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The Roar

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The next fortnight will test Sydney's worth as premiers-elect

The A-League Sydney derby in Penrith is gonna be spicy. (AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts)
Expert
22nd February, 2017
29

At the height of the wave, nestled comfortably in the frothy peak, it can all feel so easy.

Breezy victories over Adelaide and Wellington come and go, and the wave crests perfectly, sun glinting off the crystal azure waters.

Ties against the Victory and Brisbane are but slight wobbles, eventually righted, with the unbeaten record kept intact.

Thoughts of an invincible season wander through the mind, like the sweet strums of a ukulele, perfuming the preparations for a smooth descent down the glassy face, setting up a perfect cruise into shore.

But then the wave rears up, seaweed and grit blown up to the surface, and the trough digs away beneath. It all comes crashing down in an instant.

Suddenly the perfect season is strewn across the dirty whitewater, and as Sydney FC emerge from the churn, gasping and spluttering, they turn their heads to the next set of breakers rolling in, each with furious, foaming whitecaps, all of them bearing down. These next two matches, not the 20 that have come before them, will be the true test of the leaders’ mettle.

Alex Brosque was quick to make the point, its obviousness concealed somewhat by the frenzy of the occasion, after the derby.

“We’ve still only lost one league match all season,” said Brosque.

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Indeed; had Sydney been offered their current record before the season – 14 wins, five draws and one loss with 41 goals scored and ten conceded – they would have laughed incredulously while snatching the offer up like a spoilt child would their umpteenth Christmas present. The position they’re in presently, with an eight-point gap, is still an incredibly strong one.

But their next two fixtures – against Melbourne City, the only team outside of Sydney to have beaten them this season, and against Melbourne Victory, the leading hound, slavering and galloping in the chasing pack – are absolutely critical.

Besart Berisha and David Villa at the A-League launch

If a post-first-defeat hangover occurs – like it did for Melbourne City’s W-League team, who went into a mini-slump this season following their maiden defeat as a franchise – and Sydney are handed their second and third defeats of the season on the trot, then the gap between them and the Victory could potentially be closed to two meagre points with five regular season matches remaining.

In that event Sydney will still have to play a Perth team that has scored ten goals in its last three games as well as Melbourne City again. A defeat to either of those teams could lose Graham Arnold the premiership. Of course all of this speculation could be rendered moot if Sydney composes themselves to win or draw their next two games.

There is something about Sydney that bolsters the belief that they will get right back on track; nothing about their 19-game unbeaten run was volatile. It was a phenomenal series of results built on the back of a historically parsimonious defence and an extremely efficient attack.

Sydney haven’t been flying by the seats of their pants playing kamikaze football. Although there were some fortunate moments – the 3-2 win over the Mariners in round 14 comes to mind – for the most part this was a composed, diligent team controlling games and patiently imposing their will. Even in some of the bigger matches, like the 1-1 draws they had with Brisbane and City, there was a sense of restraint, as if they knew overextending in search of some glorious winner was a fool’s game.

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They were unfortunate to lose the derby. Had a penalty been rightly awarded – and converted – in the final minutes, then Sydney’s vastly superior goal difference would probably have allowed for three more defeats over their final seven matches, and for them still to seize the premiers plate.

The fallout from the RBB’s astonishingly infantile, homophobic banner has spared Sydney somewhat from an increased amount of scrutiny that might have followed their first defeat. They are still the best team in the competition and have displayed the fortitude over the last 20 matches to regather themselves. The hairline crack of their first league defeat should not cause the foundation to crumble like a Venetian apartment; there is no real reason for them to capitulate.

Melbourne Victory are relying on their city rivals to do them a favour; Melbourne City are 17 points behind Sydney and are coasting toward the finals. They will have to shake off the late-season fuzz and altruistically reinvigorate the race for the plate for the benefit of only Kevin Muscat’s team and the impassioned neutral.

The Victory were ravenous against the Mariners on Sunday – no doubt buoyed by the result of the derby the night before – with James Troisi and Besart Berisha playing with a sense of vim that can only come after having had a fresh whiff of a reopened title race.

There was, in spite of Sydney’s unbeaten run, always the feeling that the Victory’s refusal to lose sight of the leaders could be consequential. They have spent the season fighting through the dust, trudging through the tracks left by the leaders, and must be vigorously commended for enduring in this position for so long.

There are few things in the league more terrifying than a focused, bloodthirsty Melbourne Victory, and the impending Big Blue will likely be a seismic affair. As for the rest of the Victory’s run-in, it’s easier than Sydney’s, with only the Big Blue and a match away to Brisbane – who have to negotiate a packed schedule from now on – standing out as tricky fixtures.

A gentle cruise to the shore this will not be. The premiership is no longer a forgone conclusion. Sydney FC, recently rendered mortal, are in danger of being dragged back by the out-rushing tide. If they’re worthy of the mantle, the initial strokes they make over the next two weeks must be steady and decisive.

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