Sydney United 58 Football Club is a semi-professional
soccer club and current NSW NPL Champions based in
Edensor Park
Edensor Park is a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Edensor Park is located 38 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the City of Fairfield. It is mainly a residential area, Edensor Pa ...
,
Sydney,
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
Australia. The club was formed as Sydney Croatia in 1958, by
Croatian Australian
Croatian Australians are Australian citizens of Croatian ancestry. Croatia has been a source of migrants to Australia, particularly in the 1960s and 1970s. In 2021, 200,000 persons resident in Australia (0.6%) identified themselves as having ...
s in the area, but it was renamed in 1993 as Sydney United after having the name Sydney CSC for a season.
Sydney United currently competes in the
National Premier Leagues New South Wales, hosting matches at the
Sydney United Sports Centre in
Edensor Park
Edensor Park is a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Edensor Park is located 38 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the City of Fairfield. It is mainly a residential area, Edensor Pa ...
. United are a sister club of the
Melbourne Knights
Melbourne Knights Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in the suburb of Sunshine North, Melbourne. The club currently competes in the National Premier Leagues Victoria, the second-tier of the Australian soccer league ...
, a Croatian club in the
NPL Victoria
The National Premier Leagues Victoria, commonly known as NPL Victoria, is a semi-professional soccer league in Victoria, Australia. The league is a part of the National Premier Leagues, and is the highest level within the Victorian soccer lea ...
.
The club is a regular participant in the
Australian-Croatian Soccer Tournament
The Australian-Croatian Soccer Tournament is a tournament run by the Croatian Soccer Federation of Australia and New Zealand, an organisation founded in 1974. The inspiration for the tournament came from the successful Croatian-North American S ...
.
History
Early years
Formed in 1958 as a sports club, the Sydney United Football Club played its first season in 1958 (undefeated) in the old NSW Soccer Football Association (NSWSFA). After transferring to the NSW Soccer Federation (a breakaway league established in 1959), they competed in the third division. In 1961 they were promoted to the second division and in 1963 to first, where they were amongst the elite teams nationwide. Teams like St. George Budapest, Pan-Hellenic (who later become Sydney Olympic), APIA-Leichhardt,
Yugal and Hakoah were United's major rivals.
For the seasons of 1964 and 1965 a part of the name changed (from Croatia to Metropolitan Adriatic), reverting to Croatia in 1966. However, this was not the last name change; the NSWSF ordered Croatia and Yugal in 1968 to anglicise their names after several incidents of crowd violence. Croatia changed their name again to South Sydney Croatia, since they resided in the South Sydney area with the local Croatian club at
Surry Hills
Surry Hills is an inner-city suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Surry Hills is immediately south-east of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the City of Sydney. Surry Hills is surround ...
.
After a few lean seasons during the late 1960s and early 1970s, United won their first NSW Premiership in 1977 with Luka Fabijinic as coach and Atti Aboyni as the team's striker. The team beat Auburn 2–0 in front of a crowd of more than 6,500 at the
Sydney Sports Ground.
In 1978, Aboyni took over as captain and coach of the team. Croatia amassed 62 regular-season goals (Aboyni scoring 21 of them) and winning the
minor premiership for the first time; they lost 2–1 to Sutherland in the
grand final replay
A grand final replay was a method of deciding the winner of a competition when a grand final is drawn. It is commonly used in football codes, particularly in Australian rules football, and most notably in the Australian Football League, where it w ...
(the first game was a 1–1 draw) in front of 9,700 fans. Aboyni then coached again in 1979 to another minor premiership, before quitting after Croatia lost 0–2 to Sutherland in the
preliminary final.
1980s
In 1980, the club purchased a block of land in West Sydney to call their new home, now known as the Sydney United Sports Centre at Edensor Park. Sydney United won minor premierships in 1981 and 1982 the Premiership in 1982 and 1983. In last year of the NSW State League, the Third Grade Sydney United team defeated Canterbury-Marrickville on the Sydney Sports Ground 3–0 under coach Luka Fabijinic.
