| Event | 2022–23 A-League Men | ||||||
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| Date | 3 June 2023 | ||||||
| Venue | CommBank Stadium, Parramatta | ||||||
| Joe Marston Medal | Jason Cummings | ||||||
| Referee | Chris Beath | ||||||
| Attendance | 26,523 | ||||||
The 2023 A-League Men Grand Final was the 18th A-League Men Grand Final, the championship-deciding match of the Australian A-League Men and the culmination of the 2022–23 season. The match was played on 3 June 2023 at CommBank Stadium in Parramatta between Melbourne City and Central Coast Mariners.
Background
Melbourne City were playing their fourth A-League Grand Final, achieving champion status just once in 2021.[1] City had lost the previous season’s edition of the Grand Final against Western United at their home stadium.[2] They had also lost in their first Grand Final appearance after losing to Sydney FC in 2020.[3][4] In both Grand Final losses, City were contesting as minor premiers.[5][6] For Central Coast Mariners, it was their first Grand Final since 2013 when they defeated Western Sydney Wanderers at Sydney Football Stadium.[7][8] They had previously won the minor premiership twice in 2007–08 and 2011–12 seasons and made four Grand Final appearances during that time.[9][10] The only notable success the Mariners had in the last decade was when they achieved runners-up in the 2021 FFA Cup final.[11][12] Melbourne City finished the regular 2022–23 season as minor premierships with Central Coast Mariners finished one place below them in second.[13] As a result, both automatically qualified for the semi-finals of the A-League.[14] City finished with 55 points, 11 points above the Mariners and 13 points above Adelaide United who sat third, followed by Western Sydney Wanderers, Sydney FC and Wellington Phoenix.[15]
Previous finals
In the following table, finals until 2004 were in the National Soccer League era, since 2006 were in the A-League Men era.
| Team | Previous grand final appearances (bold indicates winners) |
|---|---|
| Melbourne City | 3 (2020, 2021, 2022) |
| Central Coast Mariners | 4 (2006, 2008, 2011, 2013) |
Venue
This will be the second A-League Men Grand Final played at the Western Sydney Stadium; the first was held in 2020. It will also be the sixth to be held in Sydney.
Venue selection
The Australian Professional Leagues announced on 12 December 2022 that the 2023, 2024 and 2025 A-League Men Grand Finals would be hosted in Sydney regardless of which two teams qualified. The 2023 Grand Final was the first Grand Final to be played in a fixed location.[16][17]
Road to the final
Summary
The 2022–23 season is the league's eighteenth since its inception in 2005, and the 46th season of top-flight association football in Australia. Twelve teams competed in the regular season, with each team playing a total of 26 matches, resulting in an uneven fixture that involved some clubs meeting three times and others meeting only twice. The top six teams qualified for the finals series, which were played in a straight-knockout format, with the top two teams earning an automatic place in the semi-finals and the bottom four teams playing off in elimination finals.[18] Melbourne City qualified for the semi-finals by virtue of finishing first and becoming the premiers.
| Melbourne City | Round | Central Coast Mariners | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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2022–23 A-League Men 1st placed / Premiers
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Regular season | 2022–23 A-League Men 2nd placed
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| Opponent | Score | Elimination-finals | Opponent | Score | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bye | Bye | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opponent | Agg. | 1st leg | 2nd leg | Semi-finals | Opponent | Agg. | 1st leg | 2nd leg | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sydney FC | 5–1 | 1–1 (A) | 4–0 (H) | Adelaide United | 4–1 | 2–1 (A) | 2–0 (H) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Melbourne City
Melbourne City finished top of the table, winning their third straight premiership. They received a bye past the first week of finals, playing Sydney FC in the semi-finals, after they defeated cross-city rivals Western Sydney Wanderers 2–1 in the elimination finals. The first leg was played away in Sydney. The game was drawn 1–1 with Matthew Leckie scoring early in the first half, and Adam Le Fondre equalising in the 64th minute with a retaken penalty kick. The second leg was played at AAMI Park in front of 9,223 spectators. Melbourne City thrashed Sydney 4–0, with goals from Curtis Good, Marco Tilio, Richard van der Venne and an own goal from Jack Rodwell. Winning 5–1 on aggregate, Melbourne City are playing in their fourth grand final in a row.
Central Coast Mariners
Central Coast Mariners finished runners-up in the regular season, beating Adelaide United to second in the final round. Earning a bye past the first week, they matched up against Adelaide United, who had beaten Wellington Phoenix 2–0 in the elimination finals. The first leg was played away in Adelaide, with a sold out 15,771 attendees at Coopers Stadium. Despite a 4th minute penalty conversion from Craig Goodwin, Central Coast Mariners dominated the first half, coming back to win 2–1 with first half goals from James McGarry and Jason Cummings. The second leg was played in front of a crowd of 20,059, the first time Industree Group Stadium had been sold out by the Mariners. After a goalless first half, Central Coast Mariners grabbed two quick goals to open up the second half courtesy of Samuel Silvera and Marco Túlio. They ultimately saw out this lead to win 4–1 on aggregate, reaching their first grand final since 2013.
