Brendon Santalab

Red & Black’s first ever goal scorer in the AFC Champions League

The Croatian-Australian returned home in 2007 when he joined Sydney FC for two seasons and won the Hyundai A-League 2007-08 Goal of the Season for a brilliant strike against Adelaide United.

He made his debut in Round One of the Hyundai A-League 2013/14 season and scored his first Wanderers goal against Brisbane Roar in Round Seven. Brendon wrote himself into Wanderers history when he became the Red & Black’s first ever goal scorer in the AFC Champions League when he struck 40 seconds into the Club’s debut against Ulsan Hyundai.

After a brave performance in the Champions League Final where he played with a broken collarbone, Brendon had a very disruptive 12 months with injury before finding some consistent gametime in the 2015/16 season. The popular striker played his 50th match for the Wanderers against Adelaide United in Round 13 of that year.

2015/16 saw Brendon mould into an effective super-sub, a role he flourished in when he scored in three consecutive matches for the first time in his career – all off the bench. In fact, his first 11 appearances of the season saw nine wins, two draws and zero losses. His consistent form earned him a two year contract extension that he signed on 10 February 2016 as he went on to claim his first Golden Boot award with 11 goals to equal the club’s highest ever tally for a season.