The 2013–14
Western Sydney Wanderers FC
Western Sydney Wanderers Football Club (colloquially known as Western Sydney, or simply as Wanderers) is an Australian professional soccer club based in the Western Sydney region of Sydney, New South Wales. It competes in the country's premie ...
season was the club's second season since its establishment in 2012. The club participated in the
A-League
A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professional men's soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's premier men's competiti ...
for the second time, as well as the
AFC Champions League
The AFC Champions League (abbreviated as ACL) is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's top-division football clubs. It is the most prestigious club competition ...
for the first time.
Season overview
On 30 April, Western Sydney Wanderers announced the release of four players,
Dino Kresinger
Dino Kresinger (born 20 March 1982 in Čakovec) is a Croatian football striker who currently plays for Croatian lower league club NK Obreš Sveti Ilija
Club career Early career
Kresinger was born in the Croatian city of Čakovec and started h ...
,
Tarek Elrich
Tariq ( ar, طارق) is an Arabic word and given name.
Etymology
The word is derived from the Arabic verb , ('), meaning "to strike", and into the agentive conjugated doer form , ('), meaning "striker". It became popular as a name after Tariq ...
,
Joey Gibbs
Joseph "Joey" Arthur Gibbs (born 13 June 1992) is an Australian football (soccer) player who plays for Keflavík.
Career
Gibbs made his senior A-League debut as a substitute for Sydney FC in the 2010 Grand Final against the Melbourne Victory. ...
and
Rocky Visconte
Rocky Visconte (born 22 April 1990) is an Australian footballer who plays for Cumberland United.
Club career
Croydon Kings
In 2005, he made his first senior appearance for local South Australian Premier League club Croydon Kings. He went on ...
.
Labinot Haliti
Labinot Haliti (born 26 October 1985) is an Australian former professional footballer who played as a second striker or winger.
Early life
Haliti's was born in Pristina, and fled his home country at the age of 14 with his family, arriving in Au ...
and
Jason Trifiro signed one year extensions to their initial one-year contract on 1 May, as did
Tahj Minniecon
Tahj James Rodney Minniecon is an Indigenous Australian soccer player who most recently played for Davao Aguilas FC in Philippines Football League in 2018.
Early life
Tahj James Rodney Minniecon grew up in Brisbane and went to Cavendish Road ...
on 9 May. On 20 May, forward
Tomi Jurić
Tomi Juric ( ; hr, Jurić, ; born 22 July 1991) is an Australian professional footballer who plays as a striker for A-League club Melbourne Victory and the Australia national soccer team.
Club career Adelaide United
On 10 February 2013, after ...
signed a two-year deal with the club. On 1 July, defender
Dean Heffernan
Dean James Heffernan (born 19 May 1980) is a former professional football (soccer) player.
Club career
With the Central Coast Mariners he scored 8 goals from left back in 24 games and was subsequently named in FourFourTwo's A-League dream team. ...
signed a one-year deal with the club. On 31 July, Western Sydney Wanderers agreed on the transfer of midfielder
Reece Caira
Reece Caira is an Australian semi-professional footballer who plays as a left back for Berkeley Vale in the ''Premier League Central Coast'', a regional league within the Australian soccer league system. Caira has previously played professional ...
to
Wellington Phoenix FC
Wellington Phoenix Football Club is a professional association football club based in Wellington, New Zealand. It competes in the Australian A-League, under licence from Football Federation Australia. Phoenix entered the competition in the ...
. On 6 August, forward
Brendon Šantalab
Brendon James Santalab ( hr, Šantalab; born 9 September 1982) is an Australian professional football player who plays as a striker for Victorian State League Division 1 side FC Strathmore.
Club career
Santalab originally started out as an a ...
signed a one-year deal with the club. On 1 September,
Mark Bridge
Mark Robert Bridge (born 7 November 1985) is an Australian professional football (soccer) player who plays as a striker for NPL club Mounties Wanderers.
Bridge is the Western Sydney Wanderers' first ever goalscorer, earning himself the nickn ...
extended his contract with Western Sydney Wanderers for a further three years, until 2017. On 5 September,
Mateo Poljak
Mateo Hrvatsko Poljak (; born 10 September 1989) is a Croats, Croatian Association football, footballer who last played as a Midfielder#Defensive midfielder, Defensive midfielder for Mt Druitt Town Rangers FC, Mt Druitt Town Rangers.