During the early 1980s, United were often drawing home attendances of 10,000 in the NSW State League; however, National League clubs averaged crowds of only 3,000. The national league needed a heavily supported club to enter national competition; however, the national league executive deemed it inappropriate for clubs with nationalistic names to enter the league and Croatia did not wish to change their name. However, after a National League shake-up in 1984, Sydney United (and its sister club, Melbourne Knights) were accepted into the national league under those names.
The new NSL club established a record in 1984. Over the season, the club had six coaches: after Aboyni quit and
Harry Noon and Mick Jones were sacked, Bill Bicanacic and Bruno Vidaic took caretaker roles before
Vedran Rozic
Vedran is a Slavic masculine given name of Croatian origin, which is also used among Serbs, Slovenes, and Bosniaks. Vedran means clear or cheerful.
People
* Vedran Perič, a Slovenian famous account manager
* Vedran Celiščak, a Croatian footb ...
took over. Rozic was brought from Croatian football club
Hajduk Split as a
sweeper, but accepted the role of player-coach as the club stumbled to sixth place in the standings. Large home crowds in these early national-league days made Croatia the most popular club in Sydney.
1985 and 1986 saw better success, with United winning the Northern NSL Division crown over powerhouse clubs such as Sydney Olympic, Marconi, and Sydney City. However, in the preliminary final they lost to Sydney Olympic. 1987 saw a lean season in the league, but a successful cup season which brought them another trophy: the Beach Fashions Cup, with a 2–0 aggregate victory over South Melbourne (with United strikers Robbie Slater and Graham Arnold scoring).
After finishing second in the normal season in 1988 Sydney United made its first NSL Grand Final, playing neighbours Marconi-Fairfield at Parramatta Stadium in front of a 17,000-strong crowd. Alan Hunter and Manis Lamond scored for Croatia, with Frank Farina and Zlatko Nastevski scoring for Marconi. With the score 2–2 after extra time, the game went to a penalty shootout. At 4–4, United's young midfielder Shane Clinch hit the post with his spot kick followed by Marconi veteran Tony Henderson scoring against Croatia's Tony Franken, winning the game for Marconi.
1990s
Two more name changes, first to Sydney C.S.C. (Croatian Soccer Club) in 1992 and then to Sydney United, and the move from a winter league in Australia to a summer league saw a few lean seasons for the club during the early 1990s. The 1992–93 season saw the appointment of ex-Sydney Olympic coach Mick Hickman; however, he resigned during the pre-season. Ex-Socceroo defender Manfred Schaefer was appointed coach, and United finished seventh. United's youth policy, training players such as Tony Popovic, Zeljko Kalac, Ante Milicic and Ante Moric, was coming to fruition; these players later represented Australia at a number of levels. During the 1993–94 season, Zeljko Kalac keep an NSL-record 12 shutouts in 26 games. The club finished third, after leading the league.
Branko Culina replaced Schaefer as coach during the 1994–95 season; with a squad consisting of 75 percent locally produced players, United finished third. During the 1996–97 season, under Culina's the guidance United won another minor premiership and made its second Grand Final (this time in Brisbane). In front of an Australian soccer record crowd of 44,000, United lost 2–0 to Farina's Brisbane Strikers. Kresimir Maursic was voted the Prestigious NSL Player of the Year award, and David Zdrillic was the NSL's leading scorer with 21 goals (Ante Milicic finished second, with 19). However, the club lost players to overseas clubs: Popovic, Kalac, Milicic, Zdrilic and Robert Enes.
Former Socceroo striker David Mitchell took over as coach for the 1997–98 season. The club, while struggling, finished fourth with Abbas Saad its top scorer for the season. With Paul Bilokapic and Mark Rudan off to Northern Spirit, United won its third NSL minor premiership during the 1998–1999 season. Led by former St. Albans Dinamo defender Velimir Kupresak and talent from the youth league (such as Jacob Burns, Joel Griffiths and Mile Sterjovski), United reached the NSL Grand Final for the second time. However, in Melbourne against South Melbourne, United lost 3–2 (with goals by Mile Sterjovski and Danny Townsend) in front of 15,000 fans.
