OMEN
03-05-2006, 01:57 PM
Sydney FC 1 Mariners 0
SYDNEY FC won the inaugural A-League grand final, claiming victory with a much improved second-half performance at Aussie Stadium.
http://foxsports.news.com.au/common/imagedata/0,5001,5117193,00.jpg
McFlynn ... different strengths to Zadkovic.
Sydney FC, utterly dominated by Central Coast Mariners in the first half, changed things around at the interval to such an extent that it was no surpise when the grand final favourite took the lead.
Club captain Dwight Yorke, dropping deeper after being a peripheral figure as a striker in the first half, suddenly found himself with more space to move and find the range in his passing.
His improved performance in the second half saw Yorke win the inaugural Joe Marston medal as man of the match.
For the goal, Yorke picked up the ball in an advanced midfield position before turning to run at the Mariners defence.
The defenders backed off as Yorke jinked and feinted this way and that, allowing him to advance unchallenhged to the edge of the penalty area, from where he pulled the ball back to Steve Corica just outside the box.
Corica, a former Australia internnational, made good use of a fraction of time to place the ball past Mariners goalkeeper Danny Vukovic and spark scenes of joy among the Sydney fans in the sellout crowd.
Corica said after the game that the win was the best moment of his long career.
"It doesn't get any better," he said on Fox Sports
"I've had a long carerer, 15, 16 years, and that's my favourite moment.
"We worked really hard. They put us under a lot of pressure but we hung strong."
The Mariners had dominated the first half, winning the majority of 50-50 balls and creating numerous chances.
Mariners attacking midfielder Tom Pondeljak, in his fourth consecutive National Soccer League/A-League premiership, was at the heart of much of Central Coast's play, putting in dangerous crosses from either flank.
The Mariners were stronger in the tackle in a frantic opening period, but they failed to make best play of their advantage.
First, midfield player Andre Gumprecht, another dynamo for the Mariners throughout the half, pulled a shot wide from the corner of the six-yard box after the ball had fallen to him following a perfect cross from Pondeljak on the right flank.
Less than two minutes later, Mariners striker Stewart Petrie wasted another prime opportunity.
Pondeljak, again, put the striker through after picking up the ball following a mistake by Sydney centre-back Jacob Timpano, but Petrie dragged his shot wide when he was free on the edge of the penalty box.
Sydney gradually worked its way into the game after a quarter-hour, with Yorke just unable to get his head to a cross from the right flank.
But Yorke, just back in turn after a round-the-world trip to play for Trinidad and Tobago, looked off the pace throughout the first half, in which the Blues seemed unable to the selection rabbit pulled out of the hat by coach Pierre Littbarski, who named Terry McFlynn instead of Ruben Zadkovic in his midfield.
McFlynn had not played for five weeks.
Littbarski said on Fox Sports that he had made the decision in order to combat the strength of Central Coast.
"I think they are very strong in the centre so we put some extra player there," Littbarski said.
Whatever the reasoning for Littbarski's decision, his side failed to cope with the Mariners midfield, from where the players continued to threaten the Blues defence.
But Sydney could have gone a goal up on the stroke of half-time, when Corica flash a half-volley high and wide of the goal from the edge of the six-yard box.
The respective coaching teams agreed at half-time that Central Coast had been the better team.
"We've created four or five good chances, we've played well and looked compact," Mariners coach Lawrie McKinna said.
"We expect them to change a few things because we've caused them a few problems, getting wide.
Sydney assistant coach Ian Crook said his side had to "improve all over the park".
"They've better better than us everywhere," Crook said.
"We take pride in our possession, but we've not kept the ball well."
As it was, Sydney did retain possession in the second half, playing well and restricting Pondeljak and Gumprecht, so influential for Central Coast in the opening period, to bit-part players in the second half.
"The Mariners probably didn't deserve to lose, they played very well in the first half, but it's all about taking your chances," Yorke said after the game.
"As the game went on, I knew I had to stamp my authority on the game - and in the end, I was able to do that.
"The team showed a lot of character today.
"We needed to stand up and be counted in the second half, and we came up with the game winner."
SYDNEY FC: Clint Bolton; Andrew Packer, Mark Rudan (Iain Fyfe 71min), Jacob Timpano (Ruben Zadkovic (80min), Alvin Ceccoli; Steve Corica, Terry McFlynn, Matthew Bingley, David Carney; Sasho Petrovski (Robbie Middleby 89 min), Dwight Yorke (captain). Substitutes: , Tolgay Ozbay, Justin Pasfield.
CENTRAL COAST MARINERS: Danny Vukovic; Alex Wilkinson, Michael Beauchamp, Andrew Clark, Dean Heffernan; Wayne O'Sullivan, Noel Spencer (captain), Andre Gumprecht, Damien Brown (Matthew Osman 67min); Stewart Petrie (Adam Kwasnik 72min), Tom Pondeljak. Substitutes: Paul O'Grady, Jamie McMaster, Matthrew Trott.
