Sydney FC will set a new record for A-League Grand Final appearances when they walk out against Melbourne City in this Sunday afternoon’s showpiece event at AAMI Park (5pm kick off).
The Sky Blues will make it seven Grand Final appearances in 16 seasons, moving one ahead of Melbourne Victory who have six Grand Finals under their belt.
Head Coach Steve Corica, who scored the winning goal in the first A-League Grand Final, has been involved in each of the games and believes it is a fabulous achievement.
“We set our goals at the start of every season to be in the Grand Final and to win the Grand Final,” he said.
“It will be fantastic to set a new record, but our focus will be on winning the game.
“There have been some great moments and memories created during my time at Sydney FC and we are looking forward to creating more this weekend.”
Sydney FC also have experience on their side in Saturday’s Grand Final with their 2020-21 A-League squad having no less than 53 A-League Championship medals between them.
Kosta Barbarouses and Luke Brattan will go into the game each looking to win their fifth medals, with Barbarouses hoping to equal goalkeeper Michael Theo’s record of having played in and won five A-League Grand Finals*.
Alex Wilkinson, Milos Ninkovic, Anthony Caceres, Ben Warland and Tom Heward-Belle will all win their fourth medals for either winning a Grand Final or being part of a successful A-League Championship squad, should Sydney FC complete the feat.
The Sky Blues quarantined Socceroos Andrew Redmayne (five medals) and Rhyan Grant (four medals) will also add to their medal tallies with a win.
Despite that experience, Corica knows his side will be in for a very tough test against a City team looking for their first A-League Championship.
“It’s a Grand Final and they are always very close affairs,” he continued.
“We can use our experience, but we need to be focused, we need to have discipline and we need to play to our strengths.
“Our boys know what is at stake and we are looking to create history for this club.”
Corica stands on the verge of becoming the most successful coach in A-League history with a third title – a feat no other A-League coach has achieved.
The 2021 A-League Grand Final will be Sydney FC’s fifth Grand Final in seven seasons and the Sky Blues will become the first team in history to win three consecutive A-League titles with a positive result on Saturday.
Sydney FC have won five of their six previous Grand Finals in 2006, 2010, 2017, 2019 and 2020 with their only defeat coming in 2015.
They will also become the first team in Australian Men’s National League history to win three consecutive Grand Finals, and will join the likes of Sydney City (NSL), Parramatta Eels (NRL), Sydney Kings (NBL), Brisbane Lions (AFL) and Hawthorn Football Club (AFL) in becoming one of the few Australian professional sporting teams in the last 50 years to complete a ‘Threepeat’.
*Gerry Gomez and Tony Pezzano have also won 5 Australian men’s national league championships, including NSL.