During a dark period in the club's history, in 1999–2000 Sydney United lost all their players (except Velimir Kupresak) and their coach to a new professional soccer club called Parramatta Power; however, the new team only lasted five seasons. Ex-Socceroo defender David Ratcliffe was appointed coach for that season. Although finishing last in the standings, United defeated Parramatta Power 1–0 at home to end the latter's final aspirations. Ex-Sibenik and United midfielder Ivan Petkovic took over as coach after Ratcliffe was sacked in January 2000.
2000s
Former defender Alan Hunter returned to Edensor Park as United's new coach for the 2000–01 season; however, he only lasted until February 2001 when captain Velimir Kupresak took over as coach. Croatia 1998 World Cup midfielder Alojsa Asanovic came out for a two-game stint with United, scoring a goal against the Auckland Kingz. United finished tenth, after winning their first three games of the season.
Branko Culina came back for a second stint as coach for the 2001–02 season, finishing 11th. For the 2002–2003 season, the club imported three Croatian players: goalkeeper Vanja Ivesa and defenders Bozidar Cacic and
Boris Pavić. However, the club finished 10th and Culina was replaced in January by former United striker Tony Krslovic.
Ex-Olympic defender Grant Lee was appointed coach in the 2003–04 season, when the club again finished 10th. Highlight of the year was the last away game with United's sister club, the Melbourne Knights. In front of an 8,423-strong crowd, the game on 29 February 2004 (which ended 0–0) saw flares, celebrations and a mass pitch invasion; this would be the final NSL game.
State league
With the demise of the NSL, the club once again played in the
New South Wales Premier League
The National Premier Leagues NSW is a semi-professional soccer competition in New South Wales, Australia. The competition is conducted by Football NSW, the organising body in New South Wales (the other being the National Premier Leagues Norther ...
. With new coach
Zlatko Arambasic
Zlatko Arambasic (born 20 September 1969) is a former Australian football player, now residing in Australia as an educator.
Club career
A much-travelled striker, Arambašić, a Croatia-born Australian, played for several clubs in Europe and i ...
at the helm in 2005 United started off well, only to finish fourth. However, United enjoyed success with a 3–1 victory over the Belconnen Blue Devils in the Continental Tyres Cup Final at Parramatta Stadium in front of 1,500 fans.
In 2006 Arambasic was dismissed as coach, replaced by Jean-Paul de Marigny. United started slowly, but finished third. During the top-four Vodafone NSW Premier League final series, United defeated
Blacktown City Demons
Blacktown City Football Club is an Australian semi-professional football club based in Blacktown, New South Wales. Founded in 1953, the club currently competes in the National Premier Leagues NSW. Blacktown City's home ground is Blacktown City ...
4–0 in the 2006 Grand Final;
Luka Glavas
Luka Glavas ( hr, Luka Glavaš; born 20 January 1985) is a former Australian footballer.
Biography
Luka Glavas played for Hurstville Zagreb from 2003 to 2004, Melbourne Knights from 2004 to 2005 and Sydney United from 2005 to 2006. In the 200 ...
scored all four goals. Jean-Paul de Marigny left the club in 2007 to pursue a coaching job with FootballNSW, and United appointed Bankstown City Lions assistant coach Peter Papoythis as head coach. On 8 May United, in eighth place, dismissed Papoythis; this saw another ex-United player, Ante Rumora, appointed coach. United finished the season in sixth place, four points from the top four.
In 2009, Sydney United finished top of the New South Wales Premier League, seven points clear of the
Marconi Stallions
Marconi Stallions Football Club is an Australian semi-professional soccer club based in Fairfield, Sydney, New South Wales. The club has been crowned Australian champion four times.
The Stallions are the soccer team of Club Marconi, a social ...
. United had a disappointing finals series, though, losing to both
Sutherland Sharks and Marconi and therefore failing to qualify for the grand final.
Recent era
In 2013, Sydney United took out the league title once more, but failed to make the grand final courtesy of two penalty shoot-out defeats to Bonnyrigg White Eagles and
Rockdale City Suns
Rockdale Ilinden Football Club (formerly known as the Rockdale City Suns Football Club from 1992 to 2020) is an Australian Macedonian soccer club based in Sydney suburb of Rockdale. Founded in 1969, the club competes in the highest men's comp ...
