WORLDSERVICE
fashionto
Westernin the
semis.Midfielder
JakeBrimmer
earnedsome
consolationin
beingnamedthe
Johnny Warren
Medallist–
theplayer
ofthe season.
The
Premiership went
toMelbourne
Cityfor the
secondseason
insuccession–
buttheirbidto
becomethe first teamtowinback-to-
backPremierships& Championships
founderedin theGrand Final.Paddy
Kisnorbo’s teamlost form just at the
wrongmoment,inpart duetotheir
AsianChampionsLeagueexertions,
wheretheyremainedundefeatedinsix
groupgames,butstillfailedto progress
tothe knockoutphase.
Elsewhere,AdelaideUnited didwell
tofinishfourthinthefaceofaninjury
crisisthatforcedmanagerCarlVeart
toutilisea dozendifferentcentral
defensive partnerships.
TheReds,alongwith CentralCoast
Mariners,drewplauditsforunearthing
severaleye-catchingyoungtalents,
particularlyfromtheAfricandiaspora.
NestoryIrankunda(Adelaide)and
GarangKuol(Mariners)especially, are
raregemswho
aresetfor bigger
thingsandstill
only 16 &1 7
respectively.
Kuol’s cameo againstBarcelonaforthe
A-LeagueAll Starswill have European
scoutsqueuingup.
WellingtonPhoenixfinishedsixth,
anadmirableachievementtomakethe
finalsina seasonwhenCOVIDagain
forcedthemtoplayalmosttheentire
seasoninexileinAustralia.Butit wasa disappointingseason
forNewSouthWales,withonlythe
Marinersflyingthestateflaginthe
finals.Macarthur– forwhomDwight
Yorke will coachnextseason– ledthe
competition early, butfellawaytofinish
seventh.Sydney,the dominant force
ofrecentyears,endureda miserable
campaigntofinisheighth.
NewcastleJetsplayedsome
eye-catchingfootballbutwerewildly
inconsistent,whileWestern Sydney
Wanderersmissedout on theplay-offs
forthefifthyearina row. Brisbane Roar
onlyavoidedthe woodenspoonthanks
toPerthGlory’s “annushorribilis”,as
theywereforcedtoplayhalfthe season
awayfromWesternAustralia,duetothe
government’sCOVIDregulations.Their
experimentwithDanielSturridgeasa
marqueewasafailure,with theformer
Englandinternationalmakingonlya
handfulofappearancesinanother
injury-taintedcampaign.
Anoff-seasonofintrospectionawaits
asthe leagueattemptsto learn from
thisyear’sfailings.Theproductis good,
butremainslargelyinvisibletothe
public.Westerndeserve creditfor being
thebestteam– but,asever, thetrick
remainsgettingenoughpeopletocare
inthe faceofoppositionfromtheother
codes,andthe ever-popular English
Premier League.Player of theYear...
JakeBrimmer
Disappointment...
DanielSturridgejaw-droppingdemolitionofMelbourne
Victoryin thesemiatthe same venue
theweekbefore,providinga positive
endtowhatwasa rathertroubled
campaignfortheleagueingeneral.
Thoseproblemswereplentiful.The
clubstookcontrol of theleaguefor the
first time afterwinninga powerbattle
withFootballAustralia,butfoundthe
goingtough.Thenew TV streaming
servicehadmajorteethingproblems,
andwhentheOmicronvariantwave
hitAustraliainDecember, some 88
games hadtobepostponed,asplayers
succumbedtothe virusindroves.
Matcheswererescheduledonan
increasinglyadhocbasis,leavingfans
confusedandthe narrative largelylost.
Thefinalsseries,however, saved
theday.MelbourneVictory were many
peoples’favouritestoliftafifth crown
after last year’swoodenspoonists
enjoyed a remarkablerecoveryunder
serialwinner,TonyPopovic.Victorylifted
theAustraliaCup,andfinishedsecond
onthe backofa15-matchunbeaten
run,before they fell in spectacularPLAYEROFTHESEASON
JakeBrimmer
(MelbourneVictory)
The 24 -year-oldmidfieldergot
seven goals andseven assistsas
hebecamethe first Australianto
becrownedtheA-LeagueMen’s
bestplayer in sevenyears,andthe
youngest since MarkViduka was
winnerin1 99 5.COACH OF THESEASON
JohnAloisi
(WesternUnited)
TheformerSocceroosstriker
overcamethe oddstoguide
WesternUnitedtothe A-League
title,thefirsthonourofhis career
after previousspellsinchargeof
MelbourneHeartand,more
recently,BrisbaneRoar.RISINGSTAR
GarangKuol
(CentralCoastMariners)
The 17 -year-oldEgyptianforward
onlymade hisA-Leaguedebutin
April,andwentontoscorefour
goalsinhisfirstsevenmatches.SEASON’S
BEST
Victorious...
managerJohn
Aloisicelebrates
thevictoryWORLDSOCCER 83
Westernwerefartoosavvyforthereigning
champions,MelbourneCity,intheGrandFinal