Nick Montgomery’s highly watchable team have defied the odds to get within one game of an A-League grand final appearanceSince he landed in Australia, Jason Cummings has lived up to his reputation as something of a jester. But beyond the jovial nature and Joker-inspired tattoos adorning various parts of his body, the Central Coast striker has established himself among the A-League Men’s best.His arrival from Dundee in January 2022 passed without major fanfare but 17 goals in 26 appearances in a Mariners shirt, a Socceroos debut and a run out at the Qatar World Cup, have done much to change the narrative. Most recently, his strike against Adelaide proved decisive in a 2-1 win in the first leg of their...
Few A-League fixtures produce the pumping scenes and vibrant atmosphere that materialise when the city’s east meets westForget for a moment about what Sydney FC’s victory over Western Sydney Wanderers in Saturday’s elimination final means for the rivalry. First, let’s postulate on why Wanderers midfielder Miloš Ninković was frogmarched out of the Sky Blue’s dressing room by two Sydney attendants in its aftermath, hurling remonstrations as he went. The silent footage released by the A-Leagues’ media arm Keepup offers few hints, which is perfect because speculation is much more fun.Did Sydney boss Steve Corica see his former player waltzing into his inner sanctum as an act of disrespect after their year-long war of words? Was Ninković congratulating his former teammates...
Back in the A-League Men finals for the first time in half a decade, Wanderers have a chance to right some wrongs against Sydney FCThis weekend will mark the first time Western Sydney Wanderers play a finals match at their home ground, CommBank Stadium. It is not, however, the first time the post-season has come to the banks of the Parramatta River; Wanderers’ opponents on Saturday night, Sydney FC, have been here three times before.It is one of the greater ignominies Wanderers supporters have had to suffer during a streak of playoff absences – which has finally been broken thanks to this season’s fourth-place finish – that the first time a trophy was lifted at the club’s shiny new home...
The actions of those who stormed the pitch were a betrayal of a club that has done much to empower fansAAMI Park was not where the Melbourne Victory managing director, Caroline Carnegie, wanted to be on Sunday morning but, given the events of the previous night, she had little choice. As she made her way into Victory’s offices, the weight of what had transpired in the Melbourne derby was clearly visible in her step.In just over an hour she would somehow attempt to make sense of the indefensible; answering for the Victory fans who had stormed the field and attacked Melbourne City’s goalkeeper, Tom Glover and the referee, Alex King, minutes after they had thrown a flare that injured a...
The Mariners youngster appears to be in a four-way battle for the final spot in Graham Arnold’s Qatar-bound squadIf Graham Arnold was reaching for the panadol to deal with selection headaches back in September, he might need something a little bit stronger at this point. With Australia’s opening game of the World Cup against France just over two weeks away, deliberation time has run out for the Socceroos boss. There is no more football left to be played and no more opportunities to make cases for selection; 1,153 days after the Socceroos began their journey to Qatar, Arnold will on Tuesday name the 26 players he will take to the biggest sporting event on the planet. But unfortunately for Arnold,...