Somewhere, one day, we’ll discover who writes sporting scripts, because whoever it is, they’re incredible.
Everywhere you look through the 2022 Isuzu UTE Grand Final between Melbourne City and Western United, there’s a storyline lurking.
But if Western United lift the A-League Men trophy on Saturday night, some of his most valuable work will have come away from the public eye, and nowhere near a football pitch.
BUY TICKETS TO THE GRAND FINAL HERE!
At the top end, of course, there is Melbourne City’s quest for back-to-back Premierships and Championships – a feat never achieved before. If they fall at the final hurdle, Western United, in their third season, after finishing 10th last term, will become the newest name etched into our competition’s Roll of Honour.
The man driving that campaign is John Aloisi, back in coaching 10 years after his first post-playing Head Coach role at, of course, Melbourne Heart. Those were chastening days for a rookie coach, who endured a baptism of fire and wore that reputation for years, despite coming close with Brisbane Roar in a couple of Semi Finals.
Just imagine if Aloisi’s redemption arc, a Championship in his first season back after three years in coaching exile, ends with a title against his former club, stopping them from claiming a unique piece of A-Leagues history.
He’ll be matching wits with a player he coached, too – Patrick Kisnorbo was in Heart’s side under Aloisi’s watch, and the tough as nails defender has gone on to carve out an impressive start to his coaching career. Despite his cold exterior – you couldn’t get two more polar opposites in a press conference room – his players swear by him, vouching for his man management, personality and demeanour in the dressing room.
Jamie Maclaren echoes a lot of his messages – most recently, about a lack of respect over the side’s back-to-back Premierships. The Socceroos striker, of course, played some of his formative years under one of his predecessors leading the line in green and gold. Could he be the player who ends Western and Aloisi’s fairy tale, and cap his Golden Boot campaign with Grand Final heroics, a year after missing the big dance while on international duty?
The Brisbane Roar connection doesn’t end there; Massimo Murdocca is in the backroom staff, but the club’s lucky charm might just be the most successful player in the competition’s history. Michael Theo, who won two Championships with Melbourne Victory and three with Brisbane Roar, is Western’s goalkeeper coach.
His student, Jamie Young, personifies Western’s recruitment, at a period in their existence when they are still building a foothold in their region. He’s a winner, a trusted Aloisi acolyte and like Neil Kilkenny, Nikolai Topor-Stanley, Ben Garuccio, Leo Lacroix, Aleksandar Prijovic, Dylan Wenzell-Halls and co, represent an eclectic group extracting the maximum from their group.
There is a clear, delicious, contrast between both line-ups. City are marketed on their Rolls Royce of Mathew Leckie, Maclaren, Andrew Nabbout, with Marco Tilio and Stefan Colakovski up the sleeve.
But this will be the ultimate test of their credentials, against a club they have not beaten this term.
It is the glittering attack against the stingy defence. The headliners against the workers. The incumbents against the new kids on the block. Fitting, given Western’s roots and City’s financial backing.
How many of Pain, Wales or Wenzell-Hall would make City’s squad, yet, they could well defeat them on the weekend, and are a pivotal part of one of the intriguing match-ups.
The midfield selection of both coaches – and the ensuing battle – will be pivotal, but so too will the hustle down the flanks.
City have shown, even when not at their best, that all it takes is one burst to punish an opponent.
But Western’s intensity stunned Victory, and a key part of that was the work done down the flanks. Carl Jenkinson and Scott Jamieson, against Ben Garuccio and Josh Risdon, will be as interesting as anything we see on the pitch.
The finals series has delivered compelling football; fitting, given for all the rigmarole around the A-League this season, and the challenges thrown at the players off the park, they have played their part with some brilliant football.
The decider, while surprising, should end a spectacular week for the competition with a fitting exhibition, and, one way or another, a compelling set of storylines.
Melbourne City v Western United
Saturday, May 28 2022
AAMI Park
Kick-off: 7.45pm AEST
Broadcast: Network 10, Paramount+
BUY TICKETS
ESSENTIAL READING
‘We had nothing’: Western’s three-year rise to the biggest stage
As Western United prepare for their first Isuzu UTE A-League Grand Final, director of football Steve Horvat chats to KEEPUP’s Sacha Pisani about building the club and the journey to Saturday’s decider.
The road to the Grand Final
These are the stories transcending the importance of team success, of what it means to the players who could impact Saturday night’s title decider.
Jamieson celebrates another Grand Final… and child number two
‘What is it about me, finals games & babies?’: Jamieson’s double celebration.
Vukovic: From agony to ecstasy, every Grand Final shaped me
Danny Vukovic knows what it’s like to be sent off in a Grand Final – and what it’s like to fight your way back and win one in a lifechanging way.
The A-Leagues’ most exotic CV: Ibra, Ole, Dortmund, Madrid, Serbia’s World Cup hero
Ahead of Saturday’s Isuzu UTE A-League Grand Final against defending champions Melbourne City, KEEPUP revisits March’s interview with Western United star Aleksandar Prijovic, who reflected on a fascinating career spanning 10 countries.
‘All my plans for the shoot-out went out the window…’ inside the pressure of a Grand Final
The intensity of the big stage plays havoc with your thoughts, writes Daniel McBreen, whose two Grand Finals had very different outcomes.
City’s former FA Cup winner on the cusp of a career first: ‘It would be massive’
Melbourne City’s former Arsenal full-back Carl Jenkinson speaks to KEEPUP’s Sacha Pisani about winning a first league title, eyeing history, life in Australia and more.
Merrick’s blueprint: Battle of midfield will define Grand Final
How do you contain Melbourne City? How do you infiltrate Western United? Title-winning coach Ernie Merrick breaks down the Grand Final tactics.
Opportunity knocks: Key injuries fast-track two young mids into GF contention
Melbourne City’s Taras Gomulka and Western United counterpart Jerry Skotadis have seized their chances heading into the Grand Final.
How to take the intensity of a Grand Final day in your stride
Matt Smith shared a winning dressing room with the likes of Thomas Broich, Besart Berisha and Matt McKay – this is how Brisbane Roar won three Grand Finals.
‘The most dramatic game of football I’ve ever been involved in’: Broich recalls THAT Grand Final
The latest episode of the A-Leagues’ new podcast My Football Passport, hosted by James Dodd, welcomes special guest Thomas Broich to discuss his unforgettable Grand Final experience with Brisbane Roar. Listen below, or on Apple Podcasts, or Spotify, to hear more about his time in the A-League Men.
Why Diamanti is positive Western can win the title without him
Grand finalists’ injured captain Alessandro Diamanti has become the motivator-in-chief even while injury has ended his own season with Western United, writes Nick D’Urbano.
The road to the A-League Men’s Grand Final
These are the stories transcending the importance of team success, of what it means to the players who could impact the title decider.
