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2012/13 A-League Grand Final
Western Sydney vs Central Coast Mariners
Sunday 21st April. 4:00pm AEST
Venue: Allianz Stadium, Sydney.
Referee: Peter Green.
Broadcast: Live on Fox Sports 1/1HD and ABC Radio and ABC Grandstand Digital.

How they got there – Western Sydney

Western Sydney defeated Brisbane Roar 2-0 in last week’s semi final encounter, thanks to goals from Dino Kresinger and marquee player Shinji Ono. In doing so, Western Sydney ensured that the Grand Final would be hosted in Sydney, against the winner of the Central Coast vs Melbourne Victory semi final. Despite the Wanderers earning hosting rights for the game, the Grand Final will be played at Allianz Stadium due to Parramatta Stadium’s small capacity.

How they got there – Central Coast

Central Coast held off Melbourne Victory 1-0 on Sunday afternoon, with a first half goal to golden boot winner Daniel McBreen enough to ensure the Mariners qualified for the Grand Final.

The statistical breakdown

Head to Head: Western Sydney 1 win, Central Coast … Continue Reading

2012/13 A-League Semi Final
Central Coast Mariners vs Melbourne Victory
Sunday 14th April. 5:00pm AEST
Venue: Bluetongue Stadium, Gosford
Referee: Strebre Delovski
Broadcast: Live on Fox Sports 2/2HD

How they got there – Central Coast

Central Coast finished 2nd on the A-League table, and earned themselves both a week off in the opening week of the finals, as well as a home semi final this week.

How they got there – Melbourne

Melbourne came back late against Perth Glory last week at Etihad Stadium, eventually running out 2-1 winners after extra time. As they were the higher ranked winning team in week 1 of the finals, they booked a date with the Mariners, who finished in 2nd place during the A-League regular season.

The statistical breakdown

Head to Head: Central Coast 8 wins, Melbourne Victory 9 wins, 7 draws.
Head to Head (Previous 5): Central Coast 1 wins, Melbourne Victory 2 wins, 2 draws.
At Bluetongue Stadium: Central Coast 5 wins, Melbourne Victory 5 wins, 2 draws.
This season: Central Coast 1 … Continue Reading

2012/13 A-League Semi Final
Western Sydney Wanderers vs Brisbane Roar
Friday 12th April. 7:30pm AEST
Venue: Parramatta Stadium, Parramatta
Referee: Alan Milliner
Broadcast: Live on Fox Sports 1/1HD

How they got there – Western Sydney

Western Sydney finished top of the table during the A-League regular season, taking home the premiers plate in their debut season. As such, they earned a week off during the first week of the finals, as well as the right to host a semi final this week.

How they got there – Brisbane

The Roar overpowered Adelaide United last week at Hindmarsh Stadium, holding on in the dying moments for a 2-1 away win. With Melbourne Victory beating Perth last Friday, Brisbane were the lower ranked winning team in week 1 of the finals, and as a result, were drawn to face Western Sydney in Parramatta.

The statistical breakdown

Head to Head: Western Sydney 3 wins, Brisbane Roar 0 wins,0 draws.
Head to Head (Previous 5): Western Sydney 3 wins, Brisbane Roar 0 wins, … Continue Reading

2012/13 A-League Elimination Final
Adelaide United vs Brisbane Roar
Sunday 7th April. 5:00pm AEDT
Venue: Hindmarsh Stadium, Adelaide
Referee: Chris Beath
Broadcast: Live on Fox Sports 2/2HD

How they got there – Adelaide

Adelaide managed a 1-1 draw in Perth in week 27, and coupled with the Victory’s late win in Wellington, the Reds were resigned to taking 4th spot on the A-League ladder and a home final in week 1 of the 2012/13 A-League finals.

How they got there – Brisbane

The Roar took 10 points from their last 5 matches to turn their season around, including a 3-1 win over Sydney last Thursday. That win sealed 5th spot on the ladder for the back-to-back reigning champions, and an away final in week 1 of the finals.

The statistical breakdown

Head to Head: Adelaide United 9 wins, Brisbane Roar 8 wins, 8 draws.
Head to Head (Previous 5): Adelaide United 1 wins, Brisbane Roar 2 wins, 2 draws.
At Hindmarsh Stadium: Adelaide United 6 wins, Brisbane Roar 6 wins, 3 draws.
This … Continue Reading

2012/13 A-League Elimination Final
Melbourne Victory vs Perth Glory
Friday 5th April. 7:30pm AEDT
Venue: Etihad Stadium, Melbourne
Referee: Jarred Gillett
Broadcast: Live on Fox Sports 2/2HD

How they got there – Melbourne

The Victory won their final match away at Wellington 3-2, sealing 3rd place on the ladder and a home final with a 13-5-9 win/draw/loss record.