. Despite this, their league title meant they qualified for the
2013 National Premier Leagues finals series. United beat
Canberra FC
Canberra Croatia Football Club is an Australian semi-professional soccer club based in the suburb of Deakin in the south of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. Founded in 1958 the club currently competes in the National Premier Leagues Ca ...
2–1 in the quarter finals,
Olympic FC
Olympic Football Club is a semi-professional soccer club based in Brisbane, Queensland. The club was founded in 1967 and currently competes in the National Premier Leagues Queensland, with home matches played at Goodwin Park. The club has grow ...
4–3 in the semi-finals and
South Hobart FC
South Hobart Football Club is an Australian soccer club based in Hobart, Tasmania. Founded in 1910, the club currently competes in the NPL Tasmania. South Hobart plays home games at South Hobart Ground and also fields teams in all junior divis ...
2–0 in the final to take out the inaugural National Premier Leagues Championship.
Sydney United qualified for the inaugural
FFA Cup
The Australia Cup, formerly known as the FFA Cup until the 2021 season, is the national football knockout cup competition in Australia. This annual competition is organised by Football Australia, formerly known as Football Federation Austral ...
in 2014. United drew
Far North Queensland FC
Cairns FC, previously known as FNQ FC Heat, was an Australian semi-professional soccer club based in the regional city of Cairns, in the far north of Queensland. Founded in 2012, the club was awarded a licence to compete in the National Prem ...
in the Round of 32 and progressed after a 4–1 win. They then faced
A-League powerhouse
Sydney FC in front of over 8,000 people at the Sydney United Sports Centre, eventually going down 3–1 to the fully professional outfit.
Sydney United qualified for the
2015 FFA Cup
The 2015 FFA Cup was the second season of the FFA Cup, the main national soccer knockout cup competition in Australia. 32 teams began competition in the competition proper (from the round of 32), including all 10 A-League teams, the reigning Nat ...
the following season. United drew
South Hobart FC
South Hobart Football Club is an Australian soccer club based in Hobart, Tasmania. Founded in 1910, the club currently competes in the NPL Tasmania. South Hobart plays home games at South Hobart Ground and also fields teams in all junior divis ...
, whom they beat in 2013 to claim the NPL championship. United crawled through, coming back from 2–0 down to draw 3–3 and then take it on penalties. In the Round of 16, United faced
Heidelberg United FC
Heidelberg United Alexander Football Club (founded as Alexander the Great-Melbourne Soccer Club) established in 1958 is a football (soccer) club based in the northern Melbourne suburb of Heidelberg West, Victoria, Australia. The team currently ...
but lost 2–0 in front of 2,200 at Olympic Village in Melbourne.
For the 2016 season, United signed the likes of former
Melbourne Knights
Melbourne Knights Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in the suburb of Sunshine North, Melbourne. The club currently competes in the National Premier Leagues Victoria, the second-tier of the Australian soccer league ...
captain
Tomislav Uskok
Tomislav Uskok (born 22 July 1991) is an Australian footballer who plays for Macarthur FC in the A-League.
Club career Early years
Uskok came through the junior ranks at local club Melbourne Knights. He departed the club in 2009 in search of ...
, who joined the club after a brief spell in the
A-League with
Central Coast Mariners
Central Coast Mariners Football Club is an Australian professional association football, soccer club based in Gosford, on the Central Coast (New South Wales), Central Coast of New South Wales. It competes in the A-League, A-League Men, under ...
, former Sydney United NSL player
Eddy Bosnar
Eddy Bosnar (born 29 April 1980) is an Australian professional footballer centre back who last played for National Premier Leagues side Sydney United. He has scored numerous goals for his clubs with his free kicks.
