Western Sydney claimed the A-League’s Premiers’ Plate in emphatic style with a 3-0 win over Newcastle on Friday to continue their fairytale maiden season and put the final nail in the the Jets’ coffin.
The Wanderers’ triumph makes them the first expansion club in Australian football history to win a trophy in their debut season.
The Jets meanwhile, who needed a win to keep alive their finals hopes, finish the season in eighth place.
Having let the minor premiership slip last week after a 1-1 draw with Sydney FC, the Wanderers weren’t about to do it again with a Mark Bridge brace in the opening half and a late Rocky Visconte missile sealing the win in front of a massive travelling contingent of close to 10,000 Wanderers fans at Hunter Stadium.
The Wanderers will be presented with the Plate in front of a home crowd in their next match – the first semi-final on April 12 at Parramatta Stadium.
Many doubted the heavily depleted side would be up to the task of taking on a fiercely desperate Jets outfit needing victory.
They were missing injured players Shinji Ono (groin) and Aaron Mooy (knee) in midfield and defenders Adam D’Apuzzo (foot) and Jerome Polenz (quad), while versatile Iacopo La Rocca is banned for the rest of the season for his elbow on Sydney’s Terry Antonis in last week’s derby.
But the Wanderers were boosted by the return of skipper Michael Beauchamp and crafty midfielder Youssouf Hersi back from suspension.
It took just six minutes for the Wanderers to signal their intent, and ironically it was three ex-Jets players combining to score the first goal in front of a 22,578-strong crowd.
Tarek Elrich played the long ball with Labinot Haliti sending it across the face of goal for the waiting Bridge who made no mistake with the finish.
Bridge struck again in the 33rd minute, getting on the end of a Dino Kresinger header to get the best of Jets defender Connor Chapman and put the visitors 2-0 up before half-time.
Visconte put the game beyond doubt in the 80th minute scoring his first goal of the season with a 20-metre screamer.
The Jets, who gained marquee man Emile Heskey from a three-week injury layoff, just couldn’t make any real inroads into Wanderers territory to be a genuine threat, with the visitors too quick on the counter-attack and too strong in defence.
They had promising strikes from Marko Jesic and skipper Ruben Zadkovich in the first half, while James Virgili and young gun Adam Taggart attempted shots in the second, but Wanderers ‘keeper Ante Covic was otherwise untroubled.
WSW77
Guest
That was a great burn!
langou
Roar Guru
Well done WSW on winning the minor premiership. Interesting to see if they can handle the heat in the next few weeks and join Melbourne, Newcastle, Sydney and Brisbane as A-League champions
Ian
Guest
started reading and figured there'd be a broncos reference. disagree about marketing potential, broncos have that covered from day 1. certainly no team was caught by surprise by the broncos with every team gunning for them from day 1. nonetheless, onto football, well done Wanderers. proved to be the most consistent all season. quite an achievement. hope the support continues into the 2nd season.
AZ_RBB
Guest
like Johnno said in the first comment. the goal is to become the biggest club in Asia. actually the Wanderers, Victory and Sky Blue should be aiming to become 3 of the biggest in Asia. Domestic titles should be incentives to keep building rather than purely bragging rights over other local teams. every butthurt Sky Blue fan makes the Premiership win even sweeter.
Tizzo
Guest
I don't think popa will let them have second year syndrome
Tizzo
Guest
There's an ACL match, so I doubt it would be for two consecutive weeks.
Mark Young
Roar Guru
Agreed Johnno, Well down Wanderers!
Brisvegas
Guest
Well done, WSW - best team in the league. And well done to the RBB - your support has been the best thing about the A-league this season. But beware of second season syndrome.
Garcia
Guest
Hate to be an East Sydney FC supporter today (do they have supporters that aren't just there for ADP?), You have lost the battle for Sydney. WSW has produced better football, a more passionate and more dedicated fan-base/crowd than you have ever produced and a community based club culture that Sydney can be proud of. Face it East Sydney FC is now the Morwell of the two A-league teams in Sydney.
ciudadmarron
Guest
Ah Qantas, still at it I see, Look, just because the assets the FFA get you break down and can't be used or offer horrible passes which allow the other team to score, and just because your salary cap is different to everyone elses but still doesn't buy you anything, it's no reason to criticise the FFA and the fact that they secured federal funding to get the team up and running on short notice. It's well documented the running costs of WSW are relatively low, it's well documented how the decision about the 2 (1 used!) extra visa spots came about under the acceptance of all the clubs in their newly formed group independent of the FFA. 8 years behind and a third of the way to catching up in the domestic silverware stakes; how many fans were travelling for you lot in the new dawn, yes, when you were winning matches too? Here's hoping your loyalty is rewarded by your club becoming something that means something.
