ALW Tackle: If you blinked in Sydney over the weekend, you’d have missed Unite Round
Apparently Unite Round brought 42,000 people from interstate to Sydney over the weekend but if you were a Sydneysider, you would hardly have known it was happening.
It is said to have brought 42,000 interstate visitors to Sydney but if you weren’t a diehard football fan you wouldn’t even have known Unite Round was happening.
Not one advertisement was seen on the back of a bus, no signs were hanging from lamp posts or strung from buildings and not one taxi driver who ferried me from venue to venue had even heard about it.
Crowd numbers were in line with average figures but only 1130 fans watched Melbourne Victory play Perth Glory.
It was a decent crowd between two non-NSW clubs but a far cry from the 20,000 who can fit into Leichhardt Oval.
Attendance jumped for the second clash between Central Coast Mariners and Wellington Phoenix.
However, considering the Mariners are based just an hour away and their recent home games have pulled crowds of 5000 and 2000, the marketing of the event must be questioned.
Maybe organisers wanted to keep it quiet for the inaugural event – test the waters or avoid going too big too early.
Or perhaps they just didn’t give themselves enough time.
The round, which was designed to get the NSW Government to relinquish the grand final hosting rights it had bought the year before, was announced in October just weeks after the fixtures had been released.
While far from unsuccessful, there were a few downsides to Unite Round, such as the schedule.
Double-headers with the men’s games meant the last two women’s games of the round – Sydney FC versus Western United and Western Sydney against Melbourne City – were played at the same time.
That meant fans had to pick one game instead of being able to watch every women’s match.
Fan zones were only set up in the stadium precincts, which opened just an hour before matches kicked off.
A fan zone in the Sydney CBD could have swept up new fans amid the excitement of what was a great weekend of football and attracted extra spectators to games.
The fireworks, flame throwers, giveaways, MiniRoos games at halftime and player signings all created a great atmosphere.
However, Unite Round could have been bigger if the APL had backed itself.
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CHLOE STAR OF SHOW
Michelle Heyman was given the credit for Canberra’s first win in six weeks when she netted twice to become the first A-League woman to score 101 goals.
However, Canberra keeper Chloe Lincoln was the real hero.
The 19-year-old has had a tough season as Canberra conceded more goals than any other club.
Against Adelaide, Lincoln was a shining star.
She made three crucial saves in the first half that meant Canberra went into halftime at 0-0, something the side didn’t really deserve.
Had Lincoln not made those saves, Canberra would have had to stage a fightback from much more than 1-0 down.
It is exciting to see a keeper so young given a chance.
TIGHT TABLE
The luxury of a full home-and-away season has given teams some leeway and even competition leader Melbourne City has stumbled a few times.
However, with just 10 rounds to go and four points the difference between third and 10th place on the ladder, every game is going to matter in the race to the finals.
The return of Central Coast Mariners means the top six teams will get to fight for the title
and if past matches are anything to go by, anyone could win it.
While City has lost just once, it has drawn twice and several wins have been by a lone goal.
Reigning premier Sydney FC is not to be forgotten.
The side still has a game in hand but has quickly risen up the table after a slow start.
Central Coast Mariners, off the back of their impressive win over Wellington Phoenix on the weekend and a draw with the Sky Blues the round before, are closing in on the top six.
One slip from Western United, Melbourne Victory or Perth Glory could put them outside the top six and open the door for Brisbane Roar, Western Sydney or Newcastle Jets to storm in.
The tight competition shows that no team is unbeatable and the race to the finals is going to make for some very exciting football.
LOVE FOR FANS
Players spent every minute they could interacting with the crowd during Unite Round.
Excited fans, mostly children, hung over the fences at Leichhardt Oval with pens, jerseys and hats at the ready to snare their favourite player’s signature.
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With back-to-back games, some players almost had to be forced from the field to make way for the second match.
From selfies to handshakes to signatures, players were happy to oblige the fans.
Their willingness to give back will ensure people return.
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