Club career ...
signed 2-year extension with the club, until 2016. On 1 October,
Matthew Špiranović
Matthew Thomas Spiranovic (born 27 June 1988) is a former Australian soccer player who played as a defender.
Spiranovic started his career with Melbourne Victory, making one competitive appearance before being released with the consent of coac ...
signed a one-year deal with the club.
On 12 October, Western Sydney Wanderers played their first match of the
A-League
A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professional men's soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's premier men's competiti ...
season drawing against
Central Coast Mariners
Central Coast Mariners Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Gosford, on the Central Coast of New South Wales. It competes in the A-League Men, under licence from the Australian Professional Leagues (APL). The Ma ...
1–1 with new signing
Jurić scoring the equalising goal on the 87th minute. On 20 October, Wanderers drew their first home game 1–1 against
Wellington Phoenix
Wellington Phoenix Football Club is a professional association football club based in Wellington, New Zealand. It competes in the Australian A-League, under licence from Football Federation Australia. Phoenix entered the competition in the ...
with a goal from
Polenz. On 26 October, Wanderers defeated
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
0–2 at a sold-out
Sydney Football Stadium
The Sydney Football Stadium, commercially known as Allianz Stadium and previously Aussie Stadium, was a football stadium in Moore Park, Sydney, Australia. Built in 1988 next to the Sydney Cricket Ground, the stadium was Sydney's premier rect ...
, winning the first
Sydney Derby match of the season with goals from
La Rocca and
Ono. On 1 November, Wanderers defeated
Adelaide United
Adelaide United Football Club is a professional Association Football, soccer club based in Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. The club participates in the A-League Men under North American professional sports league organization#Systems ar ...
2–1 with Jurić scoring both goals to win the match. On 8 November, Wanderers continued their unbeaten run of the season with a 0–1 win against
Melbourne Heart
Melbourne City Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in the south–eastern Melbourne suburb of Cranbourne East, that plays in the A-League, the top level of Australian soccer, under licence from Australian Profession ...
,
Cole
Cole may refer to:
Plants
* Cole crops of the genus ''Brassica'', especially cabbage, kale, or rape (rapeseed).
People
* Cole (given name), people with the given name Cole
* Cole (surname), people with the surname Cole
Companies
*Cole Motor ...
provided the only goal of the match. On 13 November, following an impressive start to the season, forward Brendon Šantalab extended his initial one-year contract with the club for another two-years, until 2016. On 16 November, Wanderers defeated
Melbourne Victory
Melbourne Victory Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Melbourne, Victoria. Competing in the country's premier men's competition, the A-League Men, under licence from Australian Professional Leagues (APL), Victory e ...
1–0 with a goal from
Bridge
A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...
. On 22 November, Wanderers lost their first game of the season 3–1 against
Brisbane Roar
Brisbane Roar Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Brisbane, Queensland and has won the domestic title on three occasions, as well as holding the longest unbeaten record of 36 league matches without defeat.
Brisba ...
with
Šantalab scored the only goal for the Wanderers. On 1 December, Wanderers drew 0–0
Wellington Phoenix
Wellington Phoenix Football Club is a professional association football club based in Wellington, New Zealand. It competes in the Australian A-League, under licence from Football Federation Australia. Phoenix entered the competition in the ...
. On 7 December, Wanderers drew 1–1 at home against
Melbourne Heart
Melbourne City Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in the south–eastern Melbourne suburb of Cranbourne East, that plays in the A-League, the top level of Australian soccer, under licence from Australian Profession ...
with
Mooy leveling the score on the 44th minute. On 9 December, forward
Labinot Haliti
Labinot Haliti (born 26 October 1985) is an Australian former professional footballer who played as a second striker or winger.
Early life
Haliti's was born in Pristina, and fled his home country at the age of 14 with his family, arriving in Au ...
signed a two-season contract extension until 2016. For the
2014 AFC Champions League
The 2014 AFC Champions League was the 33rd edition of the top-level Asian club football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the 12th under the current AFC Champions League title. Guangzhou Evergrande were the defe ...
Wanderers were drawn in
Group H on 10 December, alongside
Guizhou Renhe of China,
Ulsan Hyundai
Ulsan Hyundai FC ( ko, 울산 현대 축구단) is a South Korean professional football club based in Ulsan that competes in the K League 1, the top tier of South Korean football. Founded in 1983 as Hyundai Horang-i, they joined the K League in ...
of South Korea and
Kawasaki Frontale
is a Japanese professional football club based in Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. Their home stadium is Kawasaki Todoroki Stadium, in Nakahara W ...
of Japan. On 14 December, Wanderers continued the winnings ways with a 0–1 away win, courtesy of Bridge, against
Newcastle Jets
Newcastle United Jets Football Club, commonly known as Newcastle Jets, is an Australian professional soccer club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. It competes in the country's premier competition, the A-League, under licence from The Australia ...
