In a statement weekend, Sydney FC and Melbourne Victory made significant ones in advancing to the final four of the A-League finals.
Now, most neutrals interested in and engaged by the competition will be rooting enthusiastically for the remaining ‘good guys’ when they face off against the two elimination final winners this weekend in their respective match-ups.
Wellington Phoenix and Central Coast Mariners will be strongly preferred among the wider Australian football supporter base and with good reason. Despite the Mariners raising the championship trophy last season, they remain something of a fairy-tale; one solidified after Monday morning’s AFC Cup triumph.
It seems the little engine that could has become an Australian football powerhouse over the last two seasons, something few expected or predicted.
Even their winning ways are not turning people away from their story, unlike the sustained success of Sydney FC and Melbourne Victory which, frankly, threatened to bring a Bundesliga/LaLiga-type boredom into a competition that is now thriving on nice parity across the board.
No A-League team was an easy-beat this season, yet Phoenix and Central Coast were clearly the class of the field across the journey.
Sydney FC were poor early and then inconsistent, before finally finding a rich vein of form the closer the finals loomed. Victory were undefeated for some time, before the magic disappeared as they scrapped and clawed their way into third on the ladder, despite only winning ten games during the campaign.
Both have found their way into the final four in very different ways.
The Bulls looked to have something over the Sky Blues, yet a poor refereeing decision cruelled their elimination match-up with Sydney and a 4-0 flogging followed. Victory dug deep, winning on penalties after scoring at the death with ten men against Melbourne City to push the contest into extra-time.
Now, the former big guns are there, poised and as menacing as ever.
Like most people in the country, I would like to see them both lose and watch the best two teams – based on the whole season – do battle in the decider.
Quite simply, when Melbourne City, Sydney FC or Melbourne Victory hold the trophy aloft, as good as they may have been to claim it, the league loses something.
They are expected to be great, year in year out and with money and resources available in some areas that other clubs simply don’t have; it is understandable why.
Yet 2023/24 is a golden chance for the Australian football public to cheer as one, barring the fans of the two teams of course, and enjoy the sight of two perennial battlers fighting over a championship.
A second consecutive title for the Mariners would be astonishing, almost as much as an inaugural one for Wellington.
With a second New Zealand team set to enter the competition next season, the trophy heading across the ditch might well be the best thing to happen to the A-League in some time.
Both teams have been a pleasure to watch this season. Central Coast with their gritty, never-say-die brilliance that has seen them rebound from a sluggish and winless start and the Phoenix, playing a brand of football under Giancarlo Italiano that people in Wellington are unfamiliar with.
Giancarlo Italiano. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)
Both score plenty and concede far less frequently and while the Phoenix are a little more prone to play a calculated brand and grind out results when required, when they do open up in search of goals, the product is exciting to watch.
As for the two imposters threatening to derail a remarkable grand final between two sides that have spent many a week in the A-League cellar, tell your story walking!
We don’t need you Sydney FC, nor do we require the presence of Melbourne Victory in the grand final. Just let the two best teams this season battle it out; the teams the public actually enjoy watching.
Join me for live calls of both first legs of the A-League semi-finals this weekend on The Roar.
Waz
Roar Rookie
Suncorp yes. It’s a great stadium to get to and the bars/restaurants around the stadium make it a great night out. Availability is an issue - but we’ve got used to that. Ballymore no. It’s really hard to get to, it’s not suited to crowds above 2k really (not enough toilets, catering, access). Perry Park - yes. Again easy to get to Persia just a bit small for the women - it’s seated capacity is about 1800 which is not enough but sounds great when it’s full.
Stuart Thomas
Expert
Thanks mate. The supporters 'happy' with this?
Sheffield WesDay
Roar Rookie
I still like Redcliffe. I find it sad and disappointing schlepping into Suncorp just to see bank after bank of empty seats. (Throws the grenade and ducks for cover).
Sheffield WesDay
Roar Rookie
I still like Redcliffe. I find it sad and disappointing schlepping into Suncorp just to see bank after bank of empty seats. (Throws the grenade and ducks for cover).
Sheffield WesDay
Roar Rookie
Ha. I am not sure SS would be happy with another East Coast focused event.
