Finally A-League action returned after the pesky international break (hat tip to the national side for two professional performances). Plenty of thrills and spills over the weekend, so let’s get stuck in.
Here are your A-League Round 5 talking points.
Tense Sydney Derby breathes life into A-League
In a league struggling for metrics, the Sydney Derby – the competition’s biggest rivalry by a country mile – always provides a much-needed sugar hit. As much as Marko Rudan tried to stoke the flames of perceived class warfare, there is genuine dislike between Sydney FC and Western Sydney that doesn’t actually need to be exaggerated.
Marcus Antonsson thought he’d opened the scoring in the latest edition with his first derby goal for his new side, only for the VAR to correctly assess the Swede was in an offside position. Before the video referee’s intervention Sky Blues fans might’ve been having flashbacks to last season’s 4-0 humiliation at the same venue.
A tense battle followed, with Brandon Borrello forced off the field with an injury after just 17 minutes, before ex-Sky Blue Zac Sapsford came back to haunt his former employers.
The atmosphere inside the ground as well as the TV pictures remind us that there is, indeed, still life left in the A-League. Of course this is a derby, but it’s the APL’s job to help foster these kinds of scenes at grounds across Australia and New Zealand.
Are Melbourne City in trouble?
The start to City’s 2023-24 campaign has been quite atypical, but not entirely unexpected. Well, perhaps few would’ve foreseen a 6-0 loss so early in the season, a defeat that was the final straw for the club, proving to be Rado Vidosic’s last match in charge.
But after losing so much quality in the off-season it was always going to be a challenge for City to keep up their success of recent times. Jamie Maclaren stayed in Victoria but the hugely promising trio of Marco Tilio, Aiden O’Neill and Jordan Bos, vital in City’s third straight premiership, all jetted off to new clubs in Europe.
Classy midfielders Richard van der Venne and Florin Berenguer also departed, as did goalkeeper Tom Glover. Vidosic’s recruitment simply didn’t go anywhere near replacing who he’d lost, though the acquisitions of Aziz Behich and Tolgay Arslan would’ve given supporters hope.
Competing in the Asian Champions League is never easy for an A-League club with their restraints compared to continental opponents, and the dual campaigns are certainly testing the depth of City.
Bill Foley handed licence for Auckland expansion side
I’ve written before about how after Australia’s capital city, there were better options for expansion on our own shores than a second team across the Tasman.
Nevertheless, Auckland’s expansion bid was ratified by the powers that be – and news this week that American billionaire Bill Foley has been handed the licence makes the decision more palatable.
Vegas Golden Knights Owner Bill Foley celebrates during a victory parade and rally for the Vegas Golden Knights on the Las Vegas Strip on June 17, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/NHLI via Getty Images)
I’m still far from bullish about the expansion club’s prospects – we’ve got enough problems with Macarthur and Western United as it is – but after seeing what Foley has done with the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights, Auckland are getting an owner who knows what winning looks like. The Knights progressed to the Stanley Cup Finals in their inaugural season, and in June claimed their first championship.
Even if Auckland aren’t able to replicate that kind of silverware in the early days, Foley’s deep pockets will ensure they field a competitive side – quite possibly bolstered by a genuine overseas marquee player or two. We’ll see how competent their off-field operations will be, as it’s vital the league doesn’t add another basket-case like the Bulls and Western United.
Quick hits
FA announces ‘National’ Second Tier
I think every football fan understands why the eight foundation NST clubs all come from Australia’s two most populous states: money. It’s what makes the world – and certainly the world of sport – turn. But can you really claim a competition is ‘national’, when it ignores four states and two territories?
Football Australia CEO James Johnson made it clear there’s scope to expand the second tier in the near future – let’s hope more clubs from outside NSW and Victoria can rustle up the necessary funds soon.
Patrick Antelmi of Sydney United 58 FC celebrates scoring a goal. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)
Champions off the mark
After a disastrous start to their championship defence with four straight losses, Mark Jackson’s Central Coast Mariners finally notched their first points of the campaign in a hard-fought F3 Derby, 3-1 over Newcastle. Jackson’s got a big job on his hands to keep this depleted Mariners outfit competitive in not just the league campaign, but also the AFC Cup.
They’ll stay in Gosford this week for Terengganu’s visit on Wednesday, before an important clash with Melbourne Victory on Sunday afternoon.
How much lower can Bulls go?
What a shame that so few fans turned out on Friday night for the tense arm-wrestle between Macarthur and Melbourne Victory. The Bulls side are playing good football, and should be even higher on the ladder after throwing away two points.
There’s simply not much further for the Bulls to sink, but I can’t see how the situation is going to improve, either.
Christo the Daddyo
Roar Rookie
What’s going on that makes you think sellouts are a realistic goal in the future?
Blood Dragon
Roar Rookie
In Furys 1st season their Attendance average was higher than Newcastle's
Kitwally
Roar Rookie
Melbourne City, Mariners and Macarthur resume their Asian games this week. With the salary cap and the A-Leagues’ rapid transformation into a development league, City and Mariners squads look very different to when they qualified for Asia and their positions on the A-League ladder this season reflect this. Only Macarthur that qualified by winning the Australia Cup are in the top 6.
