Ricciuto buzzing for Waratah Cup Final

Rockdale Ilinden will be looking to secure their first trophy of 2024 when taking on APIA Leichhardt in the Waratah Cup Final on Wednesday. 

Rockdale are currently four points clear on top of the NPL Men’s NSW ladder, needing just one win from their remaining two games to secure the Premiership.

Blake Ricciuto has been crucial to Rockdale’s season with his energy, tenacity and quality playing as both a midfielder and a centre-back, continuing to impress in his second stint at the club.

And beyond all of his qualities on and off the ball, Ricciuto has been Rockdale’s saviour on three occasions this season, having scored a late winner in matches against the Western Sydney Wanderers, NWS Spirit and Wollongong Wolves.

Speaking on the campaign in 2024, Ricciuto said, “At the moment it’s been a great season but we haven’t won anything yet.

“It would be good to get some silverware and keep the momentum going.

“We want to top it off with some silverware and the Cup to say it’s been a good season.”

The Cup is Rockdale’s first chance at grabbing silverware for the season in their first-ever appearance in the Waratah Cup Final.

And their road to the Final wasn’t easy, beginning with a difficult match against Manly United, as Rockdale needed a 93rd Alec Urosevski equaliser and then a penalty shootout to advance past their first match.

Rockdale then beat Hakoah Sydney City East 2-1, before prevailing 2-0 over Wollongong Wolves to progress through the rounds.

“The first game against Manly went to penalty shootouts but we did well, and the start wasn’t easy,” said Ricciuto on their road to the Waratah Cup Final.

“There were some good teams to play at the start of the Cup journey and we got the result which is the most important thing in these Cup matches.”

However, Rockdale then soared, beating Phoenix FC 9-1 to qualify for the Waratah Cup Semi-final, where they subsequently defeated NWS Spirit FC 5-0.

The current NPL Men’s NSW leaders currently have all eyes on the Final, with Ricciuto likely to be a key player and threat with his overall quality and propensity for late-game winners.

“I know with the club, after being here now and with my previous stint, the club is ambitious and wants to win titles,” he said.

“With the calibre of players we have this year, as we’ve shown throughout the league and the other tournaments, we’re here to win something.”

To get a trophy to stamp that we’ve had a good season would mean a lot to us, and we want to get some silverware for the amazing Rockdale fans who always come out and support us no matter what.”

The Waratah Cup Final will kickoff at 7:30pm on Wednesday, the 14th of August at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium.

Purchase your tickets here, or watch the match live on Football NSW’s YouTube Channel with commentary from Tony Tannous and Alex Molchanoff.