There is one more piece of footballing history to add to Perth Glory’s record-breaking Hyundai A-League Premiership campaign.
Sunday’s 1-0 win over Newcastle Jets that clinched the Premiers Plate also meant that the WA giants became just the fourth club to have a Hyundai A-League and Westfield W-League Premiership to their name.
That victory saw Tony Popovic’s men clinch their first trophy of the Hyundai A-League era, five years after the club’s Westfield W-League team finished premiers in 2014.
In doing so, Perth join an elite group of three other clubs who have clinched the Premiers Plate in both competitions.
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Sydney FC
The Sky Blues were the first team to land premierships in the Hyundai A-League and Westfield W-League – and the women’s 2009 campaign and men’s 2009/10 season remains the only occasion when a single club has taken out both titles in the same series.
In total, Sydney FC have three Hyundai A-League Premierships to their name (2009/10, 2016/17 and 2017/18), going on to win the Grand Final in the 2009/10 and 2016/17 campaigns. They also won the Grand Final in the Hyundai A-League’s first season in 2005/06.
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The Sky Blues Westfield W-League outfit completed the Premiership and Championship double in 2009 – which took the place of a 2009/10 campaign – and finished Premiers in 2010/11.
Sydney also won the Westfield W-League Grand Final in 2012/13 and 2018/19.
Brisbane Roar
Brisbane Roar have also clinched Premiership success in both competitions, with five Westfield W-League and Hyundai A-League Premiers Plates.
The Queenslanders’ two Hyundai A-League Premierships were clinched in 2010/11 and 2013/14, seasons that saw the Roar go on to win the Grand Final in each campaign.
However, the club’s Westfield W-League side can go one better. They have finished on top of the pile three times, including in the competition’s debut 2008/09 season when they competed as Queensland Roar.
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Brisbane were Westfield W-League premiers in 2012/13 and 2017/18, but have only gone on to clinch the Championship once – back in that inaugural 2008/09 campaign.
Melbourne Victory
Melbourne Victory won their first Westfield W-League Premiership back in February. It sits nicely alongside their 2013/14 Championship in the club trophy cabinet.
Although it was their first ever Premiers Plate triumph in the women’s competition, the club’s Hyundai A-League side have finished top of the pile at the end of the regular season three times (2006/07, 2008/09 and 2014/15).
And, each time they have won the Premiership, the Victorians have gone on to clinch the Grand Final.
Perth Glory
Mark down the date: April 14, 2019.
That’s the day that Glory finally added a Hyundai A-League Premiership to the trophy cabinet alongside the Westfield W-League Premiers Plate they secured in 2014.
The club have had no luck in etching their name on the Championship so far. Glory’s Westfield W-League side have been defeated in all three Grand Finals they have reached (2014, 2016/17 and 2018/19), while the Hyundai A-League team finished runners-up in 2011/12.
However, given the formidable rise of Tony Popovic’s men in 2018/19, you could not rule out Perth breaking their Grand Final duck when the Finals Series gets underway next month.