Qantas supports Australian Football
Guest
Vinnie----you must be over the moon ..... B!!!!!!D ;) !@%^& Still doesn't change the fact you're the Parramatta City FC, Barnacle Club, attached to, and riding for free, on the back arse of the FFA :) ..... Sydney FC 'til I die.
midfielder
Guest
Congrats to the drive Byes
MV Dave
Guest
Wouldn't be surprised to see the Wanderers fans get some world wide recognition as in the linked Football fan displays; http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/blogs/the-rundown/football-fans-witty-creative-35-reasons-why-160547327.html Enjoy some witty work by fans world wide.
MV Dave
Guest
Wonderful scenes at Newcastle Stadium yesterday with the team and supporters celebrating...even Channel Nein showed some footage!! The Wanderers organisation deserves great credit for what they have achieved so far and in managing to get the locals to buy in on the the club. Hopefully when the team isn't doing so well on field the support will still be strong. Congratulations to all associated with the club for the success this season and let's hope it's a MV vs WSW Grand Final. :)
striker
Guest
Stavros what it does say if you have a brilliant coach with rejects anthing is possible.
Stavros
Guest
Well done to WSW, fantastic effort. What does this say about the quality of the league though?
The Bear
Guest
Big congrats... to WSW!!!! Will Arnie rest his team, now...for 2 consecutive weeks ?? Also, Jets deserved to finish 8th. Now that's a consistently average team! At least with BR they have been a team that has under performed...Jets just got lucky a few too many times this season. C'Mon Perth, give AU some doubt before the finals LOL...
Johnno
Guest
Great moment in Australian sport. This is truly historic and iconic stuff. It has that Man City beating Man United feel on the last day of the EPL last year. -A new team in a football or many will say Sokah heartland , a place that has produced more socceroos, than any other area of Australia. Bozza, Schwarcher, spider, and Harry Kewell , just too name a few. -And now this team in there first year has won the premier's plate, and qualified for the Asian champion's league. -What an iconic achievement in there first year. -This is far big than the 1988 Brisbane Broncos coming into the NSWRL. Yes the Brisbane Broncos had a star studded side, and Brisbane behind them, but they did not qualify for an ACL tournament with a market place population of 4 Billion like west sydney wanderers have now done. -Brisbane's population back in 1988 was around the 750-800,000 mark. -West sydney's population is around 2.2 million, and growing, and the opportunity now to play on Asian soccer's biggest club stage, Asian champion's league population of Asia 4 billion approximately. -Can't think of any AFL, RUgby league, or rugby union side having this level of success, or market reach and potential in there first year of entering a major competition. -West coast eagles finished 8th out of 14 teams in there debut season in 1987 -The Adelaide Crows finished 9th out of 15th in there 1st year in 1991 -Northern Spirit old NSL club made the finals in there 1st season 1998/99 But I can't recall a better rookie season than the west sydney wanderers by any sports team in Australia in the last 40 years. Awsome stuff in Australian sport. The New York Cosmos when they entered the old North American Soccer League (NASL) ,they won the title in there 2nd year like the Melbourne storm. The New York Cosmos got big as well, but this was the days before, globalisation, and the internet, and the world had lower population levels, and lower global middle class, and access to stuff like pay-tv, and no stuff like apps back then. And back in the 70's when the Cosmos entered the league, New York didn't have the same type of soccer culture that west sydney has today , no where near. USA in 1971 had approximately 205 million, and know stuff like a big CONCACAF club champion's league they have today, or an Asian champion's league like we have today appealing to a big wider audience both club tournaments do. That's why it was groundbreaking, just exposing soccer to a wider audience in the USA and in New York. -But soccer is now firmly established in west sydney, so it's an educated football demographic who understand football watching the wanderers or many of there fans are familiar or grew up with football, unlike when the Pele, New York Cosmos got big and attracted a broader audience in New York and the USA. -Great times ahead for the West sydney wanderers. Bozza says they might become the biggest soccer club in Asia time will tell, but amazing how big they will be by 2020 the WSW club, will become.