arrowing just over the bar. This was going to be a nervy finish. Macarthur missed a sitter right in front, the ball skied over at the far end, and then Devenish-Meares looked to be beaten to the ball, but a shot hit the side netting instead of the target and the Sydney fans could breathe a sigh of relief. The Cove was in full voice as the four minutes of injury time was approaching the end, and a lot of the part-timers on the Hill had made for the exits for some reason. Cue Paddy Wood, on for the last fifteen minutes, who somehow kept in a long ball with a back-header and then ran away up the left as the ball fell his way. There looked to be plenty of low-percentage options opening up, but Wood took his time and flicked the ball in for Lolley, who met the ball perfectly, drilling a shot first time under Kurto for 2-0, and heading over to the Cove to celebrate properly. Fantastic!

We Are Sydney saw out the final throes of the game, the whistle went straight away, and the three points were in the bag. “Sydney’s won three in a row” sang the fans, coining the tune of another legendary British rock and roll band. “And I like it, I like it…” What a turnaround in fortunes from a pre-season that saw Brazilians leave, the Australia Cup end in disappointment and then the opening day defeat in Adelaide. Second in the table! Time to celebrate, and after captain Grant had his captain’s interview, the players came across to link hands and cheer with their delighted fans. More was to come though, as first goalscorer Marcel Tisserand was given the mega, and led the fans in an exotic version of Come On You Boys In Blue, which was lapped up by the Cove. Brilliant stuff!

Today must have been family day, as there were lots of kids on the field afterwards, Tisserand with his two little ones loving seeing Dad interact with the crowd. There was lots of love for Anthony Caceres, and Alex Grant was loving the limelight, the good times were back for Sydney FC and even the wind seemed to lull for a while at the final whistle to make the post-match a pleasant experience.

Back to the Orange Grove for a quick post-match drink while the traffic calmed down – it was nothing like the Central Coast post-game snarl-up – and we were back to the North Western suburbs and home for the end of the Brisbane Roar thrashing of Newcastle Jets, which kinda dampens our big win last weekend – we thought the Jets were going to be good this year. A fabulous end to the weekend, and honestly, if you’re looking for a similar kind of buzz to seeing Oasis for the first time, head down to a Sydney FC game and experience all the emotions while you sing along. It’s good for the soul, a real outlet to be able to shout nonsense into the void and you can enjoy a beer while doing it. See you back at Leichhardt on Saturday when a fast-improving Perth Glory women come to town. Forza Sydney FC!

Sydney FC 2 Central Coast Mariners 0

Six months since we last cheered on our boys in blue in a league fixture in Sydney, Leichhardt Oval was the perfect scene to fall in love with football all over again. Despite a creaky showing from our new-look team, the points were secured thanks to a calamitous finish from Victor Campuzano and we had to wait until the dying stages for the much-maligned Paddy Wood to secure the points with a deft finish in front of the adoring Cove. The troubled Central Coast gave a good account of themselves, but tonight was all about Sydney FC and this was the perfect advert for making A-League football a regular fixture in the family calendar.

Fresh from the B-League clash at Marconi Stadium, and picking up Michelle en route, we were parked up in Leichhardt next to the Orange Grove Hotel well before the Cove march to the Oval departed. A refreshing ale to loosen the vocal chords was much appreciated, and the short walk to the eighth wonder of the world had us inside the stadium with more than twenty minutes to spare. The crowd was already swelling, our usual trips to this venue to follow the women seeing crowds of a fraction of today’s, and the numbers were boosted by two busloads of overseas students (or that’s what we could deduce) who were being marshalled very orderly into position in front of one of two new big screens.

The Hill was the vantage point of choice for this evening, but the Cove drew me in, the tingling feeling when the arms went up for the first chant of We Are Sydney justifying the decision to be part of the action. Having missed last Friday night’s poor showing in Adelaide and with pre-season having been curtailed by that ridiculous penalty loss to Auckland FC in the Australia Cup, it took some time to get to know the new boys up front. Victor Campuzano was the bigger of the two, Piero Quispe was like a wasp, buzzing around the player with the ball but losing his footing frequently.

