Football at its finest returns to Edensor Park

Two worlds will collide this Tuesday night in Sydney’s west. Two eras of Australian football that have been kept apart for the past 10 years will finally meet. And there’s a lot on the line.

Expect fireworks when Sydney United (nee Croatia) host Sydney FC in the FFA Cup round of 16 at Edensor Park, because this is more than just a game. This is football at its finest.

It’s a scenario that has been forced into the shadows. It’s a scenario that many have missed and yearned for. It’s a scenario that many never thought possible.

Yet on Tuesday night, it all becomes reality. Two powerhouses of Australian football will finally face each other in one of the country’s most iconic grounds.

United versus FC. Tradition versus bling. Old versus new. National Soccer League versus A-League. Nostalgia versus glamour. This is what the world game is all about.

The match-up provides fans with the derby of the decade, a chance for the whole of football to unite and share a common passion for the round ball. It’s what the FFA and fans were all wishing for at its inception – that little bit of magic.

The FFA Cup has started to bring football together again, even though there’s still a lot of work to do. And while Sydney United and Sydney FC fans may feel miles apart, their worlds are strongly intertwined.

Sydney United were one of the many NSL clubs that were cast aside when the FFA reinvigorated football with the creation of the A-League. Once a forerunner in Australian football, it was a blow that still hurts to this day.

As a result, there is still animosity directed towards Sydney FC, who, like Parramatta Power, were brought into the competition as a non-ethnic club to cater to a supposedly multicultural fan-base.

But everywhere you look there are links between the two Sydney clubs.

Sydney FC’s coach, Graham Arnold, is a Sydney Croatia legend. His curly perm and pornstar mo were synonymous with the club back in the 1980s, when they were one of Australia’s most star-studded sides and won three minor premierships.

On Tuesday, Mark Rudan will sit on the other side of the dugout to Arnold in charge of his beloved boyhood club Sydney United. He’s an FC legend himself though, having captained the side to the inaugural A-League championship in 2006.

FC goalkeeping coach Zeljko Kalac was also a United star, while Alex Brosque still lives in the west.

Nostalgia obviously surrounds this tie, and for good reason.

Sydney United president Sam Krslovic commented that this was “bringing the whole of football together”. And he’s spot on.

“Something we lost when the A-League was formed is now back,” he added.

Now, the proud community that has kept Sydney United running through thick and thin has a chance to prove they are more than just a memory. They have a chance to re-enter the national spotlight against their noisy, shiny new neighbours.

Thousands will pass Tom King Club as they descend on the Sydney United Sports Centre on Tuesday, making their way down the driveway that leads into Edensor Park. Once inside they will be treated to a raucous atmosphere, all under the shadow of the iconic Boka Stand.

While many of United’s support have ignored the A-League due to the acrimonious breakup of the NSL, many others have jumped on to support Western Sydney Wanderers, further adding an extra element to the tie.

Sydney’s west (apart from those who swore early allegiance to FC) will unite to bay for an A-League scalp.

And this is why the FFA Cup exists, for the emotive and historic ties like the one we’re about to witness on Tuesday. It’s bringing football back to the heartland, back to the origins of the game.

While it would be nice to say that this is just about the football, it would be a lie. It’s bigger than that. This is about history, about pain, about unfinished business and healing old wounds. This is about reunification of the old and the new.

Sydney United, once a big club, are now the underdog, and they’ll be out looking to kill a giant. Sydney FC are that giant, and their fans won’t want to be embarrassed.

Almost 50 years separate their foundation dates, and the chasm between the two sides is unavoidable. Sydney FC boast a massive wage bill and international marquees, while United remain trapped in the NSW NPL for the foreseeable future in semi-professional status.

Yet both have played an equal and crucial role in the history of Australian football. Sydney United (who changed their name from Sydney Croatia in the early 1990s) have produced more than 50 Socceroos and helped introduce the game to Australia. Sydney FC have helped take the sport to a new level of popularity.

Hopefully we see a packed and rocking Edensor Park on Tuesday, it would be a huge advert for football in the country – both old and new. And it would be a massive warning sign to the codes struggling to attract 20,000 to finals matches.

The atmosphere should be banging, and anyone with a chance of attending shouldn’t have a second thought.

If United win they will add another page to their already impressive history book. Even if they lose, but put on a damn good show, they’ll prove to new football fans that they are still relevant in the modern football landscape.

There’s been no hysteria in the media about crowd control, and there’s been no hyped up talk from the police about precursory security measures. That’s perhaps a sign of how football has grown up, as well as how the mainstream has started accepting the sport.

Football has moved on, there’s no doubt there, but it’s now ready to track back and pick up the pieces. Sydney United versus Sydney FC is what every true fan wanted to see, and now they have it. The old and the new are finally getting back together, and it’s a beautiful thing.

Follow Janek on Twitter @JanekSpeight