Football Fan
Roar Rookie
See this is what annoys me. You can't refer to the playoffs as some sort of separate "cup competition". It's part of the league. It's used to determine the champions for each season. If you separate the playoffs from the league then what's the point of playing them? The reason so many people attend is because it is the business end of the league season. They tried separating them in the old NSL and the GF barely got any crowd or attention. They dropped the idea immediately. Who you think is the best team is irrelevant to this discussion. BTW, I do agree with you that the best team is the team finishing top.
NickA
Roar Rookie
Not at all – in fact in my comment above I (begrudingly) said that I think finals should stay in Australia. We need them as that is our sporting landscape. What I am saying is that the main plaudits (i.e. continental qualification) should, in line with the rest of the world, be aligned to the premiers & not the champions. I am also saying that the best team of the year is the team that finishes first – not the team that wins the cup competition at the end of the season.
Football Fan
Roar Rookie
Who says a league can't have playoffs, especially since that is the tradition here in Australia since the NSL days? Are you saying we should break this long standing tradition, just because it isn't done overseas? Look what happened when the APL tried breaking another tradition with the fixed GF host city.
chris1
Roar Rookie
Have to agree with you on SFC womens. Why they were content with 28% possession in a comp that is meant to be relatively equal across all teams is beyond me. Winners are grinners I guess.
chris1
Roar Rookie
Wow Grem - you really are a saint for travelling from Camden to Allianz!
NickA
Roar Rookie
Yep FF that's what I acknowledged in my comment above! I agree cup football is a different prospect to league football. But the A league is a league, not a cup. Therefore it should be first past the post that gets the plaudits.
Football is Life
Roar Rookie
Great response
Football Fan
Roar Rookie
NickA (and others), isn't it the same in the FIFA World Cup to determine the world champion country, winning the 4 knockout games? Same with the European champion club in the UCL. In both comps they play in a group, don't have to win all games, in fact in 1982 Italy drew all 3 games in the groups stage, then win the knockout games and they are champions! No different here with the finals system.
Brendan
Roar Pro
In other football news… If J-Mac is really going to India (Mohun Bagan) to join Jason Cumming’s team, then can the C-Dog come back to Australia?
TheSecretScout
Roar Guru
i deal with facts not fiction - especially when it comes to the mariners (who have always had a large amount of south australians either trialing or playing for the club over the years) you have a very short memory (or a selective one) when it comes to anything ive ever said involving the mariners. *i was the first person who broke the stajcic issue online, it resulted in me being banned from this site as it was unsubstantiated at that point. His NDA will be up before the end of the decade, lets see if he or the matildas player in question speak about it when they are able to. *yet again i was the first person who broke the tonyik story online (to the point where media were quoting what i was saying directly in there national stories). Those injuries the young lady suffered were appalling. its extremely unfortunate that the case may well go the same route of mason greenwoods case in england. *torres was not from me, the defence he will use (very similar to the case above will not help him) *noah smith - broke the news of him signing for the club *michael ruhs - broke the news of him signing for the club *thomas aquilina - broke the new of him signing for the club *oli bozanic's departure - i know you disputed what i said about why he left, but i was 90% accurate in terms of the reason (only thing i got wrong was one of the people associated) everything i've ever said about the mariners online (which is not actually that much) has had an extremely high amount of accuracy to it (much like everything i've ever said about brisbane, sydney and inparticular adelaide) theres a reason why this site has been contacted by multiple clubs and several players over the years wanting many things i write removed i have nothing to prove to anyone, especially a poster who only turns up to gloat when the side he follows wins
Brendan
Roar Pro
Stu, I’m guessing you’re a Blacktown City man.
Brendan
Roar Pro
Lolley… Out.
Brendan
Roar Pro
… Back to Foxtel we go. Tra-La-La. Cap in hand. “Please, Sir, may I ‘ave some more?”
Brendan
Roar Pro
You make some valid points, Brainstrust. Wellington is more of a “fairytale” team this year, & many neutrals will be supporting them. The Mariners only just scraped a 1-0 ACL win in Oman. To me they’re just hanging in there. Jackson will need to motivate & keep their spirits up. Sydney appear to be scarily good at times, others, they mentally switch off when playing less men on the field. Still, their strike power is super impressive. As for Victory… After last week’s game against City, that darn team is capable of winning the darn Championship! How can you stop them? Come on Wellington, step up!
Grem
Roar Rookie
That’s why I love the A Leagues - it’s an underdog! But doesn’t it produce good teams and talent.