Steve Corica may have retired from football two years ago, but the legendary midfielder is still having a major effect on Sydney FC after it was revealed he was the architect of the Sky Blues’ late equaliser against Melbourne Victory.
Steve Corica may have retired from football two years ago, but the legendary midfielder is still having a major effect on Sydney FC after it was revealed he was the architect of the Sky Blues’ late equaliser against Melbourne Victory.
Sydney rescued a point in the 90th minute of a tense encounter between the two big rivals at AAMI Park on Australia Day thanks to Sebastian Ryall, who scored his debut Hyundai A-League goal.
Ryall, who only came on the park a minute beforehand, was urged forward in the box by Corica and was on the spot to bundle home the equaliser.
“It was a great decision by Stevie Corica,” coach Vitezslav Lavicka said. “Stevie looks after the set pieces and before we kicked the ball, Sebastian was sitting back, but Stevie called him forward and say stay then and he come and scored the goal.”
“It was a good decision by Stevie, well done to him and great play by Sebastian.”
“It was a special day, especially for Sebastian, because as you know he used to play for Victory. It was his first A-League goal ever.”
Lavicka said that with such a tough fight for a spot in the top six, every result was crucial and Ryall’s late effort could prove decisive at the end of the season.
“Every point is important and draw means we keep the same gap between ourselves and Victory. Every game for us is like a grand final. The competition between the teams are very close so we need to fight and pick up the points and pick up momentum again,” he said.
Lavicka is hopeful a result like this, which he said felt more like a win than a draw, can help get some momentum back for Sydney after a run of three matches without defeat.
“We haven’t kept the momentum going and played a few inconsistent games and lost some points. Now we have to work hard and keep into the six. Everyone wants to play finals,” he said.
Defender Scott Jamieson said the players feel like they are only a few wins away from getting their confidence back and being a serious title contender.
“The last few games we have been playing decent football and not switching on at the right time or not concentrating. We are still in the six,” he said.
“It’s a difficult league, when you look at Melbourne Victory and they are out of the six, with the stature of club they are. It was important not to lose today to keep a bit of a gap and we’ve done that.”
Sydney are likely to be without marquee star Brett Emerton for the next couple of weeks after he was withdrawn from the game with a hamstring strain.
“It was an unlucky moment for him and all of us because it’s trouble for him. He felt pain there and so it’s now up to the Sydney FC medical staff to look after him and will look to get him ready as soon as possible,” Lavicka said.