. On 22 December,
Ante Čović
Ante Covic (born 13 June 1975) is an Australian former soccer goalkeeper.
Covic is a member of the Australian national team at the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany and represented Australia on two occasions.
Personal life
Covic is of Croatian ...
and
Shannon Cole
Shannon Cole (born 4 August 1984) is a former professional footballer turned coach.
Club career
Cole's early football career saw a series of stints with NSW state league clubs, in particular APIA Leichhardt, Dulwich Hill, Rockdale City Suns an ...
re-signed with the club for a further one and two years respectively. Wanderers picked up their sixth win of the season after a 2–0 win against Central Coast Mariners at
Pirtek Stadium on 23 December. On 28 December, Wanderers drew 1–1 with Melbourne Victory. Substitute Šantalab appeared to have given Wanderers the three points with a goal only minutes after coming on until a 94th-minute goal from Melbourne Victory.
On 1 January 2014, Wanderers lost their first match of the new year against Wellington Phoenix with a 1–3 score. A 62nd-minute goal from Bridge was not enough to secure the home win for Wanderers with Wellington Phoenix scoring three goals late into the game. On 11 January, Wanderers won the second Sydney Derby 1–0 in front of the biggest crowd of the season at Pirtek Stadium after a goal from substitute Šantalab on the 86th minute of the match. On 14 January, Wanderers lost 3–1 to Melbourne Victory in a rescheduled match due to Melbourne Victory's involvement in the
2014 AFC Champions League
The 2014 AFC Champions League was the 33rd edition of the top-level Asian club football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the 12th under the current AFC Champions League title. Guangzhou Evergrande were the defe ...
. Jurić scored the only goal for an under-strength Wanderers. Wanderers remained in second position in the league despite a 1–0 away loss to Adelaide United, after a controversial fourth-minute goal on 19 January. On 26 January, Wanderers defeated
Perth Glory
Perth Glory Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Perth, Western Australia. It competes in the country's premier men's competition, A-League Men, under licence from Australian Professional Leagues.
Founded in 19 ...
3–1 in their first clash of the season. Goals from Šantalab and Mooy put Wanderers ahead in the first half, and a
penalty kick
A penalty shot or penalty kick is a play used in several sports whereby a goal is attempted during untimed play. Depending on the sport, when a player commits certain types of penalties, the opposition is awarded a penalty shot or kick attempt. ...
scored by Bridge on the 71st minute ensured the win. On 31 January, Wanderers drew with Newcastle Jest 2–2; a set-piece goal from Mooy before half-time leveled the score and a goal from captain
Michael Beauchamp
Michael Francis Beauchamp (born 8 March 1981) is an Australian former professional footballer who played as a central defender. He was a member of the Australian 2006 World Cup and 2010 FIFA World Cup squads.
Early life
Born in Sydney, New Sout ...
just after the hour mark looked to have claimed a win before a last minute goal meant the points were shared. On 3 February,
Golgol Mebrahtu and
Daniel Mullen were signed to the club until the end of the 2015–16 season. Forward Mebrahtu was transferred from Melbourne Heart and defender signed from
Chinese Super League
The Chinese Football Association Super League, commonly known as Chinese Super League or CSL, currently known as the China Ping An Chinese Football Association Super League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest tier of professional football in ...
club
Dalian Aerbin
Dalian Professional Football Club () is a professional Chinese football club based in Dalian, Liaoning, that participates in the China Super League under licence from the Chinese Football Association (CFA). Their home stadium is Dalian Sports Ce ...
. On 5 February,
Antony Golec
Antony Paul Golec (; born 29 May 1990) is an Australian former professional footballer who played as a centre back. Golec is now a real estate agent after his retirement from professional football.