Expectations were remarkably low. It wasn’t just me. Somehow the Mariners had stolen a win in the F3 derby last weekend, but they were a club in strife and had no right to be top of the A-League after the first round. The quality of football early on was also on the low side, passes not sticking, telegraphed through balls being easily cut out, and it wasn’t just the Sky Blues being wasteful. Marcel Tisserand played a ball straight out of play. Ufuk Talay was agitated as he prowled the sideline. Al Hassan Toure looked the goods, and he wasn’t afraid to have a go, at one point released by a beauty of a through ball from the right by Joe Lolley, but he couldn’t beat Andrew Redmayne in the Mariners goal. The Cove did an extended Come On You Boys In Blue that was well received by both sides of the ground, the 23rd minute went by without a Rhythm Of My Heart, and the LoLo chant was aired to fill the air with debris. How good was it to be back?

Goalless at the break, expectations continued to be low, but the atmosphere was definitely growing. Quispe started getting some space, Joe Lolley was threatening on the right, and the excellent Paul Okon-Engstler looked composed and menacing. Talay barked at his players when Tisserand played a pointless short free kick that put his team under needless pressure. It was though a deft clip by Okon Jr that saw Rhyan Grant steal a yard on his defender on the right and he placed the ball into Toure’s path right in front of goal for a tap in, however the talented forward couldn’t sort his feet out and his prodded effort looked to be going wide until it hit the unsuspecting Campuzano. The Spaniard had a split second to weigh up his limited options, with his back to goal and Redders already committed, and with a cheeky back heel, akin to a donkey lashing out on an unsuspecting passer-by or even a dog covering its own shit, he flicked the ball into the unguarded net to send Sydney into the lead.

The relief was huge. The Cove was bouncing. The players ran to celebrate with their fans, a look of concern on captain Grant and the substitutes who were warming up as Sydney scored causing angst as someone had been squashed in the melee. Luckily there was no damage to any fan or player and the game could restart, most of the crowd expecting a VAR call to spoil the show, but nothing came. Sydney had the impetus, but the game was still very even. Harrison Devenish-Meares kept everyone on their toes by dwelling on a backpass a little too long, and there was a shout of handball as a long cross appeared to strike an arm in the Mariners box, but the replays were non-conclusive and the appeals waved away. Nerves were frayed. One goal would be enough, but Sydney FC are not exactly bulletproof and a second was craved.

There were almost groans as Wood was introduced, while the Mariners kept replacing their most effective players, not introducing someone who could create a spark until Christrian Theoharous came on late in the game. Abel Walatee looked like a worldbeater every time he got the ball. Wood smashed in a shot on the turn that Redders pushed away, and Lolley cut inside to strike a shot just past the post. Sydney were finishing strongly. Quispe sent Lolley up the right, and as we were all expecting him to cut in on his left, he blazed past his man and pulled the ball back for Wood, who clipped home a delightful second goal with the 90 minutes up on the pink digital clock of the famous hill scoreboard. On first viewing, it looked like a flick behind the front foot, but on review on the big screen it may have been just a lovely striker’s finish. The game was all Sydney’s now; injury time seemed very short, but we hadn’t really had any stoppages of note.

The players came over to the Cove, some of the players not knowing what this part of the process looked like. After linking hands and cheering with the fans, it was time for match-winner Paddy Wood to grab the megaphone and lead the Cove in one last Come On You Boys In Blue. Whilst our striker will never win a karaoke contest and perhaps should have known the words after many years at the club, it was a great moment of connection between players and supporters. We’re off and running. Season 2025/26 starts from here. We’re going to win the league.

There was a lot of love on the main stand side of Leichhardt Oval, plenty of Peruvian fans tryig to get a piece of Piero Quispe, and we weren’t hanging around tonight. Passing a gymnastically blessed security guard on Mary Street who was showing his prowess on the parallel bars, it was clear that there was an issue with the traffic. The roads were banked up both ways, cars were being sent down side streets by the police, and the line to get out onto Balmain Road was intense. Hopefully this is not the norm while we inhabit this part of the city. That prompted a last drink at the Orange Grove to let the traffic subside, and we were back in North West Sydney after 11pm, ready to take in the Matildas v Wales followed by the English Premier League. What a night of football, and Sydney FC played their part in making the evening as enjoyable as I can remember.

Sydney FC now travel to Newcastle next week for one of the most favourite away days of the season; however the fixture scheduling gods have really done us a disservice, and we’ll be back at Leichhardt Oval to see the season opening for the A-League women’s instead, as power house Melbourne City come to town looking for a hiding from our new improved Sydney FC girls. Only 45 minutes between the games – does anyone have a helicopter? Where will you be on Saturday?