Pre-match
Promotion
Broadcasting
The Grand Final was broadcast throughout Australia live and free on Network 10 and streamed on Paramount+ and 10Play, the latter being for free.[19]
Officiating
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On 30 May 2023, Football Australia announced Chris Beath would referee for the final. The match was Beath’s fourth appointment as the referee for an A-League Men’s Grand Final, having officated the 2020, 2021, and 2022 Grand Finals. Beath was also the additional assistant referee in 2016, and fourth official in 2019.
It was also announced that the assistant referees would be Anton Shchetinin and Ashley Beecham, along with Adam Kersey as the fourth official and Brad Wright as the fifth official. The match was both Shchetinin and Beecham's second decider, after they were appointed for previous season’s final with Beath. Kersey and Wright were involved in their first A-League Men’s Grand Final.
Additionally, the video assistant referee for the Grand Final was Kate Jacewicz, supported by Assistant VARs, Shaun Evans and Kearney Robinson.[20]
Two days after the appointment, Beath announced that the match would be his last as a referee, announcing his retirement.[21]
Attendance
Tickets for the final went on sale on 22 May, with club members receiving a meagre 20% discount.[22] Melbourne City offered their fans a road coach to travel to Sydney from Melbourne to attend the match,[23] whereas Central Coast Mariners offered similar services for their supporters from Tuggerah, Gosford and Woy Woy.
The active support group of Melbourne City – Yarra End Collective; announced they would boycott the Grand Final, due to it being held in Sydney, when the team would have normally earned the right to play it at home in AAMI Park, if not for the APL's deal with Destination NSW.
Team selection
The match was to be Melbourne City captain Scott Jamieson's last as he announced his retirement in the weeks leading up to the final.[24] However, he did not come off the bench and appear on the field.
Entertainment
Match
Details
       Melbourne City
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Central Coast Mariners
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Man of the Match (Joe Marston Medal):
Assistant referees:[20]
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Match rules
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Statistics
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Post-match
See also
Notes
- ↑ Each team was given only three opportunities to make substitutions, with a fourth opportunity in extra time, excluding substitutions made at half-time, before the start of extra time and at half-time in extra time.
References
- ↑ Ward, Roy (19 May 2023). "Tilio shines, red card costs Sydney as Melbourne City march into another grand final". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ↑ "Western United stun Melbourne City 2–0 to win first A-League Men's title". The Guardian. Australian Associated Press. 28 May 2022. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ↑ "Sydney FC crowned A-League champions after beating Melbourne City in grand final". ABC News. 30 August 2020. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ↑ Jackson, Andrew (30 August 2020). "Double drama strikes A-League decider as both teams are left fuming". Fox Sports.
- ↑ D'Urbano, Nick (10 May 2022). "Melbourne City have secured back-to-back A League Premiers Plates". news.com.au. NCA NewsWire. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ↑ van Leeuwen, Jamie (9 May 2022). "Melbourne City are premiers again but air of invincibility has gone". ESPN. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ↑ "Preview: Isuzu UTE A-League Men's Grand Final". 10 Play. 1 June 2023. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ↑ Maasdorp, James (21 April 2013). "As it happened: Mariners break grand final hoodoo". ABC News. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ↑ "Central Coast Mariners beat Adelaide to reach A-League grand final". ABC News. 20 May 2023. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ↑ D'Urbano, Nick (18 May 2023). "How the Mariners went from 'laughing stock' to A-Leagues force after legend's on-air gaffe". KEEPUP.
- ↑ Berthier, Thibault (1 February 2022). "Road to the 2021 FFA Cup Final: Central Coast Mariners | Australia Cup". Australia Cup. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ↑ "FFA Cup Final report: Victory 2-1 Mariners". Melbourne Victory. 5 February 2022. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ↑ "Melbourne City's AFC Champions League opponents revealed". Football Australia. 25 August 2023. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ↑ "Subway Socceroos at Home: A-League Men's 2022/23 Semi-Final 1st Legs". Socceroos. 8 May 2023. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ↑ "A-League Men Ladders 2022–2023". keepup.com. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ↑ sachapisani (2022-12-11). "Planning, 'week-long extravaganza', records: Why Sydney is the new home of the A-Leagues Grand Finals". KEEPUP. Retrieved 2022-12-12.
- ↑ nicholasdurbano (2022-12-11). "Lock it in: Sydney to host A-Leagues Grand Finals for next three seasons". KEEPUP. Retrieved 2022-12-12.
- ↑ "Competition Rules". KeepUp.com.au.
- ↑ "How to watch the A-League Men grand final in Australia".
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 https://www.footballaustralia.com.au/news/chris-beath-appointed-referee-202223-a-league-mens-grand-final
- ↑ https://www.footballaustralia.com.au/news/chris-beath-whistles-full-time-decorated-career
- ↑ https://keepup.com.au/news/a-league-grand-final-tickets-teams-melbourne-city-central-coast-mariners/
- ↑ https://melbournecityfc.com.au/news/join-our-epic-grand-final-road-trip
- ↑ https://keepup.com.au/news/scott-jamieson-a-league-melbourne-city-retirement-australian-football-news-grand-final/