It may have taken four seasons but Sydney FC’s 2-0 win over arch-rivals Melbourne Victory, its first on away soil on Saturday night, could hardly have been sweeter as it had the double bonus of taking John Kosmina’s side to top spot on the Hyundai A-League table at the expense of the Victory.
Sydney put its recent poor form behind it to record a 2-0 win in front of the biggest crowd of the season – 31,564 fans at Telstra Dome – despite being without defenders Tony Popovic (hamstring) and Iain Fyfe (suspension).
But there was precious little for the big home crowd to cheer about as instead they watched Sydney strikers John Aloisi and Mark Bridge get back on target after quiet starts to their debut seasons in the harbour city.
It was Bridge who got the opener in the 20th minute – only his second goal in nine games following his much-publicised move from Newcastle after scoring the winning goal against Central Coast in last year’s grand final.
And veteran Aloisi scored the killer second goal in the 62nd minute – just seven minutes after coming on as a second half substitute after starting on the bench.
The demotion of one of the most prolific strikers ever to play for the Socceroos came after he had failed to score in six previous appearances for his new club this season.
The win, Sydney’s first in five attempts in Melbourne and only their second in 11 games against the Victory, takes Kosmina’s team to 15 points – a point ahead of Melbourne and Adelaide at the top of the table.
But the Asian Champions’ League finalists will take over top spot if they beat bottom side Perth on Sunday in what will be the Reds’ tenth game in 45 days.
Both teams came in to the game with two losses in their past three matches with Melbourne having won just one of its last four games and Sydney just one of its past five despite the two teams sitting first and third on the ladder respectively.
But it was Sydney that was immediately on top and only a fine save from Melbourne keeper Michael Theoklitos kept the score at 0-0 in the 14th minute after a shot from close range from Steve Corica. But there was little the stopper could do about Sydney’s opener in the 20th minute.
Melbourne failed to clear a corner and when Corica played the ball back into the box, the ball was flicked on to Bridge, who finished from close range.
The goal finally sparked the home side into action for a brief period but Grant Brebner wasted a free header in the 34th minute after a great cross from Melbourne’s Costa Rican playmaker Carlos Hernandez while Hernandez blasted high and wide from a free kick in a promising position two minutes later.
And although Sydney lost the industrious Brendon Santalab to a shoulder injury straight after half-time, it was the visitors who took an iron grip on the game when experienced defender Roddy Vargas misjudged a defensive header – allowing Bobby Petta in behind the defence to cross for a delighted Aloisi to tap in the second and end his recent goalscoring drought.
Melbourne Victory skipper Kevin Muscat was bitterly disappointed with his team’s performance.
“We got exactly what we deserved out of that game – nothing,” Muscat said, as his team clearly missed the suspended Archie Thompson
“And the most disappointing thing was we got a massive crowd and for our fans it’s their biggest game of the year and we let them down.”
But Sydney coach John Kosmina was delighted with his team’s effort – particularly as Sydney was also missing the likes of keeper Clint Bolton and experienced pair Simon Colosimo and Alex Brosque as well as Popovic and Fyfe.
“We made it difficult for Melbourne and even our debutants (Anthony Golec and Beau Busch) caused them problems early on,” he said.
“Of our defence tonight only Rob Middleby was left from last week but the players worked their way through it.”
Melbourne Victory 0
Sydney FC 2 (Bridge 20, Aloisi 63)
Crowd 31,564 at Melbourne’s Telstra Dome
