Sydney FC supporter Julian Mangraviti is the inaugural Fox Fans League champion after defeating EA Sports identity Sam Mort 4-0 in the FIFA 15 final at Federation Square in Melbourne.
Playing in front of a packed crowd and televised live on Fox Sports, Mangraviti withstood an early onslaught to run away with the result in a Sydney derby final.
The decider had all the makings of what Hyundai A-League fans can expect to see this weekend when the Finals Series gets underway.
A tense opening saw the sides go to the break scoreless with chances proving hard to come by but once Mangraviti took the lead he never looked like surrendering it.
Aussie gaming legend Mort did his best to stay in the contest but saw his side reduced to 10-men in the second stanza after committing a foul in the box.
While he was able to keep out the resulting penalty he was ultimately outclassed on the night with a thumping long-range goal sealing the result in the closing minutes.
“At the end of the day Julian was definitely the more dominant player in that game and took his chances when they came along,” said Mort following the final.
“I feel like every chance he had went in basically but that can happen and well done to Julian he showed great composure.”
Meanwhile a stunned Mangraviti was still coming to terms with his triumph when interviewed by former Socceroos goalkeeper and Fox Sports commentator Mark Bosnich post match.
“I can’t describe it to be honest. Morty is the best player I know and that game I was just really hoping,” he said.
“I think it’s great what this competition has done and I’ll definitely be back next year.”
Earlier Mangraviti defeated Penrith Panther star Jamie Soward in the semi-finals, with the Wanderers fan dispensing of fellow “wild-card” entries Gary Ablett and Kosta Barbarouses on his way to the last four.
The Fox Fans League was a joint initiative between Football Federation Australia, Fox Sports, EA Sports, PlayStation®4 and Westfield to crown the best FIFA 15 gamer in Australia.
The hugely popular event ran heats around the country in the lead up to Wednesday’s nights finale, with the tournament’s success suggesting it will be back bigger and better in 2016.