Club career
After graduating ...
and
Manly United
Manly United Football Club is an Australian football club based in the northern beaches area of Sydney. The club competes in the National Premier Leagues NSW and their home ground is Cromer Park, in the suburb of Dee Why, approximately 15 minu ...
marksman
Chris Payne, among others. After losing to Blacktown City in Round 1 of the NSW NPL, United went on to win their next eight games, including a 2–1 derby win over Bonnyrigg to move into top spot on the ladder. On 10 July 2016, United claimed the Waratah Cup for the second consecutive year, with a solitary strike from Japanese import Yutaro Shin guiding the side to a 1–0 victory over Manly. In the
2016 FFA Cup
Sixteen or 16 may refer to:
*16 (number), the natural number following 15 and preceding 17
*one of the years 16 BC, AD 16, 1916, 2016
Films
* ''Pathinaaru'' or ''Sixteen'', a 2010 Tamil film
* ''Sixteen'' (1943 film), a 1943 Argentine film d ...
Round of 32, United were drawn against fellow NPL NSW side
Blacktown City FC
Blacktown City Football Club is an Australian semi-professional football club based in Blacktown, New South Wales. Founded in 1953, the club currently competes in the National Premier Leagues NSW. Blacktown City's home ground is Blacktown City ...
with the match to be played at
Gabbie Stadium
Landen Stadium (previously Gabbie Stadium, Fairfax Community Stadium, Lily Homes Stadium, Lily's Football Centre, Blacktown City Sports Centre), is a multi-purpose stadium located in Sydney, Australia. It is the home ground of Blacktown City F ...
on 27 July 2016.
Chris Payne and Robert Mileski gave 58 a two-goal lead, but City responded with two of its own to take the match to extra time. Blacktown's Danny Choi then scored a goal from inside his own half to give the home side the lead, with Blacktown going on to score another three goals in extra time to win the game 6–2, despite Riku Sasaki receiving his marching orders in the first half of extra time. On 31 July 2016, United grabbed its second piece of silverware for the season, winning the 2016 NPL NSW Premiership with two rounds to spare, with a 4–1 win over fierce rivals Bonnyrigg at
Valentine Sports Park
Valentine Sports Park is an Australian football stadium in Glenwood, a suburb of Sydney.
It is the home of Football NSW. The venue received a $22 million transformation and was officially re-opened in March 2015. The impressive facility featu ...
.
United grabbed a third major title for the 2016 season when it was crowned 2016 National Premier Leagues Champions after defeating Northern NSW's Edgeworth FC Eagles 4–1 in an entertaining clash with
Glen Trifiro
Glen Joseph Trifiro (born 10 July 1987) is an Australian professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for Sydney United 58 in the National Premier Leagues.
Career
After playing for several years with various state league clubs in N ...
bagging a hat-trick at Sydney United Sports Centre.
With the victory, Sydney United became the first club to win the title two times, winning it in its inaugural season in 2013.
After the triump,
Mark Rudan
Marko Ante "Mark" Rudan (born 27 August 1975) is an Australian soccer manager and former player. He is currently the head coach for A-League Men club Western Sydney Wanderers.
Rudan was one of the inaugural inductees into the Sydney FC Hall o ...
stepped down from his role as senior head coach, having accumulated a number of successes in his four-year spell as manager of the club, including two NPL Finals Series Championships, two NPL NSW Premierships, two NSW Waratah Cups and four FFA Cup qualifications.
Sydney United appointed
Davor Bajsić to lead the side in 2017, but resigned from the role after his side lost its opening three games of the NPL NSW season. United brought
Mark Rudan
Marko Ante "Mark" Rudan (born 27 August 1975) is an Australian soccer manager and former player. He is currently the head coach for A-League Men club Western Sydney Wanderers.
Rudan was one of the inaugural inductees into the Sydney FC Hall o ...
back to the club to lead the senior side. On 16 August 2017, Sydney United appointed
Jason Culina
Jason Culina (born 5 August 1980) is a former Australian soccer player and coach.
Club career
Culina began his career with Sydney United under his father, Branko Culina, before moving to Ajax, where he struggled in the reserves. Only after ...
as head coach after Rudan stepped down.
2022 Australia Cup
In 2022, Sydney United became the first
NPL club to qualify for the
Australia Cup final. Their road to the final included beating the
2021–22 A-League Men
The 2021–22 A-League Men, known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons, is the 45th season of national level men's soccer in Australia, and the 17th since the establishment of the competition as the A-League in 2004.