FOX SPORTS
SYDNEY FC won the inaugural A-League grand final, claiming victory with a much improved second-half performance at Aussie Stadium.
http://foxsports.news.com.au/common/imagedata/0,5001,5117193,00.jpg
McFlynn ... different strengths to Zadkovic.
Sydney FC, utterly dominated by Central Coast Mariners in the first half, changed things around at the interval to such an extent that it was no surpise when the grand final favourite took the lead.
Club captain Dwight Yorke, dropping deeper after being a peripheral figure as a striker in the first half, suddenly found himself with more space to move and find the range in his passing.
His improved performance in the second half saw Yorke win the inaugural Joe Marston medal as man of the match.
For the goal, Yorke picked up the ball in an advanced midfield position before turning to run at the Mariners defence.
The defenders backed off as Yorke jinked and feinted this way and that, allowing him to advance unchallenhged to the edge of the penalty area, from where he pulled the ball back to Steve Corica just outside the box.
Corica, a former Australia internnational, made good use of a fraction of time to place the ball past Mariners goalkeeper Danny Vukovic and spark scenes of joy among the Sydney fans in the sellout crowd.
Corica said after the game that the win was the best moment of his long career.
"It doesn't get any better," he said on Fox Sports
"I've had a long carerer, 15, 16 years, and that's my favourite moment.
"We worked really hard. They put us under a lot of pressure but we hung strong."
The Mariners had dominated the first half, winning the majority of 50-50 balls and creating numerous chances.
Mariners attacking midfielder Tom Pondeljak, in his fourth consecutive National Soccer League/A-League premiership, was at the heart of much of Central Coast's play, putting in dangerous crosses from either flank.
The Mariners were stronger in the tackle in a frantic opening period, but they failed to make best play of their advantage.
First, midfield player Andre Gumprecht, another dynamo for the Mariners throughout the half, pulled a shot wide from the corner of the six-yard box after the ball had fallen to him following a perfect cross from Pondeljak on the right flank.
Less than two minutes later, Mariners striker Stewart Petrie wasted another prime opportunity.
Pondeljak, again, put the striker through after picking up the ball following a mistake by Sydney centre-back Jacob Timpano, but Petrie dragged his shot wide when he was free on the edge of the penalty box.
Sydney gradually worked its way into the game after a quarter-hour, with Yorke just unable to get his head to a cross from the right flank.
But Yorke, just back in turn after a round-the-world trip to play for Trinidad and Tobago, looked off the pace throughout the first half, in which the Blues seemed unable to the selection rabbit pulled out of the hat by coach Pierre Littbarski, who named Terry McFlynn instead of Ruben Zadkovic in his midfield.
McFlynn had not played for five weeks.
Littbarski said on Fox Sports that he had made the decision in order to combat the strength of Central Coast.
"I think they are very strong in the centre so we put some extra player there," Littbarski said.
Whatever the reasoning for Littbarski's decision, his side failed to cope with the Mariners midfield, from where the players continued to threaten the Blues defence.
But Sydney could have gone a goal up on the stroke of half-time, when Corica flash a half-volley high and wide of the goal from the edge of the six-yard box.
The respective coaching teams agreed at half-time that Central Coast had been the better team.
"We've created four or five good chances, we've played well and looked compact," Mariners coach Lawrie McKinna said.
"We expect them to change a few things because we've caused them a few problems, getting wide.
Sydney assistant coach Ian Crook said his side had to "improve all over the park".
"They've better better than us everywhere," Crook said.
"We take pride in our possession, but we've not kept the ball well."
As it was, Sydney did retain possession in the second half, playing well and restricting Pondeljak and Gumprecht, so influential for Central Coast in the opening period, to bit-part players in the second half.
"The Mariners probably didn't deserve to lose, they played very well in the first half, but it's all about taking your chances," Yorke said after the game.
"As the game went on, I knew I had to stamp my authority on the game - and in the end, I was able to do that.
"The team showed a lot of character today.
"We needed to stand up and be counted in the second half, and we came up with the game winner."
SYDNEY FC: Clint Bolton; Andrew Packer, Mark Rudan (Iain Fyfe 71min), Jacob Timpano (Ruben Zadkovic (80min), Alvin Ceccoli; Steve Corica, Terry McFlynn, Matthew Bingley, David Carney; Sasho Petrovski (Robbie Middleby 89 min), Dwight Yorke (captain). Substitutes: , Tolgay Ozbay, Justin Pasfield.
CENTRAL COAST MARINERS: Danny Vukovic; Alex Wilkinson, Michael Beauchamp, Andrew Clark, Dean Heffernan; Wayne O'Sullivan, Noel Spencer (captain), Andre Gumprecht, Damien Brown (Matthew Osman 67min); Stewart Petrie (Adam Kwasnik 72min), Tom Pondeljak. Substitutes: Paul O'Grady, Jamie McMaster, Matthrew Trott.
FOX SPORTS