Seven long, frustrating years for Sydney FC are about to come to an end. The Sky Blues are on the cusp of claiming their first trophy since 2010 with the premiership all but confirmed after a commanding win over rivals Melbourne Victory.
Engravers are standing by to etch Sydney FC's name on the premiers plate after Brazilian striker Bobo struck the winning goal to extend Sydney's lead at the top of the table to 11 points. Mathematically Graham Arnold's side can still be caught, but realistically, Sydney need just four more points from their final five games to break their drought after Friday's 1-0 win.
The 2016-17 Sydney FC team became the first ever to claim a clean sweep of "Big Blue" victories in a single season. If their first win over Victory was controversial and their second a smash and grab, their third was nothing but pure class, the scoreline doing little to reflect Sydney's dominance
Comfortable well before full-time they may have been, but the home club was riddled with nerves after kick-off and survived an early scare that could have seen them reduced to 10 men after just nine minutes. Outpaced and out of position, defender Michael Zullo pulled down Victory winger Marco Rojas on the edge of the area and was fortunate to only see a yellow card for his professional foul.
It was the first warning of Victory's game plan to suck Sydney's fullbacks out of position. Rojas again got the better of Zullo minutes later to play Jai Ingham through on goal, who required a simple finish to open the scoring. Instead, a phenomenal save by Sydney's Danny Vukovic held their defence in tact before Ingham missed a second sitter two minutes later.
The visitors' inability to convert should have been punished by Sydney, whose captain Alex Brosque was narrowly wide from turning a Bobo pass into the net. Victory goalkeeper Lawrence Thomas was all that held the score goalless at half-time as Thomas' fingertips denied Brosque from inside the box. Victory came out with more hunger than desperation but that enthusiasm became their undoing. They hounded Milos Ninkovic deep in his own half.
He weaved through his rabid markers with a sense of class that had the fans on their feet in applause. It sparked a sweeping move to Josh Brillante, who found Brosque over the top supported by Holosko out wide. Victory's defenders were glued to the ball as much as the fans and nobody but Holosko saw the run of Bobo at the far post whose composed finish effectively wrapped up the premiership.
Ninkovic came within centimetres of scoring the goal of the season, striking a half-volley from 35 metres that shaved the top of the crossbar to kickstart Sydney's rampant celebrations.