Melbourne City ...
champions
Western United
Western United Football Club is an Australian professional football club. The club is based in the western Melbourne suburb of Truganina, the club aims to represent western Victoria, incorporating the western suburbs of Melbourne; the region ...
on penalties in the round of 16 and three-time A-League champions
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 ...
in the semi-final 3–2 after extra time. Sydney United lost to
Macarthur FC
Macarthur Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in South Western Sydney, New South Wales. It competes in Australia's premier soccer competition, the A-League, under licence from Australian Professional Leagues (APL). On 1 ...
in the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
* Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...
, with Macarthur winning their first ever trophy.
During the match, fans of Sydney United sung ''
Za dom spremni
''Za dom spremni!'' () was a salute used during World War II by the Croatian Ustaše movement. It was the Ustaše equivalent of the fascist or Nazi salute ''Sieg Heil''.
Usage during World War II
During World War II, the Ustaša, a moveme ...
'' (a fascist chant used by the
Ustaše in Australia honouring the fascist
Ustaše
The Ustaše (), also known by anglicised versions Ustasha or Ustashe, was a Croatian fascist and ultranationalist organization active, as one organization, between 1929 and 1945, formally known as the Ustaša – Croatian Revolutionary Move ...
movement), booed the
Welcome to Country
A Welcome to Country is a ritual or formal ceremony performed as a land acknowledgement at many events held in Australia. It is intended to highlight the cultural significance of the surrounding area to the descendants of a particular Aborigina ...
, performed salutes commentators characterised as
Nazi salutes. These fans were condemned by
Football Australia
Football Australia is the governing body of soccer, futsal, and beach soccer within Australia, headquartered in Sydney. Although the first governing body of the sport was founded in 1911, Football Australia in its current form was only esta ...
, who stated: "Football Australia acknowledges that a very small minority of attendees engaged in behaviour that is not consistent with Football Australia's values and wider community expectations. Football Australia took steps during the match to address these isolated behaviours, including eight evictions."
Following a month long investigation,
Football Australia
Football Australia is the governing body of soccer, futsal, and beach soccer within Australia, headquartered in Sydney. Although the first governing body of the sport was founded in 1911, Football Australia in its current form was only esta ...
sanctioned
Sydney United 58
Sydney United 58 Football Club is a semi-professional soccer club and current NSW NPL Champions based in Edensor Park, Sydney, New South Wales Australia. The club was formed as Sydney Croatia in 1958, by Croatian Australians in the area, but ...
under breach of the National Code of Conduct and Ethics. The club was fined
AUD
The Australian dollar (sign: $; code: AUD) is the currency of Australia, including its external territories: Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, and Norfolk Island. It is officially used as currency by three independent Pacific Island s ...
$15,000. In addition, they also received a number of suspended sanctions, which include further fines, up to a 40 point deduction in the
National Premier Leagues NSW
The National Premier Leagues NSW is a semi-professional soccer competition in New South Wales, Australia. The competition is conducted by Football NSW, the organising body in New South Wales (the other being the National Premier Leagues Norther ...
season, and a ban from the
Australia Cup for up to three years. These suspended sanctions will be triggered if they fail to comply with the following conditions:
* Ongoing volunteer work with
First Nations
First Nations or first peoples may refer to:
* Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area.
Indigenous groups
*First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including:
**First Natio ...
and
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
comunities
* Compulsory education and training to counter racism, discrimination,
anti-Semitic and other faith-based hatred for the club's Board, Executive administrators, players, support staff, volunteers, and fan group leaders
* Compulsory Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander
Torres Strait Islanders () are the Indigenous Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal people of the rest of Australia, they are often groupe ...
cultural competency training for the club's board, Executive administrators, players, support staff, volunteers, and fan group leaders
* Implementation of cultural initiatives within the club
* Prescribed standards of behaviour for the club's supporters in accordance with the Code of Conduct and Ethics.
Home ground
In 1981 Sydney United FC moved from the city to the United Sports Centre in
Edensor Park
Edensor Park is a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Edensor Park is located 38 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the City of Fairfield. It is mainly a residential area, Edensor Pa ...