How they got there – Perth

Perth managed to hold off a fast finishing Adelaide in their final match to share the points with a 1-1 draw. Combined with Sydney’s loss to Brisbane earlier in the week, the Glory qualified in 6th place with superior goal difference to that of Sydney FC. Perth managed 9 wins, 5 draws and 13 losses across the 2012/13 season.

The statistical breakdown

Head to Head: Melbourne Victory 9 wins, Perth Glory 10 wins, 5 draws.
Head to Head (Previous 5): Melbourne Victory 2 wins, Perth Glory 3 wins, 0 draws.
At Etihad Stadium: Melbourne Victory 4 wins, Perth Glory 0 wins, 2 draws.
This season: Melbourne Victory 2 … Continue Reading

Well, another season of fantasy A-League is done and dusted. Thank you to everyone who took part this year, and congratulations to those of you who managed to win yourself a $100 voucher courtesy of Pelé Sports. Also, a big thank you to the kind folks at Pelé Sports who partnered with us to provide some awesome prizes this season.

Overall, our best fantasy manager for 2012/13 was Adam T, whose team amassed an impressive 3,342 points, which saw him ranked 21st overall among all players worldwide.

Week 27 prize winners:

To finish, we need to hand out the last weekly Pelé Sports prize. This week, Adam T (“FC Bench”) and Robert L (“Victory Gunners”) were the top scorers, with 160 points each, a clear 10 points ahead of the next best. Congratulations Adam and Robert, and to claim your $100 Pelé vouchers, simply send us an email at enquiries@ultimatealeague.com.

So, that … Continue Reading

Week 27, the final week of the 2012/13 regular season, provided pulsating games, tight results and the premiers plate, finals spots and wooden spoon all being decided within just 24 hours of each other. So, for the last False Nine Awards of the season, where we hand out 9 completely made-up awards to wrap-up the week that was in the A-League, it’s all about the stunners, howlers, winners, losers and talking points. Let’s get started:

1. “The ‘Howler of the week’ award”

Some honourable mentions for the ‘Howler’ this week to Ryo Nagai, for hitting his penalty attempt into the ground, making it a comfortable save for Eugene Galekovic, and to Newcastle defender Connor Chapman, who for some reason decided to allow the ball to bounce across in front of goal for Mark Bridge to tap in at the far post. But for the sheer surprise factor, we have to hand it to Alessandro Del Piero. Del Piero’s … Continue Reading

We’ve got just one week left of fantasy A-League for the 2013/14 season, but it isn’t over just yet! Week 26 was a trying week for many managers with large amounts of players missing due to injury, international duty or suspension. But, despite all that, there were still 11 goals over the 4 games plus a few red cards to go around, meaning plenty of points were on offer.

There’s just 1 week left in the fantasy A-League season, but you can still sign up to our Ultimate A-League and Pelé Sports A-League fantasy competition, to have the chance to win a $100 Pelé voucher each week. Use the league code 955435 when you sign up at the official A-League fantasy website. For now, though, let’s get on with the week 26 fantasy wrap-up:

Top scoring players:

Thanks to his first-half thunderbolt, Brisbane’s Thomas Broich led all comers this week with a handy 26 points for fantasy managers. Behind him was … Continue Reading

It will all come down to week 27, with two finals spots, a wooden spoon and the premier’s plate all up for grabs across four days of A-League action. Week 26, however, was a heart stopping week of action, with late winners, sending offs, and stunning goals. For this week’s False Nine Awards, where we hand out 9 made-up awards to wrap-up the week that was in the A-League, it’s all about howlers, crowds, goalkeepers, records and brain fades:

1. “The ‘Stunner of the week’ award”

There were some stunning strikes in the A-League this week, so we’ve got a few nominations to hand out. Honourable mentions to Chris Harold, for his across-the-body volley off the inside of the post against the Victory, and to Josh Risdon, for his curling injury time winner against the Victory, with what was his first career A-League goal. But, in our opinion, the best this week came from the Roar v Heart … Continue Reading

Week 25 got us no closer to understanding the makeup of the finals series, with the Wanderers and the Mariners still fighting it out for the premiership, and 5 teams dueling for the 5th and 6th playoff places. For fantasy managers it was a relatively comfortable week for points scoring, with 12 goals offsetting the fact that only one team managed to keep a clean sheet. Compared with the issues fantasy managers will have in week 26, however, week 25 was an absolute cakewalk.

There’s just 2 weeks left in the fantasy A-League season! But you can still sign up to our Ultimate A-League and Pelé Sports A-League fantasy competition, to have the chance to win a $100 Pelé voucher each week. Use the league code 955435 when you sign up at the official A-League fantasy website. For now, though, let’s get on with the week 25 fantasy wrap-up:

Top scoring players:

Courtesy of their 3-1 away win over the Heart, … Continue Reading