It was an era that started with a bang, faded in the middle and then saw a slight renaissance at the end.
As Sydney FC look to appoint the successor to outgoing coach Vitezslav Lavicka, the club will seek sustained success and progress.
A title in his first season at the club will guarantee Lavicka a special place in the hearts of Sydney FC fans. While his next two seasons at the club did not reach the same heights, there is plenty that can be built on by his successor.
In his three seasons at the helm, the Czech coach brought a new level of professionalism to the Sky Blues. The length of his tenure reflected an increased level of stability at a club that had previously seen coaches struggle to last longer than a season. However, while these aspects were welcomed by the majority of Sydney fans, there are other elements where many will be keen to see improvement.
Chief among these is the promotion of and retention of young talent. Throughout the last two years of his reign Lavicka increasingly came under fire for not giving enough young players a chance, and in some cases for allowing them to leave the club only to see them star elsewhere.
Much of the criticism is justified. Lavicka did favour experience over youth as it was more in keeping with the style of football he wished to play. And he did make mistakes when it came to retaining talent.
Young stars who emerged from the youth team such as Iain Ramsay, Antony Golec, Matt Jurman and others were persuaded to leave the club, or released only to go elsewhere and demonstrate exactly why they should have been retained. This would no doubt pain those at Sydney, who would have contributed much to these players’ development.
There is also the issue of the sporadic use of the club’s young talent, with few having been able to secure a sustained run in the team.
When young players were finally given a chance, in most cases they excelled, which asks why they were not used earlier. Joel Chianese is a case in point, with the 22 year old only given his opportunity at the end of the season, where he has showed his ability with goals and impressive all-round performances. Had he been used earlier perhaps he could have helped the Sky Blues to finish higher up on the table.
Lavicka’s reluctance to blood youth may also have played the role in an up-and-down three seasons.
Had he been more successful in integrating young players into the first team the end of each season, it would have resulted in evolution rather than revolution. Instead of overhauling the squad with players acquired from elsewhere, Lavicka would have been able to count on the young players at the club to step up. They would not have needed the same amount of time to settle in, or cost as much in salaries.
This would only have been possible had more young players been introduced consistently throughout the season and given the necessary time to develop.
The next coach will have an opportunity to build for long lasting success and add to the exciting talents of Chianese and Terry Antonis. It will be important that others are also moved into the first team and given playing time.
Sydney FC is a vastly different club from the one that was a symbol of instability of seasons past. Sydney fans are among the most knowledgeable in the A-League and will allow some short-term pain if the benefits for the future are obvious. A season of glory at the expense of the next should no longer suffice.
The club should endeavour to build for sustained achievement and the promotion of youth is essential to doing so.
Follow Beau on Twitter: @beaubusch
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