(known to fans as "King Tom"), which has a
capacity of 12,000. The main stand is known as the Boka stand (Boka was the main sponsor of the project). In the Boka stand is the Senator's Club, for lifetime members of the club. Inside the Senator's Club is the Kalac Bar, in recognition of Željko Kalac's transfer to
Leicester City
Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...
in the English
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Fo ...
(which helped pay for the Boka stand).
The club recently installed a new artificial grass field which was certified FIFA 2star standard. This "system" was installed by overseas contractors and overseen by the club as a virtually unique self installed field which saved many dollars.
Previous home grounds include:
*
Wentworth Park
Wentworth Park is a park near the suburbs of Glebe and Ultimo in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
The park contains several muti-purpose sporting pitches, cricket nets and a number of fitness installations. There is a playground in the s ...
,
Glebe
Glebe (; also known as church furlong, rectory manor or parson's close(s))McGurk 1970, p. 17 is an area of land within an ecclesiastical parish used to support a parish priest. The land may be owned by the church, or its profits may be reserved ...
*
ES Marks Athletics Field
*
Sydney Sports Ground, Moore Park
*
Parramatta Stadium (1997–98 season)
Rivalries
United and Croatia have experienced a number of rivalries with other clubs.
Marconi Fairfield
A short distance (1 km) north of Edensor Park in the neighbouring suburb of Bossley Park is the prosperous Marconi-Fairfield club. The Italian-backed club has been a rival of United's since 1970, when Marconi was promoted to the NSW State League. The clubs have had some close games: a 1988 Grand Final between the clubs saw the game go onto a penalty shoot-out (which Marconi won), and a semifinal game during the 1997–1998 season saw United's Kupresak sent off for headbutting Marconi's Sean Babic in the nose.
Sydney Olympic
"Nomads" of the NSL and backed by a heavy Greek following, the club formerly known as Pan Hellenic have had a rich history with United since 1963 when they first met at Lambert Park. Both clubs have seen more activity off the field than on, especially with transfers of players between the clubs. Players such as
Ante Milicic
Ante Milicic ( ; hr, Ante Miličić ; (born 4 April 1974) is an Australian soccer manager and former professional player.
Personal life
The son of Croatian immigrants, Milicic grew up in Strathfield, a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney. Mi ...
,
Ned Zelic
Nedjeljko Zelic (born 4 July 1971), commonly known as Ned Zelic, is an Australian former footballer who played as a centre-back or defensive midfielder.
Club career
Zelic started his career in the old Australian National Soccer League, where he ...
, Emil Dragicevic,
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 ...
,
Jim Patikas,
Graham Jennings
Graham Jennings (born 18 January 1960) is a former Australian association footballer, who played predominantly as a defender and was renowned for his speed, earning him the nickname ''flash''. After a distinguished club and international care ...
, Ante Moric, Eric Hristodoulou, Ante Juric and Petar Markovic have switched between the clubs over the years.
Northern Spirit/Parramatta Power
Both Northern Spirit and Parramatta Power were clubs admitted into the NSL to promote non-ethnic clubs. Northern Spirit (based in North Sydney) became a United rival when it signed former United players Graham Arnold, Robbie Slater, Kresimir Marusic, Paul Bilokapic and Mark Rudan. United, underdogs during the 2000–2001 with a depleted team, won 2–1 at North Sydney in wet conditions.
Parramatta Power, backed by the prosperous Parramatta Eels Rugby League Club, entered competition during the 1999–2000 season after luring 16 United players and staff. United, however, defeated Parramatta 1–0 to end their aspirations for a finals berth.
Bonnyrigg White Eagles
Sydney United has a fierce rivalry with the Serbian-backed
Bonnyrigg White Eagles
Bonnyrigg White Eagles FC is an Australian semi-professional soccer club based in Bonnyrigg, Sydney, New South Wales, currently playing in the NSW League One. The club was founded in 1968 as Avala Sports Club and took its current name in 1992.
H ...