Buddy
Roar Rookie
SS - I reckon they are being ignored at the moment because the media hasn’t worked them out. Off to a flying start and then smacked by a struggling SFC side so in the spirit of M&M - “will the real Adelaide United please stand up, please stand up”!
Munro Mike
Roar Rookie
because of the NSW centricity of Soccer participation in this country (by quite a margin) - - it's very hard to NOT be NSW centric in the peak league. In essence - - outside of NSW - - arguably it's not just league but game 'expansion'. The crazy element is - - now looking at 2 NZ teams in an Australian league that has only one side each from WA and SA.......what's that tell you?!!?
fabian gulino
Roar Rookie
Melbourne city are in real trouble, and there's no way they can turn the season around now. They have lost to many players from last season and have only recruited only a few players even sacking the coach. A. Vidmar might start playing the younger players in the reserves because they just cant keep on playing the way they are. Apart from J mac haven't got that spark in front of goals no more. Mat Leckie and Andrew Naboot would be handy right now. City to finish bottom 3.
JoshW
Roar Rookie
years of draconian treatment of WSW fans.
Lionheart
Roar Rookie
I think Football Australia aren’t complete morons I tend to agree with that, now that they've got an outsider (who happens to be from Qld) in charge, but I'm not so sure about the APL
Lionheart
Roar Rookie
umm, crowds were much better than what we are seeing from a few clubs at present, average around 8K in 2009-10, dipped to around 4K in 10-11. Money wise, the community strove very hard to raise sponsorship adequate to stay a year, time to work on ownership, a real community effort that we haven’t seen in Newcastle. Many are blind when it comes to NQ, but happy to pick up players from the deep north (of which there are a growing number). We need players like Mary Fowler, Mitch Langerak, Corica, Zabala, Waddingham, Brillante, Williams to name a few, to have a local club to inspire them. Not sure if you’ve ever lived in Townsville or FNQ, but I did for 7 years, also lived long periods in Sydney, Melbourne, regional Vic, Darwin, Brisbane and outback Qld, and overseas SE Asia. Townsville and FNQ has, without doubt, the best community spirit of any place I’ve lived, by a long shot.
TheSecretScout
Roar Guru
the less said about adelaide the better at the moment lol (lets keep it that way) im still not sure how they are still flying this low under the radar at the moment to barely get a mention by football pundits and journos - they will go very close to winning the league this season
David Shilovsky
Expert
Well, Townsville never supported Fury like Newcastle have (at times) with the Jets. In a limited sample size, admittedly. Typically cities don't get second chances with pro teams after just 10 years.
Midfielder
Roar Guru
Things are on the improve.... The Cows are a big problem, their crowds are woeful, I do wonder aloud what there management are doing... WU I am prepared to give a little more time and see how they go at their own ground, only 5K to start but for them thats a good starting size to build from. On the round, its getting better bit by bit....
Lionheart
Roar Rookie
no merit in a second Qld team? why?
Football Fan
Roar Rookie
Wollongong never had good crowds and I'm not convinced they'll be that much better than Macarthur. As for South Melbourne, all they will do is cannibalise the already withering support of the existing Vic clubs.
Brainstrust
Roar Rookie
When did Gold Coast United Brisbane every draw a crowd. Palmer was rightfully dirty that he wasn't given the first derby and Brisbane got two derbies in Gold Coast first year. Even the first ever derby and Gold Coast United match only drew 19k and it went downhill from there. Its like Macarthur Wanderers derby not a Sydney Wanderers derby. The minute Macarthur and Western United run out of money they will get dumped just like Gold Coast. At the moment they are flush with case. The AFL spend about 100m a year across NSW and QLD propping up teams , grassroots etc. NRL is smart its spend hardly anything interstate they let Newscorp pay over 10m a year for Melbourne. NBL Kestlamaine is the one funding the league and expansion they are not making money from it. Expansion is dumb unless you can get someone else to pay for it.
Lionheart
Roar Rookie
the challenge for Brisbane is to grow the crowd, much easier task than building a stadium. We can do this.
Lionheart
Roar Rookie
Dolphins with 10K crowd means very long queues, for food, drink, comfort break etc not good. Suncorp with 10K means over half the stadium is closed and still not much queue.
Lionheart
Roar Rookie
The pitch looked heavy from my seat, kind of wet underfoot, and one Glory defender did slip a couple of times, but it didn't seem to affect play so much. Movement of ball and man/woman was probably a little slower but not to my imperfect vision. I saw the TV pictures, they looked far worse than what I saw, maybe the cameras show up color variations more than we see.
Lionheart
Roar Rookie
do you think Townsville isn't?
Brainstrust
Roar Rookie
How is parking the bus impressive by Wellington. Away from home they have been absolutely awful hardly having a shot away yet somehow getting draws. Then when they play in New Zealand every travelling team has the Perth away disease. They have yet to face any team that looked like it could be bothered in NZ . If this trend continues I can see them winning the comp with draws away and wins at home. Zawada has done nothing away when he played so I dont see them missing him in away games. He missed cashing in against City in Auckland.