A-League: Sydney FC defeats Western Sydney Wanderers 1-0 Special

Sydney - Sydney FC won the first ever Sydney derby against the Western Sydney Wanderers by one goal to nil. Recently imported Italian, 37-year old Alessandro Del Piero, scored the only goal in the 54th minute.

The game started off, lacking in flair and initiative. The game remained goalless at half time. West Sydney Wanders looked vulnerable from the start. Their risky style of play involved short passes deep in their territory, which if a mistake had been made, could have been capitalised on by their opponents. The second half started off better than the first and a penalty lead to Alessandro Del Piero, scoring for Sydney FC. However, this was disallowed. Another penalty was taken, but the WSW keeper blocked the shot, but Piero was well placed to score from the rebound. West Sydney Wanderer fans were the most vocal and the atmosphere in the ground was electric at times. Although the Australians have been slow to take to football or soccer, as it is more commonly referred to locally, enthusiasm for the game has taken off after the recent arrival in Sydney of Alessandro Del Piero and attendance at games is expected to increase. The attendance at the game on Saturday night at Parramatta Stadium was 19,126.

Richard Milnes

The very vocal Western Sydney Wanderers fans (Red & Black Bloc) at Parramatta Stadium.

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Richard Milnes

Western Sydney Wanderers on the attack in the first half of the match.

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Richard Milnes

Sydney FC earn themselves a corner kick.

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Richard Milnes

Sydney FC goal disallowed.

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Richard Milnes

No 10 - Alessandro Del Piero collects the ball to score off the rebound for Sydney FC.

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More images of the match can be seen here.