. The teams often met in the late 1970s with then Sydney Croatia dominating majority of the encounters against Bonnyrigg, who were then called Avala. After the demise of the National Soccer League, the two clubs would not meet again in a league competition until 2005. The games were often met with crowd violence, most notably in 2005.
Players
First team squad
Honours
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Australia Cup runners-up:
2022
File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeypo ...
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NPL champions:
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...
,
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...
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NSL premiers: 1986 (Northern Division), 1996–97, 1998–99
*NSL Grand Final runners-up: 1988, 1996–97, 1998–99
*NSL Regular Season runners-up (Northern Conference): 1985
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NSL Cup winners:
1987
File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, ...
*NSL Cup runners-up: 1994
*NSL finalists: 1985, 1986, 1988, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1997–98, 1998–99
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National Youth League champions: 1991–92, 1994–95
*National Youth League runners-up: 1993–1994, 1996–97
*National Youth League (Northern Division) champions: 1991–92, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1996–97
*NSW State League champions: 1977, 1982, 1983, 2006, 2020
*NSW State League runners-up: 1978, 1981, 2011, 2016, 2019
*NSW State League premiers: 1977, 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982, 2009, 2013, 2016
*NSW State League regular season runners-up: 1983
*NSW State League finalists: 1967, 1970, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1983, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2018
*NSW Division 1 champions: 1962
*NSW Division 2 champions: 1960
*Continental Cup winners: 2005
*Ampol Cup winners: 1986, 1987
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Rothmans Cup winners: 1974
*Rothmans Cup runners-up: 1971, 1976
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Waratah Cup
The Waratah Cup is a knockout cup competition in New South Wales, run by the governing body of football in NSW, Football NSW. Teams competing in the Waratah Cup come from the National Premier Leagues NSW, National Premier Leagues NSW 2, Natio ...
winners: 1995, 1996, 2005,
2015,
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...
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Waratah Cup
The Waratah Cup is a knockout cup competition in New South Wales, run by the governing body of football in NSW, Football NSW. Teams competing in the Waratah Cup come from the National Premier Leagues NSW, National Premier Leagues NSW 2, Natio ...
runners-up: 2019, 2022
Internationals
Club records
* ''Best result:'' W 12–0 vs. Henwood Park (h) 2 May 2018 (FFA Cup Round 5)
* ''Worst result:'' L 0–5 v Sydney Olympic (h) 28 March 1993
* ''Best crowd:'' 16 614 v Marconi 23 February 1997
* ''Most games (coached):'' Branko Culina (133 games, W62-D32-L39)
* ''Most games (played):'' 450 (Petar Markovic, 2001–2013 to 2017–2019)
* ''Most goals scored:'' 85, Luka Glavas
* ''Most goals in a season (individual):'' 21, David Zdrillic (1996–1997)
* ''Best games-to-goals ratio:'' 0.58, David Seal (18 goals in 31 games)
* ''Youngest player:'' 16 years, 90 days (Jason Culina, 3 November 1996)
See also
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List of Sydney United 58 FC seasons
Sydney United 58 FC is an association football club based in Sydney, Australia. The club was formed in 1958.
History
Seasons
Notes
References
External links
Ozfootball Sydney United
{{Lists of Australian soccer seasons
Sydney United 5 ...
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Melbourne Knights
Melbourne Knights Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in the suburb of Sunshine North, Melbourne. The club currently competes in the National Premier Leagues Victoria, the second-tier of the Australian soccer league ...
(sister club to Sydney United)
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Australian-Croatian Soccer Tournament
The Australian-Croatian Soccer Tournament is a tournament run by the Croatian Soccer Federation of Australia and New Zealand, an organisation founded in 1974. The inspiration for the tournament came from the successful Croatian-North American S ...
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List of Croatian soccer clubs in Australia
The Croatian community of Australia has played an important part in the history of Australian soccer. Countless clubs have been formed over the years in every state and territory, except for the Northern Territory. At present there are 31 act ...
References
External links
Official website of the Sydney United
{{NSWPL
Association football clubs established in 1958
National Soccer League (Australia) teams
National Premier Leagues clubs
New South Wales Premier League teams
Croatian sports clubs in Australia
1958 establishments in Australia