Club career
Sydney FC
Golec was a member of ...
was signed to the club until the end of the season from Adelaide United. Since there were no positions remaining in Wanderers' A-League squad, Golec, along with Mebrahtu and Mullen were only eligible to participate in the club's AFC Champions League campaign until the end of the season. On 7 February, Wanderers secured a 1–1 draw at home against first placed Brisbane Roar. A late 85th-minute goal from Haliti clinched the crucial point. On 26 February, Wanderers Asian debut ended in defeat, with the team losing 1–3 at home to
Ulsan Hyundai
Ulsan Hyundai FC ( ko, 울산 현대 축구단) is a South Korean professional football club based in Ulsan that competes in the K League 1, the top tier of South Korean football. Founded in 1983 as Hyundai Horang-i, they joined the K League in ...
. A first-minute goal by Šantalab was cancelled out by sloppy defending as Ulsan Hyundai scored three unanswered goals to take the match. On 5 March, following a season-ending injured incurred by
Tahj Minniecon
Tahj James Rodney Minniecon is an Indigenous Australian soccer player who most recently played for Davao Aguilas FC in Philippines Football League in 2018.
Early life
Tahj James Rodney Minniecon grew up in Brisbane and went to Cavendish Road ...
, Golgol Mebrahtu was added to the Wanderers squad as an injury replacement. On 8 March, Wanderers played their third derby match of the season in front of a sold-out crowd of 40,285 fans at Allianz Stadium. After a dominating first half performance against their fierce rivals, Wanderers took the lead via a Shinji Ono goal early in the second half before falling 3–1 to Sydney FC. On 12 March, Wanderers earned their first ever win in the AFC Champions League with a 1–0 away win against
Guizhou Renhe at the
Guiyang Olympic Sports Center
The Guiyang Olympic Sports Centre Stadium () is a sports venue in Guanshanhu District, Guiyang, China. With a capacity of 51,636 people, it is the largest sports venue in Guizhou Province.
Construction began in 2006, and the center was opened in ...
. The 10th-minute goal came after Bridge reacted quickly to poke the ball into the back of the net from close, after an initial save from Guizhou’s keeper. On 15 March, Wanderers dropped to third on the A-League table after a 0–0 draw against Adelaide United at home. On 18 March, Daniel Mullen was added to the Wanderers A-League squad as injury replacement for Golgol Mebrahtu. On 19 March, Wanderers secured a 1–0 win over
Kawasaki Frontale
is a Japanese professional football club based in Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. Their home stadium is Kawasaki Todoroki Stadium, in Nakahara W ...
in the AFC Champions League, with a third-minute goal from Haliti. On 23 March, Wanderers defeated Perth Glory 3–0, with Polenz, Bridge and Jurić all finding the back of the net during the win. On 29 March, Wanderers lost 2–1 to Central Coast Mariners.
Topor-Stanley's equalising goal looked to have secured Wanderers a point until the contest was decided on the 90th minute. On 1 April, Wanderers fell short away from home 2–1 against Kawasaki Frontale in their fourth AFC Champions League match, with Haliti scoring Wanderers only goal. On 5 April, Wanderers and Brisbane Roar shared the points in a 1–1 draw, with Jurić finding the back of the net. On 12 April, Wanderers secured second place with a 2–3 away win to Melbourne Heart in their final match of the A-League regular season. Topor-Stanley, Šantalab and Hersi all shared in the spoils.
Players
Squad information
From youth squad
Transfers in
Transfers out
Technical staff
Statistics
Squad statistics
Pre-season and friendlies
Competitions
Overall
A-League
League table
Results summary
Results by round
Matches
Finals Series
AFC Champions League
Group stage
Round of 16
Quarter-finals
Semi-finals
Final
See also
*
2013–14 Western Sydney Wanderers W-League season
Awards
* Player of the Week (Round 3) –
Shinji Ono
is a Japanese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for J1 League club Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo.
Career Urawa Reds
Ono grew up in the Shizuoka Prefecture and began his professional career with Urawa Reds in the J1 League in 1998. ...
* Player of the Week (Round 4) –
Tomi Jurić
Tomi Juric ( ; hr, Jurić, ; born 22 July 1991) is an Australian professional footballer who plays as a striker for A-League club Melbourne Victory and the Australia national soccer team.
Club career Adelaide United
On 10 February 2013, after ...
* Player of the Week (Round 11) –
Tomi Jurić
Tomi Juric ( ; hr, Jurić, ; born 22 July 1991) is an Australian professional footballer who plays as a striker for A-League club Melbourne Victory and the Australia national soccer team.
Club career Adelaide United
On 10 February 2013, after ...
* Player of the Week (Round 14) –
Youssouf Hersi
References
External links
Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:2013-14 Western Sydney Wanderers season
Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
Western Sydney Wanderers FC seasons